Three takeaways from Ireland's victory over Austraila in Dublin

Ireland closed out their 2024 Autumn Nations Series campaign with a tight 22 – 19 victory over the Wallabies at the Aviva Stadium.

Once again, falling foul to Joe Schmidt’s ability to disrupt their flow at the breakdown and set-piece, Ireland were disjointed for the bulk of the contest.

Making a key change with fifteen minutes to play, head coach Andy Farrell called on Munster halfback pairing Craig Casey and Jack Crowley to replace Leinster duo Jamison Gibson-Park and Sam Prendergast. Immediately the Irish attack looked more fluid and direct, with replacement hooker Gus McCarthy scoring the decisive try before Crowley added the conversion.

Here are three key takeaways from today’s fixture.

Halfback Change Key
As touched upon above, Ireland saw a clear uptick in their performance when they made a change at scrumhalf. Before we delve into what has become a tribal clash in Irish Rugby circles this November, it is worth noting that this writer thinks Sam Prendergast is a real talent. This being said, Jack Crowley, who himself is in the infancy of his test career, is quite clearly a few notches ahead. This is hardly earth-shattering news given the two players’ experience levels, but most notably at this stage, Crowley’s physicality and ability to straighten the line brings another element to an otherwise hit-and-miss attack. Having some really nice touches, Prendergast proved once again that he has the potential to be a truly special flyhalf with his ability to pick out passes and pinpoint kicking game. What he will struggle to replicate is Crowley’s ability to make use of second touches. It is no secret that Crowley is a superior athlete, with his pace, strength, and eye for a gap, which brings another level of threat to the Irish attack. Whilst the commentary team on TNT were gushing over Prendergast’s moments of brilliance, they rarely touched on how lateral the youngster was. This inability or unwillingness to really take on the line allowed the Aussie drift defence to slide across the pitch, knowing they would concede a few meters but that opportunities for turnovers would appear. Winning eight turnovers, four of which came from openside Fraser McReight, the Wallabies were unfazed by Ireland’s multi-phase attack as long as it was going lateral. In stark contrast to this, Crowley, when he got a second touch, more often than not straightened, which forced the Wallabies to bite in and exposed gaps in their passive defensive line. Even when taking his first touch, Crowley was more direct, which didn’t allow the Australians to slide early. This was reminiscent of last year’s Champions Cup final,l where Toulouse simply stood off Ross Byrne and shifted out to the Leinster second receiver. On that day, when Leinster brought on Ciaran Frawley for Byrne, there was a noticeable uptick in their attack, albeit they fell apart defensively over time. On the scrumhalf side of things, Gibson-Park has been one of the best in the world for the past three years but has been a tick below his best this November. Casey has proven to be an example of what patience from coaches can do. Now looking assured in when to up the tempo and when to control things, the 25-year-old is, for the first time in his career, a genuine threat to Gibson-Park as the first choice. Today, his rate of play, combined with Crowley’s direct approach, was the previously resolute Wallabies’ defense on the back foot.

Wallabies Maximising Resources
Building on the above, the Wallaby’s commitment to keeping bodies in line with a drift defence is somewhat of a novelty in a world of blitz defences. Employing the bend but don’t break approach outside of last weekend has served them well this November. Backing their poachers to make a steal when possible, the Wallabies simply marshalled Ireland from touchline-to-touchline this afternoon. Showing that this defence can be unlocked with a direct approach by simply straightening the line and exposing Noah Lolesio. This is exactly what the Scots did for their first try, with Sione Tuipulotu crashing between Lolesio and Len Ikitau. Ireland rarely challenged this channel to begin with, on the occasions that they did go direct they made meters and were rewarded. What this defence proves is that Joe Schmidt is more than comfortable to zig whilst others zag. Mirroring his early years with Ireland, Schmidt is merely making the most of the players and his disposal on both sides of the ball. Positioning poaching threats across the line, the Wallabies were comfortable to concede meters before pouncing on isolated Irish players. In attack, the aerial game of Josephe Sua’ali’i, Tom Wright, Andrew Kellaway and Max Jorgensen was maximised, often winning good field position and getting their team on the front foot.

Changes Incoming
Whilst Schmidt handed 19 players debuts out of necessity this year, Andy Farrell was a little more conservative in his rebuild. Employing a tactic of not throwing the baby out with the bath water, Farrell, by and large, handled this season really well. Winning a Six Nations, beating the Boks in SA and securing three out of four in November was a par performance for the men in green. At each stage of the season, Farrell introduced players who are now key to Ireland going forward. In the Six Nations, Jack Crowley and Joe McCarthy cemented themselves as key members of the starting XV. In South Africa, Jamie Osborne caught the eye and looks ready to become a regular on the team, either at fullback or centre. Ciaran Frawley, who had a mixed November, showed his gumption in South Africa and won’t simply be disposed of, albeit he will need a confidence boost with Leinster to get back to his best. In November, Gus McCarthy, Sam Prendergast and Cormac Izuchukwu all proved they are going to be key players in the future, even if they are a step behind the current starters (McCarthy might disagree). In the Six Nations, with Farrell away on Lions duty, there will be more new faces, with the likes of several impressive youngsters starting to make their way in the provinces. When the serious business is done early in the season, next summer will be the biggest turnover of this squad with the likes of Bundee Aki, Peter O’Mahony, Iain Henderson, Rob Herring, Conor Murray, James Lowe, Cian Healy, and perhaps even Jamison Gibson-Park all ticking over to the twilight of their careers.