By Mark Jones
DUBLIN — Ireland go into Saturday’s rugby Six Nations game against championship favorites England with renewed hope. Despite the fact that the Irish haven’t won at Twickenham since 1994, their recent 54-10 record demolition of Wales has transformed this into a winner-take-all contest.
Suddenly, England and Ireland appear to be the two strongest sides in the tournament, and if there was been a tendency to get carried away by the ruthless manner in which coach Eddie O’Sullivan’s team crushed the Welsh, Saturday will certainly be no mismatch, unlike previous occasions in London.
The Irish also have the confidence boost of a memorable victory over England at Lansdowne Road last October when arrogance cost the visitors dearly. And though the loss of Keith Wood with a calf injury is a blow, second row Malcolm O’Kelly and wing forward Eric Miller, who both missed the win against Wales, are set to return.
“The way I see it,” said O’Sullivan, who was formerly assistant coach to the U.S. Eagles, “if England play well and we play poorly, then we could get a hammering. But if we’re on top of our game and they’re a bit below par, we have a chance.”
That’s clearly coachspeak for: Ireland have a great opportunity here. Even if expectation levels for a team that played some scintillating rugby in scoring six tries against Wales are higher than normal, an upset is a genuine possibility.
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The Irish have attacking potential in Denis Hickie, Geordan Murphy and the brilliant Brian O’Driscoll, plus an outstanding goalkicker in David Humphreys. Indeed, the stage is set.
In the past, highly rated Irish teams would invariably flop at the key moment. Now is the time for O’Sullivan and his mix of the new breed and the veterans Mick Galwey and Peter Clohessy to strike a blow.