Ireland vs New Zealand

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In a recent matchup of the Northern Hemisphere's top teams, Ireland showcased their strength, while New Zealand did the same in the Southern Hemisphere to secure their third consecutive Rugby Championship title.

However, the All Blacks faced doubts after narrowly beating the Wallabies and suffering a significant loss to the Springboks at Twickenham during their warm-up matches. Some were skeptical about their chances of winning a fourth title when the competition began.

Their tournament opener against France resulted in a 27-13 loss, which didn't help their case. Strangely, this defeat seemed to ignite a fire within the New Zealand team, and they've been on a dominant streak ever since.

Under Ian Foster's leadership, they bounced back with a resounding 71-3 victory over Namibia, followed by a massive 96-17 win against Italy. They secured the second spot in their group by crushing Uruguay 73-0 at the Groupama Stadium last weekend.

With these three convincing victories in their pocket, it's safe to say that Foster's squad has built significant momentum heading into this highly anticipated match. Underestimating their potential for an unexpected win would be quite audacious.

While Ireland holds the recent advantage in their head-to-head record, the All Blacks have been the stronger side historically, having lost only five times in their 36 meetings dating back to 1905.

James Ryan, who was a member of the squad and played in the second half against Scotland last weekend, has been ruled out owing to a hand injury that has persisted. This has been a setback for Ireland.

After recovering from calf and eye injuries, respectively, Mack Hansen and James Lowe were both given the all-clear, which was good news for Farrell. They will now join Hugo Keenan in the back three.

Garry Ringrose and Bundee Aki remain in the center, and Ireland's halves team is made up of Jamison Gibson-Park and captain Sexton.

On Saturday night, under the floodlights at the Stade de France, a highly anticipated match in the 2023 Rugby World Cup will unfold. It's a clash between Ireland and New Zealand in the quarter-finals. In this tournament, Ireland has been flawless, securing their spot in the last eight by finishing first in Pool B. New Zealand, on the other hand, bounced back after an initial loss to secure the second position in Pool A.

This is Ireland's fourth consecutive appearance in the Rugby World Cup quarter-finals and the eighth time in their history. Yet, they've never managed to reach the semi-finals in any of these instances. Nonetheless, many believe that this year could be their breakthrough, as they've assembled one of the finest teams in recent memory. Ireland is also on an extraordinary winning streak, boasting 17 consecutive victories, making them the team with the longest active winning streak in the competition.

Ireland was initially considered one of the top contenders to win the Webb Ellis Cup in the competition. This belief was reinforced by their Grand Slam victory earlier this year in the Six Nations, where they went undefeated and dethroned Les Bleus in the process.

The Shamrocks easily handled Romania and Tonga in their first two tournament matches. However, they truly established themselves as strong contenders when they defeated the Springboks 13-8 in their third match.

Andy Farrell's team excels in maintaining control of the field and forcing opponents into making mistakes that result in penalties. When in possession of the ball, they utilize powerful runners, with Johnny Sexton playing a central role.

Even though Ireland is entering the match as the clear favorites, it's important not to underestimate the All Blacks, as doing so often leads to unfavorable outcomes. Farrell's team must figure out a way to neutralize the All Blacks' running threat for the entire 80 minutes, or they risk facing elimination in the quarter-finals for the fifth consecutive time.

In this game, Foster made a crucial decision by choosing Leicester Fainga'anuku over Mark Telea for the flank position. Fainga'anuku will join Beauden Barrett and Will Jordan in the back three.

At scrum-half, Aaron Smith receives his 123rd Test cap, and Richie Mo'Unga fills in at fly-half, making his 54th appearance for his nation. The center pairing consists of Jordie Barrett and Rieko Ioane.

Ethan de Groot rejoins Tyrel Lomax and Codie Taylor in the front row after serving his ban, and Scott Barrett replaces Sam Whitelock at number five with Brodie Retallick as their locking partner.

