RWC 2007: Ireland Back Division
Tournament Ratings

by Brendan Cole

After a disappointingly brief RWC 2007 for Ireland, we rate the tournament long perfomances of the thirteen backs in the squad.

Girvan Dempsey (full back)

Consistent, dependable and, on a few occasions, dangerous going forward. Try against Namibia was vital, and there are few full backs in world rugby who could have done as well playing behind this Ireland team.

Geordan Murphy (full back/wing)

Badly treated by the coach in three of the games - when underused against the minnows and left out for the France match - Murphy scored a try against Argentina and fielded well in the same game. He was also, however, out kicked in the ping pong exchanges and did not have the speed or strength needed to counter effectively when running it back.

Andrew Trimble (wing)

Crabbed sideways throughout when the ball came towards him and looked a fish out of water on the wing against France, where defensive blunders cost Ireland two tries. Needs rehabilitation, and a re-think as to when and where his obvious talent - as seen for his try against Namibia - should best be used.

Denis Hickie (wing)

Fingered after the minnow failures and dropped, he provided one last high point on his career swansong, when searing pace saved Ireland late in the first half against Argentina. Ultimately, RWC 2007 was a disappointing end to his days in green though.

Shane Horgan (wing)

Pre-tournament injury took the wind out of his sails while the fact that the somewhat slow off the mark Horgan tends to struggle when the team is going backwards meant he was particularly exposed. Attempted to use his physique up the middle but all too often got on static or badly offloaded ball which he was then unable to use.

Gavin Duffy (utility back)

Finally got some game time against Argentina but most commentators felt there were at least three or four players that should have been brought to RWC 2007 ahead of him and he never really had a chance to prove them wrong.

Brian O'Driscoll (centre)

Fantastic personal performances in a struggling team and hard to fault his effort, especially given that the fundamental problems with this team are situated further inside than the outside centre berth. Despite the team implosion, O'Driscoll enhanced his reputation and is the most imporant man in the imminent Ireland rebuilding job.

Gordon D'Arcy (centre)

Really strugged for chemistry with O'Gara at out-half and although he managed a line break or two he couldn't really get anything going in the big games. Best days have been in a more outside breaker role than the smasher upper he was generally deployed as here, and it may be that in future - if Ireland go the route of using proper openside flankers - he will be freed up for more intelligent use than in the last year or so.

Ronan O'Gara (out-half)

Poor line kicking and general lack of confidence cost Ireland dearly. In the final analysis it appears that as a highly talented player who this team had come to rely very heavily on, O'Gara's loss of form (along with the selection of a poorly balanced back row and a failure to pick on form in the front five) was the central cause of the Ireland's collapse. Hard to blame the player personally, and the catastrophic drop in level around him is evidence of just how important he had become.

Paddy Wallace (out-half)

Token rating time: Wallace looked sharper than O'Gara even in a few minutes against Namibia and couldn't possibly have been worse. Never really got a look in.

Peter Stringer (scrum-half)

Picked out as the problem man after the minnow failures when clearly both he and his out-half were having problems. Eye catching poor passing meant he was easy to drop and, with the new man doing well when he came in, Stringer could have few complaints.

Eoin Reddan (scrum-half)

Improved things when he was brought in for the France game and as a more complete player than Stringer gave Ireland a new dimension in terms of kicking and breaking. Performed well, and may keep the scrum-half spot for the next Six Nations.

Isaac Boss (scrum-half)

Used late in games that were already settled either way, Boss had little chance to make an impression. Being 'passed over' in the Reddan/Stringer switch - even though it was more an issue of style and not a genuine skip - must have frustrated .

Brian Carney (wing)

One of Ireland's most gifted scorers was not used at RWC 2007, even when Ireland were set a four try mission against Argentina. Could, with Doug Howlett on the other wing, be a star for Munster in this year's Heineken Cup.

Click here to rate Ireland's forwards, and coach Eddie O'Sullivan.