RTÉ Rugby World Cup podcast: Ireland to lay down a RWC mark, opening week predictions

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s. The Tuesday we spoke to. Darren Cave and James Downey looking ahead to the Rugby World Cup this morning. I also had an interview with Devin Toner on rte.ie forward slash sport or on the Ortiz Board YouTube channel if you want to check it out too and now another Rugby World Cup podcast. Johnny Holland is with me to be in Ireland's lineup to play Romania and we'll look at some of the biggest games coming up this

week

end and we'll go through the various games in a couple of minutes.

Firstly we'll go over the Ireland squad which was actually named this afternoon for Saturday's game against Romania in Bordeaux live on RT radio one, so fullback Hugo Kanan, as expected, Keith Earls and James Lowe are in the bands, Gary ring Rose and bondiaki. Center Johnny Sexton returns from suspension to play in his first game in six months. He is capturing the team from the half alongside Jamison Gibson Park at half. He steps back in front. Andrew Porter. Rob Herring and Tig Furlong in the front row. Joe McCarthy comes in for his uh. In only his second start in an Irish jersey and his fourth appearance, he is in the second row alongside James Ryan and, as a result, little Byrne goes to the back rope.

Blind flanker for him. Peter Amani switches to openside and Kailyn Doris at number eight. bench then Ronan Keller his return from injury Jeremy Lockman and Tom O'Toole and then you have a lot of experience Ian Henderson Josh Van Der vleier Conor Murray Robbie Henshaw and Jack Crowley is the other of the Replacements before we talk to Johnny about This team let's hear what what Andy Farrell and Johnny Sexton had to say about the inclusion of John McCarthy and a few more things besides these questions from ort Sports Justin Tracy Andy is obviously a selection that obviously has a lot of experience and some new faces from John McCarthy starting at second. row, could you give us your opinion on why you go with Joe?

Well, we will see that he deserves it with a form that is confident not only in the games that he has played but also in his preparation over the last 10 11 weeks. he really progressed in his game, he has the opportunity to start in the first game of the World Cup, with a good pair starting and keeping his lot, lot of experience there, well, we have a lot of experience and a good combination of youth. within our team, so when we get to this stage you will know that we have a group of 33. We have a pretty good team, so it will always be a strong team, yes, the obvious question is, yes, drive.

Playing for Ireland again is always special. I think it's very special when it comes to the World Cup so I'm really happy to be back in the team and I'm really looking forward to it so we've just heard Andy Farrell and Johnny Sexton. that clip Johnny and I suppose before we get into the weeds of the actual selections in the individual selections you are realistically talking about 12 of what we would consider Ireland's 15 strongest in top form, maybe the likes of Mack will be included Hanson is fit, Dan Sheehan and possibly Josh Vander Fleer come in and push back into the second row ahead of Joe McCarthy against a team like Romania, it's a big statement of intent, yes, and I think we were. kind of predicting that it would be strong, but we just predicted this strength that they've put in uh, you know, I think so, you put in maybe three changes and you have all the strength and one or two of those aren't really possible. this weekend, so, um, it's very, very strong.

I expected, as you know, I expected that there would probably be two or three of the group not selected. I taught Andrew Porter to Tony winding. He wasn't sure if they were going to be eliminated. He probably expected two of the kind of um, the other one, the other five in the package. I was expecting two changes there and we saw Joe McCarthy come in and we see Josh make flashes that are left out, but like the other Forest players anywhere today. So maybe not as many changes that I saw, I thought I would see and I actually didn't see, I didn't think Jameson Gibson Parkway would play, I thought you'll get a combination of the other two, I thought Murray would start Sexton. and he lets Jameson come to Park and start Sexton against hunger, so it surprises me, it makes me think about what he's really going to do against Tango, but that's for after Saturday, well, without being complacent, thinking about that match against Tonga and South.

