Would Ireland really prefer to play Wales?

Don't get me wrong, the historic win against Australia was vitally important. It has given us so much confidence and belief. But as far as the 'advantage' of topping the group goes, i'm not sure its an advantage at all. I honestly am worried about playing wales. They are on fine form and they have the advantage of familiarity. With SA only beating them 17-16, are we really much better off if we top the group in the short term?

Also, it would annoy me so much more if Wales beat us to the semis than if SA beat us to get there.

But sure... none of those options are gona happen!

yeah we're looking for revenge for 95. You'd better watch out Ireland!

There's no easy games in the QF. I'll just be glad to get there again after an 8 year wait!

Given SA's current form and experience I'd rather play Wales but beating either side will take a huge performance.

Wales narrowly beat us in the 6N but they(Wales) have improved massively since then but I think our player know the Welsh players well and will know what they need to do to have a chance of winning.

Given Northern Hemisphere record of beating Southern Hemisphere teams in WC its a no brainer. Yes Ireland would much rather play Wales.

It now makes it a 50/50 game rather than an unlikely 20 / 80 chance of winning

I think Ireland would prefer to play Wales if they had the "underdog" tag (that magical fictional tag that cant encourage a performance of balls, skill and fitness from a team that they somehow are unable to produce if seen as the team that will most likely win the match).

This tag seems to affect ireland more than anyone else and really brings our their (and I've mentioned it before) intense-rucking game. Thats what scares me about Ireland.

Personally, I think a Wales vs Ireland QF could be a spectacular game. Some huge ball carriers in either side and enough players on the pitch to make the impossible happen for either side.

That, and I can only see SA growing stronger as the tournament progresses.

ps, it seems my cheering for you guys paid off, congratulations

I think if we do get an Ireland v Wales 1/4 final (and Italy and Fiji will have something to say first) then both coaches will be suggesting that the other team are favourites - In their last 3-4 matches to date however Wales have been urecogniseable from the 6 Nations team.

I'd be happier with a quarter final against Ireland than a quarter final against Australia. But having said that, our record against Ireland over the last twenty or so years is pretty lousy.

I think both sides would be happier and rightly so with the draw as its poised now, but as op said, for us supporters it would feel worse losing to you than Aus- even though if Wales are out i ll be supporting Ireland as always. For the both teams i think there is the problem that neither really feel or are an underdog, which both nations like so even though the opposition is worse it almost feels harder(cos we expect a win for once). either way good luck both, if we beat fiji(please god)

Much happier thanks.

yes not by much though.

The South Africans have the raow power to bludgeon our pack to death even with us playing well.

They may not be wold beaters in the backs however neither are we. They have experience that the Aussies just do not have and a goalkicker who does not miss very often. Happy we are on course to avoid them if we beat Italy.

Likewise Wales will be happier to play us and not Aus

I dunno actually. You Ireland showed how to beat Australia and I think that Wales could dominate their pack and have the defence to hold them out as well. Ireland have our number but I do think Wales could take ya

I wouldn't under estimate the physicality the welsh team would have had to endure to reach the QF. They would be very battle hardened and gained a lot from the hard grafting.

In all honesty though I'm dubious about making any QF predictions until after the Fiji match....

Ireland have to beat Italy first!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

akaredtop wrote:Ireland have to beat Italy first!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

To top the group, not to qualify.

The point being, SA are off form. Wales are on form. If some people felt playing SA would be preferable, losing to Italy would set that up.

clivemcl wrote:
The point being, SA are off form.

cough cough....did you see SA against Fiji? If thats them off form then we're all fecked!

SA off form! I don't think SA are ever off form. I think they've timed their run exactly right and in my eyes they are favourites for the cup.

Yes Italy looked good against Russia this morning but let's get this in perspective. It was Russia!

I still expect to see an Ireland Wales quarter final. If you can't get up early for that then there's something wrong with you...

No, we're still off form.

clivemcl wrote:

akaredtop wrote:Ireland have to beat Italy first!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

To top the group, not to qualify.

The point being, SA are off form. Wales are on form. If some people felt playing SA would be preferable, losing to Italy would set that up.

If they lose to Italy they might not qualify. Aus will get bonus point wins against US and Rus which wil bring them to 15 points. We assume Irl will get bonus win against Rus bringing them to 13 points. If Italy get bonus win win against US (quite possible) they will be on 10 points. A narrow win for Italy over Irl will put them both on 14 points.

mckay1402 wrote:yeah we're looking for revenge for 95. You'd better watch out Ireland!

