Rugby World Cup: Did Ireland overplay their team?

Ireland’s surprising exit from the Rugby World Cup raises questions about their squad management and overuse of key players.

Bundee Aki absolutely spent after playing every minute of Ireland’s campaign Image: X/@James_Dart

Ireland entered the Rugby World Cup as favourites in every conceivable sense. They held the prestigious world number-one ranking and were riding high on a remarkable 17-match winning streak. All signs pointed to them finally securing their first-ever quarterfinal victory and possibly more. However, the reality turned out to be quite different, as the Irish team now finds themselves on the way back home, while both New Zealand and South Africa have successfully advanced to the semifinals. So the question has to be asked: did Ireland overplay their players?

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IRELAND OVERCOOKED

In Rugby World Cups, coaches traditionally opt for squad rotation, fielding their second-string players against the tier-two teams. However, Irish rugby coach Andy Farrell took a different approach, consistently selecting strong Irish sides not only for challenging encounters with the likes of the Springboks and Scotland but also against Romania and Tonga. This choice had repercussions as the Irish starting XV accumulated an average of 250 minutes of playing time across their four pool games.

To put it into perspective, key players like Bundee Aki and Hugo Keenan logged every minute of their pool matches before being asked to do a full 80 against 3 time world champions: All Blacks. In contrast, New Zealand and South Africa averaged 167 and 164 minutes, respectively, with Damian Willemse accrued the most minutes for South Africa, totaling 216 minutes across the pool matches—substantially less than the exhaustive workload of the Irish team.

How good has Bundee Aki been so far 🍀 💪#RWC2023 pic.twitter.com/nKYa7crUMs
— Rugby World Cup (@rugbyworldcup) October 11, 2023

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WAS RASSIE RIGHT?

“Some teams went and just picked their best team every single game. I think that’s a bit tough to do that,” noted Rassie Erasmus, The Director of Rugby, with an evident reference to Ireland. This statement raises a valid point, especially when examining the differing strategies of South Africa and New Zealand. Both the Springboks and the All Blacks prioritized squad rotation during the Rugby World Cup group stages, in stark contrast to the Irish approach. In the aftermath of the Ireland vs. New Zealand game, one couldn’t help but notice a typically lively and robust Irish team that looked visibly drained. After putting together 37 phases, their valiant effort was thwarted by a Sam Whitelock steal. As a result, this once-favored Irish team now finds their way home after an unexpected exit from the tournament

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