So Africa I also imagine a lot of the head coaches of the contending nations are making a sort of road map for a lot of their teams and I think from Andy Farrell's point of view you've got arguably the easiest game. in the last first match against Romania, obviously it is not a lack of respect towards them, but they are very far behind in the

world

ranking and they have had a disastrous preparation campaign by losing to teams that had not even qualified for the tournament and had . If it hadn't been for Spain playing a great success in the qualification process, Romania would have had to go through the playoffs by itself, so we are not talking outside of school disrespecting them, but you know that you can play with a first team here. potentially scoring and then mixing and matching things a bit, resting a couple of bigger players against Tonga to give them a free weekend ahead of South Africa, that's how we're playing 4G chess looking ahead to all of these things or is this how the head coach can do that so as not to be called complacent ultimately, no, it is very difficult, but I think with the team he has he is not going to be complacent because you put Joshua and the Fleer Ian Henderson in back in Ronan Keller has to get a start at some stage down she and has to go start at some point and you're talking about before South Africa in two games so not everyone can start from now and then you're looking to Robbie.

Henshaw, if you pick Robbie Henshaw for bondiaki on the bench, no one would say he's a weak pick, so you actually have a couple of positions you can swap them around and no one in their right mind would say you're weaker, you know? so I actually thought this was the one that might be one or two. I thought he would have this. I really have it, but I thought it would have gotten stronger as we went on, but now it has gotten so strong, so I think it will stay as a strong for Tonga because they really attract, as you know, they are the strongest language on the inside that we've probably seen with a couple of guys, um they kind of change their allegiances according to the laws, but I think the way it goes. now it's going to be, you know, I think from my perspective anyway, they're trying to achieve cohesion and they'll achieve that this week and next week, but I think the most important thing here is You can see that you know the selections and the things that the guys they need a certain amount of minutes just because they're aiming doesn't mean they're going to play 60 and get destroyed like you know so you're going to see a lot of changes probably in the middle. time, if things go as planned and you get enough, if they see enough and they see enough connections and cohesion, as we always say those buzzwords, then I think you can make the changes pretty early.

I don't think they're going to be thinking about racking up a score because I think if the Irish team drives at home but racks up a score it's because they expect to lose somewhere else and I don't think they're planning on that, you know, we might be thinking about that in 60. the points are shared and everything else, but I don't think they're going to think that way, they're backing 100 to beat Scotland, but now you can see that for me it's a bit of a split group, our division. As you know, I probably wouldn't say you're guaranteed it, but you'll have three games, then you'll have Scotland and it's most likely going to be a huge assumption and you're hoping to have a quarter-final, so I'm almost thinking of it now as a sort of division, you know, speed up, do your thing against Romania, come off the field like Johnny Saxon, James Gibson Park, whoever else says Furlong, maybe, um, do it again, come on. 40 50 minutes again against hunger they trained you to work early and finish them early I guess the risk is that you don't work early against hunger and suddenly you're taking some hits you don't want to take a weekend away from South Africa, you know, like that Which I think is funny trying to name all these things because we can have our assumptions, we're not on the ground, we're not useful, we're not their group, you know?

They have their own ways of thinking about it. You have to call him something, but it's very difficult to get into his head, like you know clearly. He's kept us on our toes since the selection of Mack Hanson and the Six Nations, it's anyone's guess. what he's really going to do and he's done it again this time, yeah, and one of those Joe McCarthy Like It finally came out of nowhere. I was talking to Devin Tone earlier in the week and was asking him about when Joe McCarthy made his Leinster debut he just came back in January 2022 and here he is just 18 months later he's still 22 but okay it's against Romania but he's starting a game at the Rugby World Cup and even a few months ago, I think well, most of us were.

I'm quite impressed with the level of progression he's made over the last 12 months. I think the fact that he had maybe missed the Six Nations through injury, some of us probably thought his chance at the World Cup was over, but if you look at the performances. He did it over the summer, firstly against Italy when it started and I think secondly, that's just as important, um, 25 minutes against England in the second of those warm-up games and he had a wild impact in those 25 minutes. . everything that moved was a constant threat he brought incredible physicality and he is the type of natural physical player that we have probably struggled to produce in recent years and, as Andy Farrell has said, it is not just about the games he has played but of the level of The professionalism is brought during the campaign of the last 10 11 weeks in the camp and it is a completely deserved start and it will be really interesting to see how it goes.

I think you can see how his farm completely changes. I know he's been playing in a

rugby

group and everything else, but he's young like you said and you know he's the closest thing to a bouldering anti-fire for a World Cup because he's been pretty bad for the last while, but As you're saying there it made its debut on January 22nd. It'll put it into perspective, but that's probably what a rock he is these days, but I thought he was a little immature in his game, which isn't that surprising when he's young, but I thought he was a little immature in his player in Rock and stuff, maybe defensively too.