And we're out for revenge too

greybeard wrote:

mckay1402 wrote:yeah we're looking for revenge for 95. You'd better watch out Ireland!

And we're out for revenge too

What chances an Ireland victory after a try from an illegally taken quick line out throw?

Yeah, i remember a certain Paul honiss decision and a quick tap being allowed while the boks were on conference under the poles as well.

Remember that Rodders?

In all seriousness, all teams get those badly made decisions that cost them games.

roddersm wrote:

greybeard wrote:

mckay1402 wrote:yeah we're looking for revenge for 95. You'd better watch out Ireland!

And we're out for revenge too

What chances an Ireland victory after a try from an illegally taken quick line out throw?

We'll kick every penalty for touch

Anybody know what Irelands record is against Wales since the start of the Professional era?

No, but i checked the last ten meetings the other day and if i remember correctly it was 7 wins to Ireland.

Professionalism,! 25 years ago! RWC history - it all means Pants! There's nothing between these 2 hear and now and that's what matters.

http://www.rugbydata.com/wales/ireland/gamesplayed

BlueMuff wrote:Anybody know what Irelands record is against Wales since the start of the Professional era?

17 matches, Ireland have 12 wins, Wales 5.

In Ireland the score is 6-3 to Ireland.
In Wales it's 5-2 to Ireland.
There was one match played in England in 1999, while the MS was being built, which Ireland won.

And when it comes to the crunch and winning games that really matter Wales have had 2 Grand Slams in 5 years and Ireland 1 in 70 years - All really relevant stuff eh!

RubyGuby wrote:And when it comes to the crunch and winning games that really matter Wales have had 2 Grand Slams in 5 years and Ireland 1 in 70 years - All really relevant stuff eh!

Rubes, i'll get there before anyone else does, if we're talking about winning matches that really matter, surely we should look at their most recent results in important games.....

Ireland vs australia

Wales vs S Africa

and we all know how they ended!

and to all, say "Rubes" out loud, has to be one of the most satisfying words to say.

This is about Wales v Ireland yes I think we would have a strong chance of beating Ireland,

Also when was the last time Wales won a HCup or got to a semi final.

The O's have done well in the Magners sporadically however.

How many players off each team would the other want?

Ireland:
Bradley Davies (maybe for DOC)
Philips (maybe for Reddan)
Roberts (for Darcy)

Wales:
Rory Best (only in the abscence of el capitain)
POC (any team would want him)
Ferris for Lydiate (probably)
BOD (for J Davies)

Sum of all parts though

scrum: should be an Irish win (due to injuries at the present moment we know of)
lineout: pretty even I'd say
breakdown: Ireland but not as much as I think people would imagine
backplay: Wales

Pete Wales would not be allowed to play in the HC so our chances will be pretty slim

At the moment I would not swap any players with you .

RWC's, 25 years, Heineken Cups - Why not look at the last time we played Ireland that's probably the most realistic measure than Heineken Cups with foreign players and matches from 20 years ago. The last time these 2 sides played Wales were complete crap and won in Cardiff - Forget about the wrong ball as we all know BOD also knocked on so its a mute point. There is little between these sides and I think both sets of fans fancy their chances at the moment. I certainly do the way Wales are playing.

pete (buachaill on eirne) wrote:Also when was the last time Wales won a HCup or got to a semi final.

The O's have done well in the Magners sporadically however.

How many players off each team would the other want?

Ireland:
Bradley Davies (maybe for DOC)
Philips (maybe for Reddan)
Roberts (for Darcy)

Wales:
Rory Best (only in the abscence of el capitain)
POC (any team would want him)
Ferris for Lydiate (probably)
BOD (for J Davies)

Sum of all parts though

scrum: should be an Irish win (due to injuries at the present moment we know of)
lineout: pretty even I'd say
breakdown: Ireland but not as much as I think people would imagine
backplay: Wales

I wouldnt be so sure on the player front, i think thats a totally subjective thing.

The only of those Id want is POC/O'Brien.

And to say Ireland wouldnt want george north, how dare you

I think it'll be a very difficult game to call, we still have 2 games left to play each. Both with 1 tough encounter (Fiji/Italy) that they should win. Although, who knows what can happen in that time?

I think it'd be a 50/50 game though. These teams are very evenly matched at the moment.

pete (buachaill on eirne) wrote:Also when was the last time Wales won a HCup or got to a semi final.

The O's have done well in the Magners sporadically however.

How many players off each team would the other want?

