Pool D/Ireland 32 Namibia 17:The scoreline tells of little but embarrassment for Ireland in their opening assignment of the World Cup, and that would have been the feeling for all their supporters in the crowd too. Far from hitting the ground running, Ireland continued in large part where they left off in the warm-up matches. In truth, save for the bonus point, there was nothing in the performance for Ireland to take from this game.
Conditions were perfect on a floodlit, billiard-top pitch, but the offloading, wit, composure and confidence that saw all but one of this team cut loose in Rome on St Patrick's Day seem aeons ago.
The atmosphere at the 33,000- capacity Chaban-Delmas, which has the longest tunnel of any stadium in Europe, wasn't exactly akin to that during the Heineken European Cup semi-final in 2000 when Munster gave birth to the Red Army with that epic win over Toulouse under a searing April sun. There was plenty of green, the Irish supporters having taken over the normally sedate streets of this charming city.
By 8pm local time, the temperature had dipped from 28 to 19 degrees, and perhaps the Irish throngs had been enjoying a few glasses of the local speciality in the sun. Scarcely six minutes in, as Emile Wessels lined up a penalty attempt, the crowd had already embarked on the Mexican wave, which was evidently frowned upon by the French. Not exactly Thomond Park then either.
After the early Mexican waves, a step, charge and hand-off by Denis Leamy in a 40-metre gallop reminded all present what the primary point of the exercise was. By then, there had also been the fillip of Captain Essential's return to rude health.
Peter Stringer having made a sharp retreating catch and offload for Denis Hickie to counter-attack, they played touchline to touchline, and it was good hands by Brian O'Driscoll that enabled Donncha O'Callaghan, Leamy and Girvan Dempsey to make ground.
From the quick recycle, O'Driscoll stood in at first receiver and had already read that there was nobody at home, chipping over the advancing blue line, gather and twisting adroitly in the tackle to score his 30th try for Ireland. He was okay anyway.
The Irish stated their intentions by kicking a penalty to the corner, but the maul was surprisingly driven back before Paul O'Connell's rumble helped create another opportunity. Alas Hickie, having been hit unmercifully by the hulking winger Ryan Witbooi, already had his eyes on the step inside from Dempsey's pass before he had gathered the ball.
O'Gara settled for one three-pointer before the outhalf then feinted to kick another penalty to the corner, but instead crosskicked with pinpoint accuracy for Andrew Trimble to score.
A second penalty to the corner was rewarded when Simon Easterby burrowed over.
Gradually the wheels came off. When O'Gara, who didn't strike the ball as well as usual, missed a penalty to touch, Tertius Losper was just wide from half-way with the ensuing drop goal.
French supporters, mindful of their own vested interest in Namibia preventing Ireland from dipping their bread, chanted, "Allez les Bleus." The underdogs had their tails up, and when Marcus Horan isolated himself and was penalised for not releasing, Wessels ended the half with a 50-metre penalty.
Despite the scrum earning a penalty-try, Irish anxiousness and inaccuracy - evidenced by D'Arcy's inability to hold a good offload by O'Connell - possibly blew another try as they had the numbers waiting in a broken field.
Such profligacy had to be punished and when O'Driscoll horribly miscued a drop-out along the ground, it put Ireland on the back foot from another quick recycle. This led to all sorts of defensive distortions, for Witbooi popped up in midfield to straighten through the two Irish props John Hayes and Marcus Horan before putting Jaques Nieuwenhuis over.
To loud cheers from a French crowd now cheering the Namibians as if they were indeed their own, Wessels converted.
Once again, the Namibians had been invited back into the match and now their tails were seriously up. Fairly flinging their bodies into contact in clearing the ball out after fullback Tertius Losper took a quick lineout to himself and charged up the middle - the poor Irish chase was evidence of their weakening appetite for what was unfolding - they put the ball through the hands and ran straight to achieve more width than Ireland had managed in the entire second half.
Left winger Heini Bock grubbered up the line and centre Piet van Zyl quickwittedly volleyed on and gathered just short of the line despite the best efforts of the covering Dempsey. Wessels again converted.
Incredibly, at 27-17, you could almost say it was game on. In fact, it had become embarrassing.
"Na-ma-bie," chanted the crowd, drowning out "Ire-land."
Errors continued. Moderate respite, if only from the embarrassment, was provided in large part, predictably, by O'Driscoll's intercept and offload to Hickie, and then his try-scoring pass to Jerry Flannery, though the vocal crowd were unconvinced the replacement hooker had scored.
It looked worthy of recourse to the video, which was more than could be said about the Irish performance.
IRELAND: G Dempsey; A Trimble, B O'Driscoll (capt), G D'Arcy, D Hickie; R O'Gara, P Stringer; M Horan, R Best, J Hayes; D O'Callaghan, P O'Connell; S Easterby, D Wallace, D Leamy. Replacements: J Flannery for R Best, S Best for Horan (both 61 mins), M O'Kelly for O'Callaghan (69 mins), N Best for Wallace (69 mins), P Wallace for O'Gara (80 mins), G Murphy for O'Driscoll (82 mins). Not used: I Boss.
NAMIBIA: T Losper; R Witbooi, B Langenhoven, P van Zyl, H Bock; E Wessels, E Jantjies; K Lensing, H Horn, J du Toit; W Kazombiaze, N Esterhuize; J Nieuwenhuis, H Senekal, J Burger. Replacements: M MacKenzie for Senekal, J van Tonder for Jies (51 mins), J Redelinghuys for Lensing (65-78 mins), J Meyer for Horn (77 mins), T du Plessis for Burger (66-69 mins), J Meyer for Horn (77 mins), M Africa for Witbooi (80 mins). Not used: L-W Botes.
Referee: Joël Jutge (France).