I thought he got caught, he would have been prone to giving up a lot of penalties, yeah, I thought that and I thought defensively he was prone to maybe. making assumptions and doing small cardio but around the rock unlike James Ryan when he came on the scene and hit everything coming back there so I thought he had his weaknesses like that but it was like you saw the change you could see quite clearly this summer, the way he showed up, he's like the person we expected to show up for no reason, we just expected everyone to talk about him, but he came right at the right time. and I think his track record now makes him a serious option for Ireland, obviously they're seeing him training for a World Cup clash, they see him all day, you know, most days, and I think Andy Farrell He does well that way.

He puts a lot of emphasis on how they train and how they present themselves and obviously, like you said, professionalism, but I think his performance in games has been really impressive. We obviously knew he was going to be a physical guy in Wrecking Ball. He's a great guy, but he brings discipline to his game and a little bit of structured parts, where you don't let the system down. I think that's what's really gotten him over the line and it's going to be exciting to watch. what he does, I know it's Romania, I know we're trying not to disrespect him, it's one of those games where if he doesn't play very well he probably won't get selected in the language game unless there's a bigger plan. , but I like it and So if he plays very well, it's just Romania, you know what I mean, but he's still within a very strong visanza series within that group, then you know he's got something, he's up to something and Maybe there will be a change and the car will move on, you know?

Yes, and talking about changing cards in the future leads very well to the idea of ​​the tiger and moving from the second row to the back row, which is what Joe McCarthy has facilitated now, is something that has been talked about a lot in the last years. which is an option for Farrell to have where he had Ian Henderson and Tyburn, who had that second and back row versatility. Do you think there are two different teams, but playing in the back row is potentially a bit complicated? Test for the option to potentially do that against South Africa later in the group.

I think it's a test for some kind of sap force, you know, if you put duct tape there to keep the peace, uh, Karen Darius, like... all these guys arethere and then you have two two second rules there as well. I think Ian Henderson can play that role too, but you know Ty Brown is probably a plus six note when you put it that way when they're talking about hybrids and you're almost doing to South Africa what they've done to the rest of the

world

by choosing a second roll but Tyburn has never been in the second row anyway, do you mean the number eight player for Scarlets? uh, if I remember correctly, he naturally plays that role, uh, I guess he's the best, or the most natural person to put in that role and maybe it's just to see how the how to say peace goes, because you think about it, it's another second role. but with regards to the six now on the line, um defensively as much as anything else, but you still have wrecking ball Joel McCarthy in the middle destroying someone's models, so you get a lot of use out of that and maybe be a bit of an advance. about them, but it will be interesting to see where they go, that they love him if he was a South African tiger, yeah, just thinking about when you were talking there as Razzie Erasmus, I imagine he would love to find a South African grandfather.

The Line in in the lineage of Thai Burns, one last part on Joe McCarthy and got us thinking about the pop-up tour of Ireland from South Africa last September, he said yes, from September to early October and obviously he was much maligned in that moment. people were criticizing whether it was a useless undertaking if the people in the store were going to go to the World Cup, look at Joe McCarthy, who is involved there, uh, Jack Crowley, who is obviously also on the bench this weekend and then guys who missed it. in the Ireland team itself, but people like Tom Stewart, um, Keane Prendergast, uh Osborne, who were there, it's that emerging Arlington or something that has aged quite well over the last 12 months, absolutely, it's very good, I think is the Irish management will look back and see that everyone involved in organizing the tour will think that they know they are the force to see how it was going to work and I think at that time we probably got the idea of ​​this, let's go back to the idea of but the games didn't really turn out to be as competitive as you'd like, but even getting John McCarthy something.

I know I was probably going to get there anyway, but I think Jack Crowley was the real one that came up. it was because from there he took that to his Club Farm changed things in his Club it was really from that tour having that all that time with the trainers I know they supported it and liked it I think my cat was a fan of them too so it was that moment in the environment that led him through his club, which in a sense led him back to Ireland, like in the time with them, as well as, um, it's been and when you spoke to the people who got it.

