"You're still trying to replace Giambi. I told you we can't do it, and we can't do it. Now, what we might be able to do is recreate him. Recreate him in the aggregate."
So said Brad Pitt as Billy Beane in the 2011 movie 'Moneyball', about the Oakland A's attempts to stay competitive in Major League Baseball, as they operated on a fraction of the budget of others, and consistently lost their best players year after year.
There is a similar dilemma facing Scott Bemand ahead of Ireland’s Rugby World Cup campaign, which starts against Japan in Northampton on Sunday.
Where Beane was trying to match the on-base percentages of Jason Giambi, Johnny Damon and Olmedo Saenz, Bemand needs to find a way to fill the void in his pack left by Aoife Wafer, Erin King and Dorothy Wall.
Wafer is unlikely to feature in the opening games against Japan and Spain, but could be back in time for the final Pool C outing versus New Zealand. King and Wall have both been ruled out of the tournament entirely after suffering injuries during the Six Nations.
Bemand will name his side on Friday for the first pool game, and the starting pack will need to do a lot of heavy lifting to make up the numbers left behind by the injured trio, across ball-carrying, the breakdown and at the lineout.
Wafer led the Six Nations with 70 carries, and has the highest metres per carry out of any forward, leading her to be named Player of the Championship.
Wall and King (above) were Ireland’s top two lineout receivers in the championship with 22 and 19 respectively, and both in the top five overall.
King’s numbers are even more relevant considering she only played three games, while the 21-year-old also finished in the top four overall in defensive ruck arrivals (29) and breakdown steals (4).
It leaves the pick with a lot of work to get through, but their two warm-up games have suggested Bemand might go for the Moneyball approach making those numbers up across multiple players rather than loading specific duties onto individuals.
"I think we’ve seen flashes of it in those two games. It’s been such a long time knowing those girls wouldn't be around and it’s up to everyone else to stand up," former Ireland international Hannah O’Connor told the RTE Rugby podcast.
The return to fitness of Sam Monaghan does ease some of the pain.
Prior to the emergence of Wafer as Ireland’s lead ball-carrying threat, the second row had been one of the standout threats going forward, and after missing more than 12 months with a serious knee injury, the co-captain has returned, where she will be a key figure in possession a and at the lineout.
However, O’Connor believes the warm-up games have shown Monaghan (below) won’t be the only one looking to contribute more at the gainline.
"We’ve seen in that Scotland game, Brittany Hogan was more in a leadership position, she was in the referee’s ear a lot, probably more so than we’ve seen before without Sam [Monaghan] on the pitch.
"With her addition, she will be able to have that go-forward ball and we’ve seen her consistently do that in games she’s played. There's a big onus on her to have that go-forward ball.
"Having Sam back, it gives you it in abundance as well, so it’s about feeding that.
"The other player we’ve seen, Grace Moore, has stepped up in the flanker position and has a big impact on big ball carries.
"You get menaces at the breakdown and the likes of Aoife Wafer and Erin King, that you miss a bit.
"I think someone like Edel McMahon fits that bill a bit more around the breakdown than others in there, so having her on the pitch could be key for that cuteness and doggedness at the ruck, so she’s someone I would be hoping is back in the mix."
Monaghan’s return does give Bemand a lineout leader back in the side to cover Wall’s absence, but what the Gloucester-Hartpury lock has in physicality and size, she lacks in King’s speed.
Still quite new to the XVs game, King’s presence in the Ireland squad earlier this year transformed what had been a struggling lineout into a far more efficient setpiece, with her athletic profile well suited to quick jumps and lifts, and in tune beating opposition jumpers in the air.
Who starts at scrum-half for Ireland? 9⃣@jonnyholland10 and @HannahOConnor22 run through the options, with Scott Bemand yet to settle on a first choice 9. ☘️🇯🇵
— RTÉ Sport (@RTEsport) August 20, 2025
Full RTÉ Rugby pod: https://t.co/3h50Rv65v1 pic.twitter.com/bIS4E01sp1
"She was a rocket to throw up," O’Connor added.
And the former Ireland forward believes Ireland may have to expand their lineout menu across more players if they’re to keep teams guessing over the next few weeks.
"What was interesting to watch over the warm-up games, the lineout functioned quite well, but the thing I noticed is that a lot of the time it was the caller going up themselves; Fiona Tuite went up predominantly in the Canada game.
"On the other hand, in those two warm-up games, you don't show your hand, so I imagine it was kept simple. Nothing too fancy.
"They will need a bit more variety to it, because every team will analyse everybody's warm-up games.
"Someone like Ruth Campbell does give you that height, and is as easy to throw up as Erin is. She's straight up [in the air]. You’re looking to get the height off here and the speed off the ground, but what you might miss then is the weight in the pack with her.
"It will be interesting to see what they decide to do there in the first two games and what strategy they go for, but they’re going to need something to have that variety to keep the setpiece as it was going, to have that foothold."
Listen to the RTÉ Rugby podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.
Watch Ireland v Japan in the Rugby World Cup on Sunday from 11.30am on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player. Follow a live blog on rte.ie/sport and the RTÉ News app. Listen to live radio commentary on 2fm
