Day of shame at Croke Park: Little hope for the future of this series
Ireland's Steven McDonnell and Australia's Andrew Raines get to grips with each other.
Monday November 06 2006
Australia 3-15-6 (69) Ireland 0-7-10 (31) Australia win 109-79 on aggregate HOWEVER forensically yesterday's second Coca Cola International Rules test is analysed, it doesn't offer a single scintilla of decency, honour or hope for the future.
Granted, Australia brought great energy and enterprise to some of their play but it was overshadowed by an ugly, vicious first quarter which ended with Graham Geraghty on his way to hospital suffering from concussion and Irish manager, Seán Boylan threatening to press the nuclear button by withdrawing his team from the game.
Boylan took them to the dressing-room at the end of that turbulent first quarter and would happily have left them there in protest at the Australian tactics which had intimidation headlining every page. The Irish players opted to continue but were clearly so rattled by Australia's brutish opening that they never succeeded in generating any momentum.
In the bizarre circumstances, it was inevitable that the eight point lead which Ireland had built up in the first test would never be enough to sustain them. It was, in fact, wiped out in five minutes and while a good finish to the first quarter left Ireland still leading by two points on aggregate, few in the record crowd (82,127) for an international sporting event in Ireland believed that the home side would succeed in building on it.
And so it proved as Australia took their ascendancy to cruising levels, winning the second quarter 11-6 and the third 30-4 before easing to a 12-11 advantage in the final 18 minutes. Australia's 38-point win was the biggest in the 22-year history of the series but it wasn't the defeat, but rather its dismal nature, that left the Ireland camp infuriated and frustrated.
Boylan and his captain, Kieran McGeeney were savage in their condemnation of Australia's tactics afterwards, claiming that not only had the visitors targeted certain Irish players, they were allowed to get away with their nasty game plan.
But then nobody should have been surprised. Australia's Lindsay Gilbee declared boldly that week that Geraghty could expect retribution for an alleged incident in the first test. He talked of "open slather", a term which didn't need any elaboration.
Australia were determined to get Geraghty and set about it from the first minute, goading and taunting him at every opportunity. The spiteful task of taking him out of the game was completed in he 13th minute when the Meathman was flung to the ground by Danyle Pearce who proceeded to land on top of his stricken opponent. Geraghty was knocked unconscious and was treated for several minutes before being carried off to hospital.
Refinement
It was an ugly, vengeful hit on Geraghty but then the pattern had been set from the first minute when various bushfires broke out all over the ground. Bizarrely, Australia's first goal in the third minute was scored while several players were brawling a short distance away.
Australian referee, Shane McInerney waved play on and Brent Stanton exploited the chaos to fire home a crucial goal which, when added to Barry Hall's earlier 'behind' meant that Ireland's eight-point lead from the first test was all but wiped out. That a referee would allow play to continue while so many players were fighting is beyond comprehension and is yet another example of why the International Rules concept needs continuous refinement, if indeed it is to have any future at all. The rules were tightened up after last year's mayhem in Melbourne but paper adjustments mean nothing unless they are implemented.
Seven players were yellow-carded in the first quarter but since they could all be replaced, it was absolutely meaningless. Regrettably, neither of the referees, David Coldrick (Meath) or McInerney reached for the red card, a failure that led to players - especially the Australians - calculating that 'open slather' would largely go unpunished.
It's not that all the Irish players were wearing halos and their use of the boot rightly irritated the Australians on a few occasions but there could be no doubt but that the visitors were guilty of greater and more frequent crimes against sportsmanship.
It was as if they had decided that the series was going to be won by whatever means necessary, even if it led to question marks about its future. Kevin Sheedy had repeatedly talked up the International Rules game but the reality is that in his two seasons as Australian coach, the games have been infected by a sinister virus.
Whether it can be eradicated is debateable, especially since the Australian camp marched into denial afterwards, claiming that Ireland were equally guilty for the first quarter troubles. Quite why an Irish amateur team who aren't as physically strong as the opposition would want to become involved in a war of attrition is a mystery that only the Australians would dare to unravel but that's exactly what they tried to do.
The odd thing is that Australia would probably have won even if they didn't ratchet up the physical dimension. They were far slicker on the ball than they had been eight days earlier while their score-taking was also much improved.
Captain, Barry Hall, who made no big impression in Galway was a colossus this time, helping himself to 16 points (five overs and a behind) while Justin Sherman and Brendon Goddard each scored nine points.
Significantly too, Australia scored three goals and would have had a few more except for fine saves by Alan Quirke.
Ireland failed to get in for a single goal and managed a paltry seven overs which are the equivalent of points in Gaelic football. Boylan left big target men, Kieran Donaghy and Ronan Clarke off his 22-man panel while Kieran Fitzgerald lost out in defence.
Shane Ryan, Karl Lacey and Nicholas Murphy replaced them but it made no difference as Ireland were losing most of the important battles all over the field.
Tom Kelly, Alan Brogan, Sean Martin Lockhart, Dermot Earley, Brendan Coulter. Kevin Reilly, Kevin Reilly and Quirke all did well at various stages but in terms of collective efficiency it was Australia who dominated.
Ireland's foot passing was way below the required standard while once again the attack wasted several chances by failing to get enough distance into their kicks, allowing Australian goalkeeper, Dustin Fletcher to gather comfortably before launching counter attacks.
Technically, Ireland were not as good as their opponents which has to be a concern for Gaelic football.
However, that will be overshadowed by the sheer nastiness of a first quarter which could have long and lasting repercussions for a series that has so much to offer if played in the proper spirit.
Related Articles:
Future of International Rules in doubt after violence
Aussie coach blames Irish for Croker violence
Boylan admits he was ready to pull his Irish players off the field after the first quarter