When they left they were there, not everyone would say they were big shocks but people were frustrated because there was no space for them so everyone was knocking on the door and that's the kind of team that Andy Farrell wanted to build because he said in In the past you would need 40 players now, whether in the warm-up until the end of the world cup or not, and people flying back and forth. I'm not quite sure where the understanding is, but as he mentioned that so many players will be needed and he has already used so many options available, you know, earlier in the week, as I said with James Downey and Darren Cave on Tuesday's podcasts that they're still there, I'll probably get your podcast. on YouTube too for those who missed it, but obviously we were talking about centers and who would be Ireland's first choice for the South Africa game or any of those really important games that they thought was good to start with, it was Gary Ringrose and another and the only request they landed on was Robbie Henshot now for this week Bondiaki is with uh ring Rose, you have Henshaw on the bench uh a YouTube comment and on the podcast from a couple of days ago as well and we want to hear from the biggest as many people as possible and these things so that we can get your comments, leave it on YouTube, send us a tweet at Neil, underline Tracy or hashtag or hashtag RT

rugby

so that we can get your comments, but someone, um, here it is.

Here kieron3773 Henshaw is probably the most well-rounded talent, but in my opinion Aki has been our most effective player at 12 during the program and Farrell were, where would you sit in terms of center? uh he traditionally would have done it. They thought Hedgehog and called Rose, but I like if it's me not watching enough games or because Robbie Henshaw's availability has also been low. I just don't think he's played enough rugby for you to have an evidence base on that, I think. bondiaki as you know, he's definitely one of these players too when you appear in the photo with him or I confronted him, I know how much it hurts, as you know, that counts for a lot, you know, it's the intangibles of us that we watch on TV um, but he is a physical man, he is a Beast, as you know, so that comes from that, it doesn't mean that Robbie and Charles are nothing, he is a very intelligent player and his board of many chain servers in one attack, I think Robbie.

Henshaw is arguably a better defensive center. I got criticized for criticizing Bondiaki when it was an everyday game he was coming back to and he made a couple of defensive mistakes. It was that he had a wild game against Italy in the Six Nations, yes, with the ball, he was probably as good as has been seen in 18 months, but he had some defensive errors, yes, he did, and I guess I don't want to make assumptions about this game that stands out. me, but there were a couple of defensive mistakes that you wouldn't have ruled out, as you know, but in attack he was very good and he had to try there recently, where he is in the inside support and Also, from Pete, wasn't it when he went through where the point guy kind of passed through the line and Bondiaki was on the end, so he's a really good player and I think when you get that kind of physicality?

Inside, you better move on and he is physically confrontational. I don't think he likes any center going through and if you look at the two centers South Africa could play with, I know we're moving up to almost South Africa here. but that's basically what's happening, it's all relevant, you know, that's where we're going, you know, and trying to find a game will hold them back, like Robbie Henshaw is so physical too and has all those strings for the two of us, so it's going to be very complicated. um I was just chatting to my friends from home today and they're talking like you know Robbie and Shaw Ken, he's like Johnny Sexton, for some reason he forces him to play rugby and he comes back.

I only give you a 9 out of ten and I would totally support him doing that minigame, but it's harder when Bondiaki has a lot under his belt and you know you can back him to do the job too, but it's a lovely position because, like I told you , you know you can pick three in every center and no one thinks everyone thinks it's just a pick that won't get it off the ball, but yeah, you're a guy. I guess you have the option to be very physical if you want to go with Robbie Henshaw and bondiaki when I think Gary Ring Rose is so good if you watch sometimes you can catch the camera when he goes behind and get some replays and you see some of the positions to carry those you take and he gets to the other side of the field, you wouldn't think there was much time to do a Swing type attack or the fence he does that people will talk about. his Miss tackers and then a lot of other people talking about oh yeah but we want to get caught in a movie taco and all this kind of discussion but I think he's the only kind of players you can see at the tournament. with someone who I love to watch, you know, so I think he's a bit like he has to be an airline, um unless you go with a different game plan against South Africa and you have to be a right bully, but I don't think let it be the way Ireland play and I don't think it's the way they're going to act against South Africa because in a sense that's the wrong game, yeah, Rose sounds.

