Tops
The Irish captain played a very important role in the defeat inflicted by his team on Romania (82-8). Author of two essays, he was also, and as usual, very skillful with his feet. A total of 24 points which allows him to equal the number of points scored by an Irishman in a World Cup match, until then held by David Humphreys against Argentina 1999. Enough to build confidence for the future of the competition.
Like his captain, Bundee Aki also scored a double this Saturday. Highly visible on the Matmut Atlantique pitch, he spent his afternoon breaking tackles, putting the Romanians through hell. The Irish center notably made four crossings and beat eight defenders. The Clover XV will count on him for the rest of the competition.
More than 1,600 kilometers separate Dublin, the Irish capital, from Bordeaux. This did not prevent Irish supporters from coming in numbers, as usual. Galvanized by the spectacle on the field and, perhaps for some, by a few beers, the fans of the Clover XV made their voices heard from the first to the last minute. They thus had the opportunity to witness their team’s biggest victory in the World Cup. Well done to them!
The Flops
We only saw one team on the pitch this afternoon. While we thought they were off to a good start after a surprise try scored after three minutes, the Romanians took the lead. A pack in great pain, an outdated conquest… the fundamentals were lacking to hope for better than this slap. Between the 1st and 19th nations in the world, the gap was too big.
Unfortunately for them, this is not the first time in their history that the Romanians have conceded more than 80 points. In 2011, New Zealand (world champion that year) had already inflicted a severe defeat on them, 85 to 8. Same story in 2003, where the Romanian “oaks” lost 90-9 against Australia. Records that are generally not good to cultivate.