Andy Farrell bemoans ‘shy’ Ireland players who lacked ‘intensity’ in ‘ugly’ win
Ireland head coach Andy Farrell at Twickenham.
Ireland head coach Andy Farrell has claimed his players were ‘shy’ in their ‘ugly’ victory over Argentina, and feels they need to ‘find their feet’ at this level once again.
Farrell’s side led 22-9 at half-time last night (Friday), but ultimately just held on to claim a 22-19 victory after a slow second-half.
‘Shy’ Ireland still ‘finding their feet’
Speaking after the game, Farrell bemoaned his side for their ‘shy’ performance and still believes they are ‘finding their feet’ at the top level this Autumn.
“If I try and sum up where we’re at, it looks like we’re still trying to find our feet in this intensity,” he said.
“New Zealand and Argentina have been playing those games for the past five or six months.”
“It looks like our lads are a little bit shy of that intensity. Hopefully, we’re building through this month and we’ll see the best of us in the next few games.”
He also detailed the key work-on for his side ahead of their clash with Fiji, calling for his side to show more patience.
“We need to be a little bit more patient at times, individually, and trust the team of what we’re about.”
“We had a chance to win ugly”
Last weekend’s defeat to the All Blacks has brought a lot of things into question for Farrell’s side, namely if they are still the force they were in 2023, but the incoming Lions coach was pleased his team showed another side to themselves this weekend.
“It was three or four games in one! The overriding feeling is delight, but there were a few things we needed to learn from last week.”
He added: “We said we had a chance to win ugly, and we did that this week.”
Ireland now prepare to face Fiji at the Aviva next weekend, with the Island nation coming into the game fresh from beating Wales last weekend.
