Brumby Runner
Jason Little (69)
Are you guys really arguing about which of the two shittier parts of our game was actually the shittiest?
That's about it. The way I read it, to Cyclo, the Irish dominance at the breakdown (apart from more turnovers, I don't really think they were all that much better in the forwards than ours) caused the poor decision making and technical deficiencies in our kicking game. To me, the propensity to kick, and the poor execution of those kicks led directly to the dominant territory and possession advantages the Irish enjoyed. Certainly, each had impacts on the other, but I stand by my opinion that both of Foley and Beale had more detrimental impacts on the game than the forward pack as a whole.
Incidentally, how much of the Irish dominance at the breakdown can be attributed to the continued selection of the Pooper? Our back row was out-muscled in this game and Michael Hooper had less influence that probably in any game I've seen him play.