Girvan Dempsey says Ireland coach Joe Schmidt is being characteristically shrewd in not showing his full playing hand weeks before his side's first match against Canada.
Dempsey, who played fullback for Ireland during his 82 caps over a 10 year career, says it would be naive for Schmidt to expose his team to the full glare of analysis from rival coaches ahead of their first pool match in Cardiff.
Wales coach Warren Gatland alluded to it in his post-match press conference on Saturday in Aviva Stadium, with some taking his comments as criticism. He observed that Ireland played a "narrow" game and "never threatened" with ball in hand. He added that Ireland did not show much despite almost winning the match in the last play.
Awareness
"I think you have to have an awareness of the way teams are," said Dempsey, who is currently coaching with Leinster. "Every team has a defensive coach. They do a huge amount of analysis. If you show your hand a bit too early it makes it a bit easier for them to defend.
“You are constantly trying to put things in place . . . but you are also trying to hold a bit back to grow the performance.”
Dempsey, the fourth most capped Irish player, was part of squads for the 2003 and 2007 World Cups and is facing into Leinster’s first competitive Pro12 game of the season on Friday against Edinburgh.
As interim backs coach with the province, his critic’s eye can see the difference in the way Schmidt has set up his team. The final warm-up match against England in Twickenham is likely to be different again.
“Well, if you look at the previous game against Wales and then against Scotland, if you review those games you can see positive things in structure and what Joe’s doing,” he says.
“But from my experience of Joe as a coach, he is very astute in terms of his game plan and how he sets the team up.
“He will be looking at each game in the pool stages and see how he can build the team, grow the performance. Also add in those little wrinkles in terms of team play and patterns.”
Leinster's Isa Nacewa, who played at senior level for Fiji, says the pre-tournament matches are less results-driven than a means to an end.
Back in Ireland after deciding to come out of retirement, Nacewa hasn't played here since the end of the Pro 12 in 2013. Born and raised in New Zealand, Nacewa qualified to play for Fiji through his ancestral links, was included in Fiji's squad for the 2003 World Cup and came on as a substitute against Scotland.
“Nobody remembers what happens in the warm-ups,” he says.
First game
“It’s about the first game of the World Cup. I think that they’re so process-driven through the warm-up matches that it doesn’t really count. The World Cup is when they need that ‘W’ [win] next to their name.”
Ireland play Canada, Romania and Italy before facing France in the final pool game. Nacewa also warns against underestimating teams that are regarded as early tournament fodder.
“Every match is hard. You have expectations, but whatever match it is, it’s the World Cup and you don’t want to trip up.”