Once again, Ireland's display of their all-around strength dazzled, as befits a champion team and is a hallmark of this one. There was almost nothing to criticize, from the rapier-like cuts and expert finishing of the two opening backline scores to the nearly impenetrable defensive wall that pushed Finn Russell closer and closer to the sideline, making the inevitable runner on the cut-back all the easier to intercept.

Even Ireland's lineout, which was the only letdown in their victory over South Africa, was back in top form. Find someone who can point out Ireland's vulnerability, and I'll tell you that person is a straw man.

There is still more. Any ship that enters the'sea of green' does so at its own risk because it is more like a surging ocean surf. Given the All Blacks' recent bravery in Ellis Park, a hostile environment won't be anything to fear from them. However, even if they manage to neutralize the crowd from their perspective, every Ireland player will still grow an inch taller as a result of the overwhelming Irish support that will be present inside the Stade de France.

The Irish team's confidence in competing against and defeating the All Blacks comes at the ideal time. They were destroyed 46-14 in Yokohama four years ago, but nobody thinks the situation is the same now.

While New Zealand had impressively defeated South Africa in their opening match and, following some easier pool matches, were primed and ready to annihilate whoever stood in their way in the quarter-final, Ireland had failed to impress throughout pool play, losing to the host nation Japan.

Ireland has since accomplished what was once thought to be nearly impossible: they traveled to New Zealand and won a series. Ireland couldn't have been more impressive in checking off every box in preparation for this match, if the only issue today is a few injuries, which we will learn about when selection is confirmed.

From New Zealand's vantage point, it is feasible to respect every one of Ireland's advantages while remaining confident in the All Blacks' ability to perform. This is despite recent victories over South Africa in London and against France on opening night. and the 2-1 series defeat by Ireland in 2016.

In actuality, the third and decisive rubber of the series was played in Wellington. The All Blacks unexpectedly tackled the Irish in Auckland before they were prepared, and Angus Ta'avao was cruelly dismissed in Dunedin for making accidental head-on contact with another player.

For what it's worth, Wayne Barnes, the referee from Saturday night, was in charge that evening. The head collision that caused Ireland's Andrew Porter to break Brodie Retallick's cheek bone would very probably have resulted in Porter's card being raised to red and him being barred from returning, given the changes in foul play regulations and guidelines.

It's important to note this since neither team's supporters want the game to be determined by rugby's card lotto, despite how much they both want their teams to win.

Retallick is particularly important to note because he was not present for either of the two recent All Black defeats, which were remarkable for the lack of abrasiveness and steel in the attacking effort.

The three locks for New Zealand, Retallick, Sam Whitelock, and Scott Barrett, as well as loose forward Shannon Frizell, are their four most crucial players. Without their directness and physical presence, New Zealand had no chance of counteracting Ireland's superiority at the breakdown.

Simply put, the All Black backline will not win the game by scurrying from behind the advantage line or depending on errant cross-field kicks if the All Black pack fails to establish dominance and regularly provide front-foot ball to Aaron Smith.

That is the All Blacks' method to victory: winning the breakdown and gain-line battle and executing clinically when any opportunities emerge. Hard-shouldered captain Sam Cane also takes on a central defensive role.

Coach Ian Foster, who has endured criticism throughout his time as an All Black, has one, two, or three matches left in his career. He and his colleagues have encountered this circumstance before, which is helpful.

After a disappointing loss in Mbombela the year before, the All Blacks traveled to Ellis Park with Scott Robertson already in the coaching chair and Foster looking at another defeat virtually guaranteed to be his doom.

For its physical purpose and for showing how far the players were willing to go to keep their coach in his job, their 35-23 victory was astonishing.

This week, that mindset has been present in many places. And for this reason, the record for successive "Tier One" Test victories is 18 victories. No matter how excellent a team is throughout time, like Ireland, there will always be an opponent or a competitive event like.

'World in Union' has served as the Rugby World Cup's official musical anthem since 1991. The Cranberries' "Zombie" has filled the vacuum left by the absence this time around.

That chant will undoubtedly resound from St Denis to the Seine and beyond should Ireland achieve history and move past the quarterfinals for the first time at a World Cup.