I hate you, I hate the X Factor cliché, but you kind of line up. the four Irish centers together and you know, they play better trumps with what they have, like he's the one who has that little something special that's something extra on top um about Aki, but you said you played against him out of curiosity. I know what position he played when you played against him because I remember he was a forward playing on the wing when he first came to Connex and I was wondering where you were at outside half with him standing in front of you. you at 12, crashing in your death throes or did you have a little protection and distance between you in the field oh you didn't have any protection or just well you had a little protection Rory Scandal crossing my channel but he was 12 and I remember that he was moving at one point and I tackled him and I still got hit in the back of my head and I got tackled face down like I don't know how it happened I actually went for Hello look that day but I didn't have a concussion, like he came back or came out anyway, um, but it was because of bondiaki, like he had a wild run, he caught his head and moved here and there, he can move like you.

You know it and he still knows it. I don't know which way he's 300 pounds, he's definitely up there, so he's not a big man to run at you when he can actually change direction pretty late, but as you know, uh, so no, um, I don't miss a day in the sports room trying to deal with that moving thing, so yeah, that's the thing, although you know there are people who would say I don't like playing against it or against you. I know when you face someone on the ground you don't realize how big the international centers are.

I remember looking up John and Davey's stats and you think, "Oh, he can move when he plays with a smile for the ball anyway and he weighs 110 kilos." I couldn't figure it out on the slow days, Francis says and I remember being on the scale with him and he was 102 kilos and he was playing for 10 and like he was smashed too so he said yeah probably 90 95 98 or something like that, he's up. over 100 and you understand then when they get the game, I mean, and you know the game in their land in the world, uh, when they're doing all that to reconcile the breakdown, you start to understand a little bit more when you're watching. on TV, when you remember their size, you know we trained against Monster a couple of weeks ago without their World Cup players in Karkana, I think we talked to that, but I've been in that environment and it's probably been a couple of years obviously, but even the people around me who have been in that environment we were looking at their size and these are Club players when you look at International Players, they are big men and it is hugely forgiving. but that center goes back to um, going to Tanga and then further into South Africa, like you're talking about big physical players.

Gary Ring Rose reserves a tendency, there's some of that, but he's so good at what he does, um, he really reads the game. well he's uh I think it has to be Nayla yeah I did in a rude awakening when we started getting back to in person press events and press conferences after the undercover and I think we cut them out. Like a lot of us journalists forgot how great some of these players had been during the two years that we were doing everything on Zoom and in the teams, um, we'll move away from Ireland and into some of the other games first, although, um, I want to tell you some news for any of our listeners who have young children interested in rugby.

I want to tell you about a new Orti Kids series called rock and roll that will accompany the Rugby World Cup on RT platforms. It will be published on the RT player and on the RT Kids YouTube channel, which will be weekly starting this Saturday, September 9, and is expected to bring the excitement of the Rugby World Cup to young audiences across the country. Presenters Sean Tracy and Mary. Claire Fitzpatrick will visit a new rugby club each week and talk to some of the country's biggest fans and put them through their paces with some tests and challenges, and we'll chat to some of the women.

Also the 15's rugby team and the men's sevens players, so that's rock and roll, it starts this Saturday with weekly episodes on the T Player YouTube channel and RT Kids on YouTube, if you want to know a little more about us um, the fun, obviously, of the The tournament starts this Friday, Johnny, and talk about a game that will help us get started with France against New Zealand at 8:15 p.m. m., start time, Irish time, live on rt2 and RT player coverage very early from 6:45 too. I think there is a lot to achieve. Overnight on rt2 in France for months I've had them as my winners, it's like it's been unfair even after Ireland beat them in the Six Nations.

I just thought the friends were going to get better, they were missing out. a couple of players at that time as well, but I don't know, I don't know, it's just the fact that the World Cup is already here, but it came this weekend when the team arrived yesterday and they had to do it. play against New Zealand look well, we know CyrilThe boy was going to be the last in the first row um Roman Entimac obviously left Paul Valente also in the second row a huge player in a figurative and literal sense and Jonathan Dante thelast to go now I know that Cyril Bai and Dante are probably going to I'll be back soon too, but am I right or right to doubt them or is it just the fact that the tournament is getting a little closer?

