Bowe believes Ireland can upset the All Blacks

Tommy Bowe accepts it will take rugby perfection for Ireland to halt the All Blacks juggernaut at Aviva Stadium tomorrow.

Tommy Bowe accepts it will take rugby perfection for Ireland to halt the All Blacks juggernaut at Aviva Stadium tomorrow.

New Zealand are overwhelming favourites to successfully negotiate the next assignment on their grand slam tour when they swagger into Dublin.

The world’s best team and Tri-Nations champions have never lost to Ireland in 23 matches dating back to 1905 and it would take a seismic upset for that to change tomorrow.

Facing them is a team whose confidence is brittle with a defeat by South Africa and unconvincing win against Samoa posing some difficult questions.

Bowe, however, believes Ireland can topple the All Blacks if they strain every sinew in the pursuit of a famous victory.

“There’s a lot of excitement because New Zealand are playing some great rugby at the moment. It’s a massive challenge for us,” said the Ospreys winger.

“The intensity of training has stepped up a notch and we know that if we want to compete against these boys we need to be at the top of our game for 80 minutes and that’s what we’ve been working on.

“New Zealand like to play at a certain intensity and it’s up to us to match that and go up a level.

“There is a definite confidence that we have the ability to beat them.

“Their record against us is why we’re serious underdogs for this match once again and we know every player has to put everything on the line for 80 minutes.

“Hopefully we’ll get the bounce of the ball and it will be our day tomorrow.

“There’s no panicking going on. We know we are underdogs but we know that given the players we have, if things works out for us we’re well capable of victory.”

It is difficult to see in which department Ireland can target the tourists with their own decline since the RBS 6 Nations adding to the sense of futility.

Several players – most notably captain Brian O’Driscoll, though he is hardly alone – are struggling to make an impact, but otherwise it is hard to explain their slump.

Head coach Declan Kidney has recalled en masse the side thwarted by South Africa with prop Tom Court replacing injured Tony Buckley at tighthead in the only change.

Kidney revealed the selection was to give the players a chance at redemption and Bowe admits they had let themselves down in the autumn opener.

“We didn’t play to our potential that day and there’s a lot to improve on,” he said.

“This is our third game in and we’re more familiar with each and the Aviva Stadium.

“The fact we’ve been together longer is going to be a massive factor – it means we should have more of an understanding.

“We watched a few clips of the Scotland game (Scotland lost 49-3) and New Zealand were very good at capitalising on mistakes.

“That’s the one area we need to concentrate on and minimise as much as possible.”

Ireland endured yet another chastening defeat by New Zealand during the summer when they were flattened 66-28.

Bowe was among the try scorers, helping peg back a 38-7 half-time deficit in a fightback the team is using to inspire hope.

“We came back strongly against New Zealand in the summer,” he said. “We scored four tries that day and not many teams do that against them.

“We showed that if we hang onto the ball and play rugby, we can score. But of course we gave them a massive head start and it’s important not to do that.”

more courts articles

Man (25) in court charged with murdering his father and attempted murder of mother Man (25) in court charged with murdering his father and attempted murder of mother
Man appears in court charged with false imprisonment of woman in van Man appears in court charged with false imprisonment of woman in van
Man in court over alleged false imprisonment of woman Man in court over alleged false imprisonment of woman

More in this section

Peter O'Mahony 26/3/2024 Returning Ireland stars to boost Munster ahead of 'business end of season'
Ronan Kelleher 25/3/2024 Ronan Kelleher and Leinster have 'unfinished business' in Europe
Declan Danaher 27/3/2024 Ireland still have a 'long way to go' ahead of Italy's visit says Declan Danaher
Sport Push Notifications

By clicking on 'Sign Up' you will be the first to know about our latest and best sporting content on this browser.

Sign Up
Sport
Newsletter

Latest news from the world of sport, along with the best in opinion from our outstanding team of sports writers

Sign up
Cookie Policy Privacy Policy Brand Safety FAQ Help Contact Us Terms and Conditions

© Examiner Echo Group Limited