If one way of drumming up interest in the International Rules Series with Australia is by describing the expected welcome as “hostile” then Ireland manager Paul Earley has at least made one strong call.
Yet Earley also insists that without a strongly competitive game in Perth next month the GAA may call time on the series itself.
Despite last year’s record aggregate win over Australia – 173-72 points – the Irish squad will travel out for the November 22nd showdown as underdogs.
Part of the reason for that, says Earley, is the fact Australia have this time named their strongest possible squad, and further rule changes, plus the reduction to a one-Test series, will make the Irish quest for victory that bit more difficult.
“We all know the soundings over the last couple of years,” says Earley, “that there are a lot of people against it. The players are still very much in favour of this series, and the commitment, again, has been terrific. You can see that with the quality of players that we have.
“But I do think this is a very important series. For the series to continue, and to be successful, it’s got to be competitive, and for the right reasons. Last year (when Australia travelled here with a squad of indigenous players only) it didn’t materialise, to the level people might have expected.
Good thing
“I’m hoping it’s not too late, because it would have been better if they sent a strong team last year. But it’s good that they have finally decided that this is very important, and given us the challenge of playing against the AFL’s best.”
Earley was speaking in Croke Park at the announcement of his 25-man travelling panel: 15 counties are represented, with 14 players back from last year’s squad, three back from squads of other years, leaving eight debutants. It may not be immediately striking for its strength (David Moran is the only player from All-Ireland champions Kerry, and James McCarthy the only Dublin player featured), yet Earley was confident he had picked the panel best suited for the task at hand.
“We looked at 38 players over the last few weekends, and the final practice match last Wednesday. And they were some tough calls. We had two selection meetings last week, and they ended up with six hours between them. And we would have met every week after training. We wanted it to be difficult because you’re looking at the best players that are available to you. It certainly was and it came down to narrow margins and very tight, tough calls. But that’s the nature of it.”
New rule
Two specialist goalkeepers (Tyrone’s Niall Morgan, and Meath’s Paddy O’Rourke) are included, partly because of the new rule which demands that all kick-outs land past the 45-metre line.
“The kick-outs will favour them,” says Earley. “It changes the dynamic of the game a good bit. And certainly, you’d expect that the middle third will be a very crowded area, and that will suit the Australians.
“They’re also back in pre-season, as opposed to playing in October, when they’re still in their holiday period. So they’ll have done some work already. The other factor is it’s in Perth, and the heat is going to be 28/29 degrees. That certainly favours them.”
As for the expected welcome – already described by one of the Australians as potentially “hostile” – Earley wasn’t disagreeing: “It could certainly be hostile in the context of on the pitch, rather than the stand. We have to prepare for that. Australia will be hurting over the losses in the last two series. They feel this is a way to turn it around, and I’ve no doubt that it will be very competitive and aggressive from the word go. We’ll be prepared for that.”
Professional clubs
Earley will be able to call on the AFL experience of Pearse Hanley, one of five Mayo players selected, who currently plays with Brisbane Lions. But none of the Irish players at Carlton (Zach Touhy, Ciarán Sheehan or Ciarán Byrne) were ultimately available, as they opted instead to commit to their professional clubs, albeit under the advice of their clubs, too.
The one-Test series is far from ideal, says Earley, although the hope is the warm-up game against a Victorian Football Selection on November 16th will help prime his Irish squad: “You’d prefer two Test matches, undoubtedly. You just can’t turn up for one game and expect it to be really high quality, high calibre.
“For us, last year, in the first game we played okay. In the second game we played much better. Our improvement was very significant, from the first game to the second.
“And the other thing is, some of the newer players have never had any experience of playing against Australia, and the instinct of an Australian, where there’s less space, and players are running at you very quickly, and closing you down, with tackles. Sometimes the first game just sets them up for the second, if you like. We don’t have that opportunity this time.
“The best we could do was to get the practice game, and hopefully it will prepare us for the following Saturday night.”
