As much as it grates to have to honour one of Ireland’s opponents, there was no denying the excellence of Wales’ powerhouse centre Jamie Roberts in Wellington.
And so, the dream is over. Perhaps we were hindered by an over-confidence brought on by some sterling performances against Australia and Italy, but even if we went in as underdogs against Wales, it is doubtful we would have come out on top such was the impressive nature of their performance.
Hats off to Warren Gatland’s side, they were magnificent and outclassed Ireland in almost every department. The scrum held tough, Sam Warburton put the kibosh on the previously unstoppable Sean O’Brien and Phillips and Priestland were easily the better of the half-back combinations, but one man stood taller than the rest and that was Jamie Roberts.
Given his massive bulk, square-shaped head and seeming lack of a neck, Roberts bears more than a slight resemblance to ‘The Thing’ from Fantastic Four and you could have sworn that’s who Ireland were facing given the devastation he wreaked in midfield.
The resemblance between Jamie Roberts and ‘The Thing’ from Fantastic Four is uncanny
Right from the off, he set the tone, confidently gathering an up and under in the air under the nose of Rob Kearney in a move that eventually led to Shane Williams touching down in the corner as Ireland, like the watching masses at home, were still waking up.
Later in the half, he bulldozed no less of a man than Donncha O’Callaghan and constantly took the ball on and over the gain line with the result that Ireland were forced to commit more than one man when taking him on in the tackle.
In the second half, as Malcolm O’Kelly noted in his column, Ireland’s attempt to wrap Roberts up in the renowned choke tackle backfired as Wales released the ball to the blindside. From there, Jonathan Davies was faced with an ocean of space and three retreating and unbalanced Irish defenders, who welcomed him through to the try line with the grace you would display when opening a door for an old lady.
By that stage, Roberts’ work was done but it didn’t stop him from lending a hand in Wales’ monumental defensive effort. Sean O’Brien, Stephen Ferris et al didn’t run at Wales because they weren’t allowed to and Roberts hit as many static targets as anyone else.
Now that they’ve beaten us, and graciously so, we will support our Celtic brethren as they go onto face what looks like a rejuvenated French side in the semi-final. If they do go into unchartered territory and get into the final two, Warren Gatland will need ‘The Thing’ at his powerful best once again.
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