I'm thinking too much about us, well I have the same feelings and I played exactly the same thing in the Six Nations that I thought they kept their cars closer to their chest in the Six Nations today. I thought they were happy enough to be where they were. I don't think for some reason at the This time I thought their feelings weren't that they needed to go win and obviously they have the home field advantage. There will be pressure with that, but obviously it allows you to cross the line as well in a tight game, so I had exactly the same feelings as you. and then when you look at the size of the players, both literally and metaphorically, um, which they're lacking at the beginning anyway, then I think the momentum is moving away from them, they're smaller, but she's too dumb, apparently already You know.

It's just that they're still ridiculous, like we've been talking about their team for so long that you can't start to doubt them because they're missing four players, so yeah, someone wants to come back sometime, but I think John. Andante is a big loss. I think the gap between him and Mothana isn't, and I think the gap is big. I just think it's very destructive and it's the things you don't hit that are the things you don't. You don't see it, of course you see it, but like it's in the first phase of breakout, you make his entrance or he'll beat the game.

Lane is so foreign as we have this kind of romantic version of what he was going to do with the Also in the World Cup, and even immediately after I came on I got injured, he was saying obviously it's a huge blow for the player and it's a quality player, but you know that Shadow Bear is good enough to play in almost any other country in the world. the tournament and it's just the fact that he's behind Mac, like that's not a huge loss compared to other areas of the field, not if he says fish, but that's how you depend on him for a lot of rugby as well as France.

They have a difficult path to win anything and they also have a very difficult side to draw, as we do, so you know it's them, you prefer and you will be much more confident if you start your campaign. and you have both available obviously you have two workshop teams and that is very, very difficult to stop because I think you have seen it with Ireland in the past 2015. I think in particular you know you lose players and they are great players for Ireland and I think all of them, even if you look at the team at the moment, we would be very supportive of our team, but if you lose any combination of Port or Furlong Sexton, you know. you yourself are starting to deal with a little bit more, so that's what's happening in France at the moment and, you know, Paul Williams says they're obviously huge within the group as well and suddenly they don't look like the group noisy. that's what you used to see, but I still think you know if you watch their pack against New Zealand tomorrow night, they still have the pack, you know they're still going to be the bigger ones and the ones that are probably going to.

If you press the game, you'll see a very French Rumble when they get to 22. Um, wow, what a game to start the tournament with, especially when it has so much to do with Ireland's potential path to success. It's very good to start with, but the one I'd be watching, I know they won't add directly to each other, but Aldrin and I already looked at them, some of the two on a farm, AIDS, really, yeah Look at Karen Darius too, they're players enormous than they do it in a World Cup

opening

match on a Friday night. How do you see New Zealand's reaction to what happened against South Africa?

They made four changes. two of them are forced: Jordy Barrett is out and Tara Lomax is out injured. Anton Leonard Brown comes in, Nepola comes in and then the tactical change is that Cody Taylor and Dalton Papa Lee also join the group, so obviously there's been some action for me. and Foster, but if you're talking about four changes and two of them are injuries, it certainly doesn't seem like there was an overreaction to what happened at Twicken a couple of weeks ago, no, but I think there was an overreaction to what they were doing. to Australia too, you know, where we don't really know we're in New Zealand?

Yes, they look, they are overrun with animals in a sense, anyway, I know they have had a couple of difficult times. but they have also had a couple of victories, you know they like it, they know what is happening in the world cup and I think that will help them. Josh Smith is very tactically intelligent. You know, they have a I think I have a lot of knowledge, but the All Blacks are always very good and you could see that tomorrow night you saw with the Lions tour, was it the first test or the second test?

The first test, I think they just changed the script completely. They played everything from the tower and you expected a couple more passes and they really adjusted their game plan, but it wasn't seen as a negative, it was a real tactical awareness of what the lions were going to try to bring to the table in terms of the nine. speed and they played within it, so I think they are very good, maybe changing the image and just ambushing a team and South Africa, but I think that's where their weakness will be, if they will deal with the packages at the top level um, and their tactical knowledge will take them through some of the biggest games repeatedly, maybe once, but can they do it against three of the best sites to go all the way as you know when After this game, we look at what What happens when the design of the group stage is similar to when New Zealand and South Africa were together in the same group in 2019, where they met first and New Zealand won their but ultimately South Africa had the luxury of having the teams in their group to be able to pick up the pieces and confidently reach the quarterfinals, whoever wins this weekend. pieces before the knockout stage, like, for example, if France loses the first home game in the tournament, is it a little different than the South Africa defeat in 2019, where they were still flying under the radar?

