After the euphoria of last week’s victory against the All Blacks, the Canadian fixture was always going to have a lot to live up to. But with eight debutants and a defiant Canadian side it was the test this wider Irish squad needed ahead of an important fixture next week and the coming months before the Six Nations.
O’Halloran – 7.5
The Connacht man showed the legs that earned him his call up after nearly taking the offload from Bealham. The boy’s got gas and showed it with a clean pair of heels for the first of his two tries.
Gilroy – 6
Did the basics, but this was his opportunity to shine having fallen down the pecking order recently. Kicked twice when we would have liked to see him take the man on. No major faults, but no threat to taking his Ulster compatriot’s place right now.
Ringrose – 7
There were glimpses of what lies in store from Ringrose; a nearly try, smart lines and subtle offloads (for which the boys in green had 11 to Canada’s 3). Put O’Halloran away for his second and shepherded well in his defensive roles. Growing into the role at club and country level.
Marshall – 5
Not a game to remember. The risky floating pass in the 22 gifted van der Merve a soft try that gave Canada the belief they could make their mark on the game. Other errors throughout in terms of positioning and handling have put a few more black marks against his card. Took his try well, but won’t be pleased overall.
Earls – 8
The quickest feet in Ireland are back to their scintillating best. Setting up winning positions and keeping momentum going forward where else it would have staggered. He’ll want a freeze frame of his monstrous fend on Paris. Zebo has one eye over his shoulder as Earls returns to classic form.
Jackson – 7.5
Commanded the game well from 10 and struck 6 times from the boot. His pass to Marshall on the 58th minute was eye of the needle stuff. Carries well and can always be a deceptive threat with those attacks but still an understudy to Sexton in the pecking order. Reliable.
Marmion – 7
Taken his form for Connacht through to the international stage again. Steered his forwards well, bossing them until he was given a break. Smart move to put Earls over in the corner off his dominant pack and even benefited from 5 points thanks to a push over scrum but was smart enough to pounce on the ball. Kicking is still developing but we have a future test level 9 on our hands.
Healy – 7
Church held a mass and he had the Canadian front row on his every word. Part of a dominant Irish set piece and as ever useful around the paddock. He’ll be hurting at not starting more tests recently and he let his scrummaging do the talking here. Dominant.
Cronin – 7
If you want a combination of power and speed, Cronin is your man. Rock solid in the tight and elusive in the loose. Hit his darts when they mattered and tidied up when needed. Still understudy to Best, but when called upon will give you the performance you need.
Bealham – 6.5
The Front Row Union will be querying his membership after his svelte offload to O’Halloran for his try. Very effective around the park, but needs to work on some scrummaging ahead of being a regular to be called on again.
Dillane – 8.5
There aren’t many more majestic sights than a big second row haring up the field, Dillane didn’t disappoint. Filling himself into the role more and more with each game played he is becoming a formidable force on the park in the green of Connacht or of Ireland. Shook off the defenders well for his try, MOM Display and inches away from the starting spot next week.
Holland – 6
The workhorse. Didn’t pull up trees, but he did the unseen work at the coal face. Clean lineout work and support in abundance. A crucial role in a dominant pack – cleared and secured rucks when it mattered the most. Rock like.
O’Mahony – 7
The Munster man led well but looked to tire near the end. Can lead a team all day long and has a different referee liaison style to Best, but it worked all the same. An effective player off the bench for the final 20. But has van der Flier done enough to secure his reserve spot?
O’Brien – 6.5
The Tullow tank was tooting for 67 minutes with a boisterous 13 carries. Still not quite back to his 2013 pomp he is growing back with each game and is a sure fire squad member for next weekend. I can’t imagine many teams would want to face an O’Brien carry 65 minutes into a game.
O’Donoghue – 6.5
Not a rampaging performance at Eight, but by no means a dis-service to his credentials moving forward. Part of a strong pack going forward and controlled well at the base of the scrum.
BENCH:
Once again the reserves are making ground when they come on. Ireland made 163 ball carries during the game and it felt like Kilcoyne made well over half of this with his spell. Both Ryans kept up the hard graft as did try scorer Tracy. Carberry kept the attack pumping with McGrath whilst Leavy filled in well. Adeolokun gave us an insight into what we can see from him in the future.
By Lorcan O’Duffy