RUGBY:The Irish squad transferred from Bordeaux to Paris by TGV yesterday afternoon entire and without injury alarms.
Amid a quite astonishingly inaccurate array of rumours circulating here and back home about internal strife - and those about players stomping out of camp are so far off the mark as to be ridiculous - the mood apparently remained pressurised, though the latest behind-closed-doors training session was again reputedly high in quality.
Admittedly we've heard that before, despite worrying signs the squad are overtrained. In the midst of what Eddie O'Sullivan admits people are understandably calling "a crisis", perhaps come Friday night it will all fall into place. It will have to, for otherwise the fat lady will be clearing her throat in the context of Ireland's future participation in this World Cup.
On Monday O'Sullivan urged us to "wait for the result and we'll know then where we stand". But, given the tournament rules, it's feasible to conduct some crystal-ball gazing.
Whoever wins on Friday night (kick-off 8pm Irish) will qualify for the quarter-finals. If France lose, they are out, barring a miraculous sequence of results - ie, Namibia and Ireland both beating Argentina. But because of the failure to obtain a bonus point in the fortuitous win over Georgia, Ireland are facing probable elimination in the event of a defeat on Friday.
A defeat by more than seven points (presuming Argentina obtain a bonus point in beating Namibia in Marseilles on Saturday night) would leave Ireland five points adrift of Argentina. To draw level with the Pumas and qualify by dint of the head-to-head result, Ireland would have to beat Argentina by more than seven points and obtain one themselves by scoring four tries on Sunday week in Parc des Princes.
Even if losing by less than eight points to France and earning a bonus point, Ireland would almost certainly still have to beat Argentina by more than seven to reach the quarter-finals.
The belated infusion of fresh faces into what has been a damagingly demarcated squad may possibly help revive them. Frankie Sheahan, elevated to the bench at the eighth time of asking in a World Cup, commented yesterday: "There is a bit of fear that we have not been firing but I think fear can be good and it can bring the best out of us on Friday night."
While O'Sullivan has declared his hand, the French have waited until this morning, taking an additional 24 hours to assess their captain Raphael Ibanez, who was last night declared fit to play, and to maintain "l'esprit du groupe qui veut gagner à trente".
French spirits have been revived by "la belle victoire" over Namibia, the biggest in their history, and that result gives Laporte plenty of posers. "It would be inappropriate to say that any player was not satisfactory on Sunday but still there was some wastage and a coach is a perfectionist," he said.
It is likely, however, that Ibanez will start alongside Pieter de Villiers and Olivier Milloud in the frontrow, and that Fabien Pelous's enforced absence may be bad news for Ireland given the cases made by both Sebastien Chabal and Lionel Nallet last Sunday.
Were Chabal's seismic presence kept back for an impact role Ireland would probably be relieved, and were Julien Bonnaire accommodated in the backrow, it would be a signal France intend to attack Ireland's lineout.
In their warm-up win over England in Marseilles, the presence of a core of Toulouse players gave Les Bleus more cohesion, especially in the backs. Conceivably, all bar Aurelien Rougerie and Damien Traille will come from Toulouse, taking into account the Natal-bound Frederic Michalak. Jean-Baptiste Elissalde has assuredly played his way in though, while the most revealing selection will be at outhalf, between Michalak and Lionel Beauxis.
Ellisalde's presence would enhance Michalak's chances, given their club partnership, and the scrumhalf could take the place-kicking duties of Michalak. As the more experienced in Tests, he is the perceived favourite.
But Laporte likes a structured game, something you can never get with the daring Michalak at 10. On Sunday, Michalak's sliced touchfinder gave Namibia the field position for their solitary three points, and one badly executed chip was followed by a high-risk pass across his own deadball line.
Against that were moments of skill and vision that were key to many of the 13 tries. Beauxis offers the better kicking game and is the safer option but has only seven caps and is only 21.
Whoever is picked will give a clear signal as to how France will approach this massive match.