Is it too simplistic to simply compare? 2019 until this um I don't think it's because I was um I was even saying about Ireland like you know losing a game you would hope it would be okay. I don't know if you'd expect this, but if you lose the South Africa game, you beat Scotland, you go to the quarter-finals, you're going to play one of those two teams anyway, unfortunately it could be France at that stage, you might say. which unfortunately is New Zealand, so they might be in good shape and all that. All of a sudden, you know, you get on the forum and we thought they might have been hitting before South Africa, a massive loss, but like they were on a trajectory there, everyone was saying they were the forum team, but they were in Australia playing against a Team Australian, but we don't really know what's going on, but I think you already know.

Long, long, short answer. It's just unfortunate for Ireland because in a sense they can get through Romania, have a good game against Tanga, hopefully, and then play him. South Africa, but if they lose that one you're up against, you know Clocky Scottish, so he's not really a modern Clocky, a very good Scotsman, so it's a very dangerous attack, you just hope he runs out of sales on that one. moment. and maybe that's the advantage of playing Scotland last if they get beaten this weekend, which they could, then maybe they don't have enough to pick up the pieces, but if you lose the first game you can lose the game as Sean's South Africa um and pick it up, but I think there was so much togetherness and story to tell and Razzie kept them all together, do you know if one would ever kill them? last and I'm not sure in France if France loses I think the confidence that the public will have in them New Zealand their confidence will go Ireland will start to question their game plan you know I think they're a little more um I think they're a little more solid in that now than what they were under Josh Smith's guys because it was explained to them a lot when it didn't work, it didn't work, but I think you can get through the tournament losing a game and I still get there, I think there's enough time and anyway , you're going to be there in such a tough quarter-final, so you're going to have to pick up the pieces if you're going to be away for that long, you know, quite a few. more little bits to pass quick verdicts, although France New Zealand eh, I'm past France, okay, no, yeah, I don't think you'll get over it.

I don't like him, sorry, I prefer Jordy Barrett too, although no. I don't think that's the full answer from 12. I think the banking line that he brought against Argentina I thought was too difficult to stop. I'm not sure Anton Nina Brown is doing it as much as Scotland, South Africa, Scotland, South Africa is the Quiet game in the evening on Sunday, I think at 4:45 Irish time, it kind of goes back to something we mentioned earlier , where you said you didn't expect Ireland to necessarily try to score against Romania, coming to us on Twitter Rome mcf says Scotland beat Box this weekend and the potential for a three-win team not making the quarter-finals grows exponentially what are the odds now?

I'm not necessarily saying Scotland will beat South Africa, but there is a chance in this group. that you meet one of the top three teams and one of them beats each other and you have all three teams finishing with three wins and all of a sudden the point difference becomes really really important um before obviously just Let's mention Scotland South. Africa, I mean, accumulating a total of points against Romania would be quite important, as a security practice. I know you're trying to get away from the mentality of accepting the fact that you could lose a game in the future, but that's realistic, I think you have to get this game going, we could lose the game here and as you know, I think you have to do it.

I think the overly positive person will think, oh, should we win the games anyway and then you won't win the? games and it's like you know what happens next so I think you have to contaminate that way but I think the old cliche of the process and all that I think if Ireland are looking for that cohesion they are just going to increase that score anyway if they have difficulties. I don't think they're going to force it to make the score true because it's not happening like you know. I think it will happen as a byproduct of how they appear if you're that strong, you know, but I think you mentioned it there, if Scotland lose the South Africa game in the first game, they have time to get there and they get upset in the last one, you know that They do, they are so close to getting that victory, so they are dangerous, but I don't see them beating South Africa.

Obviously they played a very good game against the French in the second half, but that French team is not what we are going to see. I don't think so, so I get the feeling that you obviously think that South Africa will have too much for Scotland this weekend, but as you pointed out the fact that Scotland, ultimately, if they were in one of their two games. against South Africa and Ireland they are very likely to qualify, so they have the option to go all out this weekend and throw everything they have at it. I think we'll probably see them try it in a similar way. to how they did away from home against France Insanity in and for that reason alone, regardless of who wins this game at the weekend, I can't wait to see what Scotland throw at South Africa, even if I do.

