Ireland No 8 Jamie Heaslip has rejected the theory that the Northern Hemisphere is lagging behind its southern counterparts and believes Ireland would beat quarter-final conquerors Argentina if they played them again today.
Argentina joined South Africa, New Zealand and Australia in the semi-finals with the All Blacks beating the Wallabies to retain the Webb Ellis Cup.
“I don’t think there’s any sort of dominance," Heaslip told RTÉ Sport at the Web Summit in Dublin.
“The quarter-finals were a pretty even split. Scotland nearly won [against Australia], we nearly got back into our game. We could have very easily been looking at something different and I think people get a bit carried away.
“We had a good very chance to be in that last four but sport is funny and a lot of things can happen. Injuries can happen, and that’s why the strength of the squad has such a massive part to play.
“New Zealand were deserving winners. Since the last World Cup, they’ve been consistently playing amazing rugby, and I don’t think anyone can argue with that.
“Michael Cheika has done an amazing job with Australia since taking them over and I know he’ll be a great influence on them going forward. They’re two very good teams and they deserved to be in the final."
Ireland lost 43-20 to Los Pumas to extend the country's unwanted record of never winning a World Cup knockout tie but Heaslip believes the score masked the true nature of a contest in which an injury-weakened Ireland fought back to within three points after conceding two early tries.
“I’d have full faith in the team’s capabilities and if we played Argentina again today I’d still back us to win"
“If you make a mistake at that level you get punished and that’s what happened to us," he said.
"We made two mistakes early on that were punished and then you’re trying to come back from 17-0 down in the quarter-final against Argentina. It’s not exactly the easiest feat, though we nearly did it, mind you.
“There were guys that we would have liked to have been on the pitch but I’m not going to go on about ifs, buts and maybes. They weren't available, it is what it is. We can’t turn back time but I can’t be prouder of the effort."
Heaslip highlights specific failings at the start of the game rather than accepting the theory that Ireland were outclassed or simply underperformed on the day.
“I’d have full faith in the team’s capabilities and if we played them again today I’d still back us to win," he said.
“In that first 10 minutes, they went to the edge, we weren’t quick enough to fold around the corner and get our width and defensive line, that’s why they could get the easy gain line on the edge with their speedsters and keep getting into us.
“We weren't good enough in the first 10 minutes on our own ball at the ruck as well, so they could barge in and slow it down. The game is predicated on quick ball and they made our ball slow, which is very easy to defend against.
“If you address [those problems] it’s a different game going in at half-time.
“I would ask ‘what went wrong, what do we need to learn from this’ rather than saying ‘we’re not that good’ or ‘we’re better than that’."
The Kildare native remains positive that Ireland can do better at future tournaments, even suggesting that we could challenge for the trophy if the IRFU bid to host World Cup 2023 is successful.
“Four years is a long time and you just don’t know what’s going to happen. A lot of it has to do with stuff that’s a little bit out of your hands.
“Injuries can be managed, but impact injuries, like Paulie [O'Connell] ripping his hamstring off the bone, some other guys getting fractures and breaks, you can’t deal with that stuff.
“You do need a bit of luck and if 2023 is here I’m sure we’ll get a rub of the green.
"He’s by far the best captain I’ve ever been around, and that goes for Ireland, Lions, Leinster"
“In terms of the game going forward, I think we’re in good strength. It would be great if Ireland can get the bid in 2023. We all saw the presence the Irish people had and how they made it.
“People can talk about dominance but I think we should look at Ireland in 2023 and think ‘Hey, we could target that ourselves’, as a team and as a nation.
“But also, for the competition to grow, it’s the right time for a broader viewership. It’s been a great competition to be at and it couldn’t be in a better place.”
The back-row forward previously captained Ireland in the Six Nations championship in 2013 and is among the favourites to succeed Paul O'Connell as skipper, having also led the side in the Munster man's absence.
Heaslip insists that coach Joe Schmidt has yet to address the issue but says whoever gets the nod will have a huge job replacing "the best captain" he has ever played with.
“I don’t think anyone’s given it any thought," he said. "It was a huge honour to lead the team out twice at the World Cup.
“You’ll never be able to replace someone like Paul. I’ve probably learned more off him in the last year than off anyone else in my career in rugby in terms of that leadership role.
“He’s by far the best captain I’ve ever been around, and that goes for Ireland, Lions, Leinster.
“He’s an unbelievable pro, always looking to learn and always thinking ‘how do we get the collective better, how do we get training better’. Everything. And he’s just a good bloke.
“You can learn off people but whoever gets the role has to be themselves."
Somewhat unusually for an athlete still playing professionally, Heaslip has also embarked on a business career and was an enthusiastic attendee and speaker at the Web Summit, having invested in several web/technology start-ups.
He believes that his experiences with evolving technology in sport influenced his interest in the sector.
“In rugby, we’re always looking for that competitive edge," he said. "Anyone in any kind of high-performing company, or team or individual sport is always looking for that edge.
"You look for it in different ways in training, such as how you train.
“I’ve seen how the introduction of GPS trackers, I think they first came into the AFL back in '06 or '07, and that data from tracking things disrupted sport and was a game-changer, which is what sports people are always looking for.
“I started seeing the parallels between game-changers in sport and business, which is the same thing at the end of the day, it’s a competition and everyone’s trying to do better and is looking for that game-changer.
“That’s what tech does. It acts as a disruptor and is a driver for innovation. Granted, in the physical sense, you see those results on the field but I see those parallels in business.
“So it was just a natural fit for me to transfer over into business. I’ve gone into the service industry, a restaurant and a pub, and I’ve invested in a couple of different start-ups.
"I’m an investor in a sports-tech company called Kitman Labs, and [website] Lovin Dublin, and I’ve come on board with the Lucey fund as well to be at the coal-face of the start-up community.”
“I’m very passionate about rugby and if you’re passionate about something you have the resilience to follow it through, to sacrifice.
“When you see people with that kind of passion, with an idea, coupled with discipline and the right kind of culture, that’s pretty hard to stop.”
