Irish rugby legend Paul O’Connell believes the current Clover XV are better than the team he reached the quarter-finals with at the 2015 World Cup. “They’re a better team,” said Tuesday at AFP, O’Connell, 43, former second line and captain of Ireland (108 selections), now coach of the forwards of the Irish selection.
In 2015, Ireland stopped in the quarter-finals against Argentina (43-20), undermined by the injuries of its executives including O’Connell, Johnny Sexton and Peter O’Mahony, who could not participate in this game. “Physically, a lot of us were incredibly committed, but there are some serious athletes in the team, especially in the forward pack. There are guys who can accelerate quickly, change direction very quickly, ”analyzes the former Irish glory. “We have players who are able to pick things up very quickly. We can come up with something and they quickly adapt it to their game. […] So I think they are stronger than any Irish team I’ve played with,” O’Connell said.
The Irish will start their tournament against Romania on Saturday in Bordeaux.
