Joe Schmidt said there will be no let-up in intensity from Ireland against France despite both teams having qualified for the quarter-finals. The Ireland coach added that his side are determined to win at the Millennium Stadium and avoid the All Blacks in the quarter-finals.
Schmidt warned his Ireland side they were lucky and given a reality check in their 16-9 victory over Italy. They conceded 10 penalties and 14 turnovers against the Italians, much to Schmidt’s frustration, and he conceded his team made poor decisions against opponents who pushed them hard throughout.
“Around the penalties we know there are some things we have to control better and do better,” he said. “There were some really poor penalties from us against Italy. If you grab someone in the air in the lineout you know you’re going to be penalised. You can’t do it. If you don’t use your arms – both of them – when going in to clean someone out then you are liable for sanction. I think that’s something we weren’t smart enough with and we paid the price.”
Schmidt also admitted Ireland’s general play could be improved. He said: “Sometimes you get that reality check and it’s then how you react. We were very aware that Italy was going to be tough but we probably didn’t react as well as we should have.
“We were lucky to escape with the points we need to get out of the pool. But I do think the players will heed some of the inaccuracies in our play, and hopefully that leads into a different performance.”
Asked whether the win against Italy had taken the edge off the game against France, Schmidt said: “Winning a Test match is a prize worth winning, regardless of where you’re placed in any pool you are in. It is a gilt-edged victory if you can get those two things, a Test victory and that opportunity to maybe play an opponent that is not as difficult.”
Schmidt thought France will have an advantage in Sunday’s match because of the extra three days they had to prepare after their victory over Canada. “They’ve got a 10-day lead-in,” he said. “I think you can build a decent edge in 10 days. We had three and a half hours travelling on Monday, we’ll probably train Wednesday and Friday to try to hone in on what we need to do during those two short windows and try to keep a degree of freshness.”
