Ireland bid to record successive victories when they face Australia in the Schools' international at Ravenhill tonight (7.0). Their success in 1996 is the only occasion that they have managed to beat Australia and this they accomplished in Canberra by the narrowest of margins, 22-21.
The Australians have never lost on Irish soil a proud record they hope to uphold, having negotiated two thirds of the Irish leg of their tour that includes test matches against Scotland, Wales and England. They were fortunate to arrive in Belfast unbeaten having escaped from Donnybrook with a slender 1310 victory over Leinster Schools.
Trailing 10-6 in injury time at the end of the match, they demonstrated great character and ability to create an opportunity for replacement centre Junior Pelesasa who raced over between the posts for the game's decisive score. Heartbreak for Leinster but a sobering lessons for the Australians.
Manager David Roberston maintains that Ireland must start as favourites. "From what we have seen in the two matches - they had already beaten Munster in Ennis - and particularly the Leinster game, Ireland must be favourites for the test. We were disappointed with the way we played but they (Leinster) were a good side."
Ireland coach Keith Patton is unlikely to allow the gracious comments of the visitors to deflect his players from expecting anything other than a tough match. Australia showed enough flashes of quality in Donnybrook to suggest that victory is well within their compass.
The Antipodean kingpins retain seven of the team that started against Leinster, and nine of the side that finished the match for tonight's game, including try scorer Pelesasa and fellow centre Paul Warwick who contributed the rest of the points that night.
Robertson admitted that the conditions are somewhat different: "We had a three day camp before leaving Australia for Canada and it was 30 degrees celsius. These boys were reared on hard fast grounds. We have brought a side that is not the biggest but is used to playing a Super 12 style."
Ireland boast two of last year's Schools' side, centre Kieran Lewis and wing James Norton, who defeated Wales and Scotland before narrowly losing to England. A third, Roscrea's Gavin Duffy is on the bench. The team is captained by Clongowes hooker Henry Bourke.
Leinster demonstrated that the Australians are fallible proving that a team can match their physical intensity and deny the visitors the latitude to run ball from deep: no loose kicking and no missing first up tackles.
IRELAND: P Drew (Blackrock); J Norton (St Mary's), K Lewis (St Mary's), C O'Sullivan (PBC Cork), F Baynes (St Michael's); D Crotty (Belvedere), P McCarthy (CBC Cork); B Young (Ballymena Academy), H Bourke (Clongowes), J Montgomery (Blackrock); A Maher (St Joseph's, Galway), G Brown (RS Armagh); D Leamy (Rockwell), S Jennings (St Mary's), N McMillan (BRA). REPLACEMENTS: J Cuppitt (Sullivan Upper), G Duffy (Roscrea), E Reddan (Crescent), P Malone (St Munchin's), T Morton (RS Armagh), E Quish (PBC Cork), D Campbell (Rainey Endowed).
AUSTRALIA: T Talaia; M Schleibs, J Pelesasa, P Warwick, P Playford; T Donnelly, P Sheedy; G Hardy, J Mann-Rea, A Mathison; Graeme Smith, T Makeka; A Elphinston, D Lyons (capt), George Smith.
