As Jack Crowley lined up his third conversion of the night, with 32 minutes on the clock, I jotted down, ‘Are there only five really good teams in Test rugby?’
I had been impressed by Argentina, when they got cooking in The Rugby Championship but still needed convincing. I needed to see them up close, against a side desperate to get back on a winning track. They had scored early but half the stadium sensed Matias Moroni’s try would be chalked off because of his high-shot tackle on Crowley. Sure enough, as Moroni was engulfed by team-mates, the Television Match Official alerted referee Paul Williams to his earlier tackle and he was sent to the sin-bin.
Crowley had looked shaken from the impact but remained on the field, despite all those replays showing his head rattling back. “Just because someone gets hit on the head – they get checked on the field – it doesn’t mean they’re concussed,” Andy Farrell said, in his post-match press conference. “I would trust the experts on that.”
Caelan Doris would also stay on late in the game, when Francisco Gomez Kodela was sin-binned for a clear-out that connected with the head of the Ireland captain. “There is an ownership on the player, if they are feeling off,” Doris stated, “to say it to the medics when they are being checked. I felt fine.”
When Crowley’s conversion sailed over, Ireland went 22-9 ahead and hundreds of home fans headed down to beat the half-time queues, for beers and the loo. There were still eight minutes left in the first half. It was the last time, that night, Ireland would feel comfortable.
By the end of the weekend’s matches, I was left with that question – ‘Are there only five really good teams in Test rugby?’ Right now, the answer would be yes
Argentina laid siege to Ireland’s line, in the closing stages of the first half, but superb defence from the likes of Tadhg Beirne, Joe McCarthy and Garry Ringrose saw the hosts’ lead of 13 points stay intact. It felt like the storm had passed, but it was only brewing. Juan Cruz Mallía slalomed through the Irish lines, leaving five defenders in his wake, for a sublime individual try after 44 minutes. McCarthy was sin-binned, five minutes later, and Ireland went scoreless for the final 48 minutes.
By the end of the weekend’s Autumn Nations Series matches, I was left with that question – ‘Are there only five really good teams in Test rugby?’ Right now, that answer would be yes – South Africa, New Zealand, Ireland, France and Argentina (bumping England out of that top five). Steve Borthwick’s side have let it slip since their encouraging yet winless tour to New Zealand. Australia could yet make it a top tier of six, but let us first see how they close out their European adventure.
Crowley hushes doubters, but Prendergast impresses in cameo
Crowley must have felt satisfied with his night’s work, when he was replaced by Sam Prendergast after 61 minutes. For the second Friday running, Crowley left the fray with his team leading. He had looked more assured against Argentina though, as he had when faced with the hard-hitting All Blacks. The Munster out-half had not done much wrong against New Zealand but failed to exert much influence on the contest. He had been swallowed up on the few carries he had attempted.
Crowley shipped that early blow to the head against Argentina but shook it off and responded with a lovely inside step to score his second Test try. His drop-goal, on 20 minutes, was even more impressive. Clearly something Ireland are keen to add to their attacking armoury, the drop-goal set-up and execution were straight from training drills, and on the money. It gives defences something else to worry about, and Crowley now has that one to add to his clutch match-winner against Leinster, in 2023. The Munster man made 11 tackles and his 49 metres gained (from seven carries) was only behind Ringrose and Hugo Keenan for opposition inroads.
Then came Prendergast and a cameo that displayed so many of the qualities that his coaches at Leinster and Ireland admire. One could easily see why he was being fast-tracked into the Test set-up. The 21-year-old is still developing, physically, but has the frame to carry some extra kilos without taking too much zip off.
One wonders where Ciaran Frawley, the drop-goal hero of Kings Park, now stands in the fight for the 10 jersey?
He has a rapid-fire pass, off those long levers, and he caused Argentina problems when he arrived. He has an ability to delay a pass by split beats, committing defenders in the process. He put James Lowe through a gap with one such pass and had another lovely link-up with Jamie Osborne. He went close to scoring, out on the left wing, but was left isolated and conceded a turnover.
Post-match, Farrell praised the “excellent” debut from his young No10. “Playing your first cap in that type of position in that type of situation, I thought he was really composed – played at a nice tempo at the line and started to make things happen. That just shows what type of character he has got.”
TV cameras flashed to Ciaran Frawley, in the stands, for two moments in the game. The first was after Crowley’s try. The second was when Prendergast entered the fray. One wonders where Frawley, the drop-goal hero of Kings Park, now stands in that fight for the 10 jersey? He may be tossed the car keys for Saturday’s visit of Fiji, with Prendergast backing him up. To my mind, he deserves a starting shot. Farrell may be tempted, though, to let Prendergast get a crack in a game before he steps back on his Lions sabbatical.
“Good players always look like they have time on the ball,” observed team-mate Robbie Henshaw, “and Sam definitely has that.”
Farrell will also be tempted to give Thomas Clarkson a start at tighthead against Fiji, especially if Tadhg Furlong is not fully primed for a return. It would be preferable to see Tadhg Beirne return to the second row, so Peter O’Mahony could return at blindside with possibly both Cormac Izuchukwu and Cian Prendergast on the replacements bench.
Henshaw delivers his own Lions reminder
Of all the abilities he possesses – including being a dab-hand with the button accordion – Henshaw’s greatest must be coming in from the cold and playing red-hot. Not included in the match-day 23 for the defeat by New Zealand, the Leinster centre took the 12 jersey from Bundee Aki and did that call justice. In the first half, when Ireland were at their best, Henshaw was Ireland’s most threatening player.
Playing only his second game of the season, Henshaw exploded into the match with a number of bruising carries. His line-break burst up the right wing started the move that ended with Mack Hansen diving over in the left-hand corner, with Ringrose superb in that sequence. In defence, he made some dominant tackles that all but ended some promising Argentina sequences.
Henshaw is now 31 but last season saw him play the most games he has ever done (26) and jump seamlessly between inside and outside centre. Pre-season niggles saw him start the latest campaign in October but that may stand him in good stead as the games and months add up. If he can carry on his form from last season, and his first two outings of 2024/25, he could well complete the set – after New Zealand (2017) and South Africa (2021) – and make his third Lions squad.