Ireland:
Bradley Davies (maybe for DOC)
Philips (maybe for Reddan)
Roberts (for Darcy)

Wales:
Rory Best (only in the abscence of el capitain)
POC (any team would want him)
Ferris for Lydiate (probably)
BOD (for J Davies)

Sum of all parts though

scrum: should be an Irish win (due to injuries at the present moment we know of)
lineout: pretty even I'd say
breakdown: Ireland but not as much as I think people would imagine
backplay: Wales

Really? You think the Irish scrum is better? interesting. Wouldn't take Ferris for Lydiate ever. BOD hasn't been playing brilliantly so we'll keep JD2 thanks. Ok maybe POC but he's probably the only one I'd swap.

Warburton is better than your openside
Adam Jones is better than both of your props put together
Priestland is better than Sexton
North would eat your whole team...

This is obviously not a scientific examination of both teams players but I think Wales would feel pretty confident going into a game against Ireland.

Cymroglan wrote:Pete Wales would not be allowed to play in the HC so our chances will be pretty slim

At the moment I would not swap any players with you .

Haha rookie mistake Pete!!!!
You get what I mean though.

I think it should be quite a tough one to call. Just hoping for no more injuries!

You have Namibia and Fiji left yes?

We wouldn't want to touch Warb if it meant losing SOB, (HCup player of the year)
Wouldn't want Priestland either.
Wouldn't want North over Bowe either but maybe over Trimble. Actually nah!

A lot of drivel is being written in this post by over emotional Cents from both sides - Indeed, the only balanced and sensible statement on this thread to date is the one posted by McKay highlighting the obvious fact that, "George North would eat your whole team..." - Can we please cut out the emotional staff and keep to the sensible ones such as the George one.

The only welsh players I think we would want would be an openside like Warburton or Tipuric (O'Brien to blindside, Ferris to eight )

We have enough young talent coming through for the old/out of form players like D'Arcy.

I actually think Wales aren't going as well as I thought they would before the tournament.

Roberts and Warburton have been phenomenal and Phillips has refound some form. However I don't think Priestland has been great. Hook has been poor and they've struggled to fill that 15 position.

North and Davies haven't lived up to expectation and Shane Williams isn't at his best.

I don't think Falitau, despite a phenomenal 20 min spell in the 2nd half against SA, is international standard yet. He still looks lightweight and has made quite a few handling errors.

Traditionally Ireland have dominated Wales at the breakdown and lineout and if we can manage to do this and get parity in the scrum then I would fancy us to win.

Wales are fitter, better organised and more confident than during the 6N but don't look anywhere near as dangerous with the ball as the GS winning side.

The great thing though is if we can both win our next two games we will be guaranteed to see a Celtic side in the SF

Yeah! That's true!

COME ON THE CELTS!

Wales V Ireland would be a great quarter final, with about a 50/50 chance for both teams.
I hope that's how it turns out because it could be a cracker, but I really hope Ireland play Sexton and not Rog.

If we had the chance of swapping players from the Irish team in to our own then at the moment and in all honesty I wouldd only swap 3.

Best for Bennett - Despite his good recent form he still fills me with dread.

DOC and POC for our 2nd rows as I think they are a great a pairing.

If this game comes off then I hope all back rowers are fit as I reckon our trio of Lydiate, Faletau and Warburton against Ferris, Heaslip and SOB will be a great battle within a battle.

I just hope we actually get a Wales v Ireland quarter final. We still have Fiji to play, you still have to face Italy. Let's not count our chickens.

I think both Ireland and Wales have a lot of talent atm, I see a bright future for us both.

The real question is, would you swap any of your players for any of the English ones?

RubyGuby wrote:A lot of drivel is being written in this post by over emotional Cents from both sides - Indeed, the only balanced and sensible statement on this thread to date is the one posted by McKay highlighting the obvious fact that, "George North would eat your whole team..." - Can we please cut out the emotional staff and keep to the sensible ones such as the George one.

So how's that mancrush going RubyGuby?

Does George know about it?

The chickens have all been counted and are all present and correct.

It's going to be an absolute belter of a quarter final with two sets of seriously passionate fans, the noise and atmosphere for this match will be fanbluidytastic.

C'mon rugby!!

I would take Roberts and Warburton without a doubt. Possibly Adam Jones but then Mike Ross has been awesome.

Other than that I'll stick thanks!

Rory_Gallagher wrote:I think both Ireland and Wales have a lot of talent atm, I see a bright future for us both.

The real question is, would you swap any of your players for any of the English ones?

Yup, swap you my mate andy for anybody who can clear out a ruck, johnno included

By the way you can have Andy Powell if you like.