I think South Africa would still have enough to deal with that, they will throw absolutely everything at them because I think if you were in Scotland, I can't imagine them thinking, you know what we're talking about, it's the closest thing to a free kick like me. I feel like they could have done it, it's a free kick, but I guarantee you within their camp, how disrespectful to say we have a free kick, they expect to win that game, as you know in Scotland they back themselves to win that and cause such an upset eh, they wouldn't see it as an upset, you know, but like with Finn Russell, his centers in Farm really cause a lot of problems, but I think South Africa again too long in an instant, they are.

They are very good at rugby tournaments. I think they are going to be squeezed. They are going to force them. They'll probably put the ball in the mall. I think they will be too smart. They won't try to play. Let's squeeze that game out and stop Scotland from being Scotland, you know? But I think we're lucky to be able to see that first because unfortunately injuries or red cars will be part of this game or the World Cup, and you know. From Ireland's perspective, if Scotland gets a bit of a ham and takes some physical hits, sorry, not a hammer because I don't think they get a hammer, but if they get a beating and then a physical beating, you know, one or two of those players are not what you would want, but if they don't suddenly recover, Scotland will look like a different team, but they finished a group.

You know and fortunately they have for us, they have the hardest game first and you might be able to solve them a little bit more, but it has to be a cracker, I mean, like the two games they want to start. It's Friday night andmatch between South Africa and Scotland is huge. I think I would back Scotland to cause such an upset if Finn Russell is on the farm and I think South Africa have one or two weaknesses. I don't think Manny Lavacas is what they would want in terms of his type of tournament experience, but the rest will remain and I think his coaches are too smart and, uh, you call them smart, but it's their mindset and their type of psychological advantage, I think I've got that one, yeah, it's going to be brilliant.

I've almost taken up too much of your time. A little more, very, very quick for our questions. When I say rapid fire, one word answers are more than enough and the other couple of games. weekend standard England Argentina who are winning this England by a second there Wales Fiji with a couple of prayer

predictions

from the tournament then um winner I can't say Ireland like it makes me too nervous uh uh South Africa South Africa where will Ireland end up? I don't know if it's the answer: player of the tournament or player you're most looking forward to seeing because tournament mayor is too easy.

You could just say Dupont, but I think he's eager to see it once the brands do it. The business depends on everyone together, but Jordan? I think he is very good. I hope he becomes president well. Which team will disappoint as much as I said? England will be in Argentina. England will still disappoint, but they could put the teams under pressure. It's just not going to be positive enough to get a little bit of momentum with them, um, England, and then the last Dark Horse and when I say Dark Horse, win it or just make a bit of a splash in the group stage, pick maybe. a famous victory without necessarily qualifying, but someone someone to just cause a little bit of chaos in this tournament, some team to cause a little bit of chaos.

Now I contradict myself, but Argentina will cause a scandal in that group and then Scotland will also cause two. Of them, Scotland, I think just because of the way the groups are distributed, nothing is going to be that surprising. Okay, I'm really worried that you predicted South Africa to win and Scotland to win because of a surprise I'm having. I'm getting worried, Johnny, well that's the best I can see because I mean, are they happy enough for him? Well, it won't be, but I will be. I will be. I'd love to be around, but I just think, uh. you know the opposition is not going to like it, they are also simple, there are two clear favorites in each group, although there is Scotland, which is the data group, obviously, and then Argentina is such a good team when they get going , are the only ones who could be considered a kind of Dark Horse with Scotland.

I don't think the others are going to do much damage, as people might say Fiji, but I don't know, not in a tournament, well, we'll find out more. over the weekend and I'm sure we'll be chatting with you anyway, you'll have your Cali mode on on Tuesday as usual and I'm sure we'll be chatting with you on the podcast over the next few weeks as well. Johnny Holland, thank you millions, that's all from the RT Rugby World Cup podcast, bon voyage to all those heading to Bordeaux, whether it's this afternoon or early tomorrow on Saturday morning, we'll be back for another podcast next Tuesday, We will talk to you and then abroad.