It's all well and good turning up, but you have to make some noise.
According to Craig Joubert, the Irish in Wembley this afternoon made quite a lot of noise.
It was a record World Cup attendance, with 89,267 cramming into the home of English football, and they were not shy about getting behind Joe Schmidt's team, cheering them to a 44-10 win over Romania.
Pinned back on their own try-line, Romania seemed to be taking their time over a lineout, but referee Joubert explained to Ireland lock Donnacha Ryan why he was cutting them some slack.
"This is a hell of a noise, I've got sympathy for them," said the South African referee, as a crowd of nearly 90,000 roared in the background.
Two bonus point wins, momentum building, the hottest tickets in London town this week will be for the Olympic Stadium next Sunday, where Ireland take on Italy.
As for France in Cardiff in a fortnight... gold dust.
They can go the whole way! After selecting our Ireland match-day 23 for the 2027 Rugby World Cup, we have gone one step further and picked our full 33-man squad. Props Tom O’Toole was the big winner from the Six Nations, taking his opportunity with aplomb. Paddy McCarthy and Jack Boyle haven’t seen much game […]
That seems to be that. Away from Ireland’s Triple Crown-winning exploits on the rugby pitch, there has been the ‘slight’ distraction that is Andy Farrell’s contract. Speculation over his post-World Cup plans ramped up when it was reported that Saracens were looking to bring him back. However, the latest comments from Ireland’s head coach suggest […]
It’s getting close! With the Six Nations over and done with, Ireland’s 2027 World Cup match-day squad has become a whole lot clearer. We’ve picked the side we would like to see, with a few surprises on the bench. Loosehead prop – Paddy McCarthy After injuries to Ireland’s top-three looseheads – Andrew Porter, Jack Boyle […]