Are the Springboks still back to back world champions?
Amazing how popular rugby has become here. Still clearly the third sport, but this Ireland team has really helped the love grow
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Ireland Under-20s going for a third consecutive Grand Slam
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Great win, sets it up nicely v England
Hmm ominous signs already I feel.
The difference in basic game play is enormous.
This ref is also proving to be special. Feeding at the scrum. Really? Fuck off.
Mate of mine off to Murrayfield.
He asked if Iād be watching.
To quote Shankly, āIf they were playing in my back garden Iād draw the curtainsā
Last 5-10 minutes play (just after half time )has been fantastic from both sides.
I used to enjoy my trips to Edinburgh. Great place and times
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Fully deserved IMO. Irelands organisation in attack is streets above anyone else in the competition right now. It stood out like a sore thumb yesterday, even when Wales managed to disrupt them a bit they still came good again.
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With all the excitement of the League cup, I totally forgot about France v Italy, fair play to Italy, 13-13 
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I had it on my phone. Sooo unlucky with that kick at the end
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Wild that only two sides have a positive number.
Irish rugby has become so well organized. It has taken nearly a generation, but it is such a testimony to how a small country can build with patience and a good strategy. As a Canadian rugby fan, it is painful to see how ignorant of those lessons
Bring on March 9, though I suspect the final round at the Aviva will end up the mathematical decider, Scotland will likely be able to close the gap versus Italy.
Agreed but I think Iām right in saying that Leinster has the same population as all of Wales. Not that it matters, as you rightly point out the structure is absolutely perfect. A well oiled machine with the sole purpose of developing players for the national side. And itās well supported by the public.
Wales is the complete opposite. Clubs develop players for clubs, regions are completely disconnected from the clubs and to some degree the national side.
The national side, the only ray of hope, sucks the life out of the regions.
England is a bizarre one. I canāt get my head around how they canāt develop an absolutely dominant national side.
Itās not just about population. Look at New Zealand.
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Right set up, right infrastructure youāll go farā¦ havenāt we seen an example this past Sunday.
Wouldnāt say itās taken a generation. Weāve won the 6N 5 times in past 15 years and won a few triple crowns in early 2000s.
Ireland were set up well for the professional era with four big provinces who all historically had a strong support. Even if there were 5 provinces it would have been more of a struggle with the limited player base.
Of course, Leinster especially have an incredible schools set up which most of the Ireland team have come through. Still a lot of work to do to diversify the sport, and get more kids from working class (or comprehensive school) backgrounds to play.
Might even get past the QF of a World Cup if we get that right 
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Boom. Thatās it. Best rugby nations have the best academies. Ireland, New Zealand, South Africa etc.
Struggle for others is to develop that base level by other means. Wales in particular struggles in this regard. Clubs have been the traditional base development area and they have seriously struggled to deliver that.
Absolutely. Again itās the entire set up.
I think we should also recognise support though. New Zealand and Ireland are well supported provinces etc. New Zealand itās the national support. Is that because of success or just the whole environment?
Ireland started seeing some success fairly early on, but in terms of having a conveyor belt of talent I think it did take the better part of 20 years - I was really thinking of the arc from that 1998 side, to the 2014/2015 teams, to where Ireland is now. I would suggest that this yearās team has lost more talent than the 2016 side had, but has been able to make good on that loss far more readily.
Credit to Andy Farrell also. The talent is there (as it is with England) but Farrell has instilled incredible belief, drive and consistency.
We got good results under Schmidt but was never as fun to watch as it is now
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