Rory Keane reports from Johannesburg
JARED PAYNE DIDN’T have to make too many tackles against South Africa last Saturday, but he ended up making the most crucial one of the night.
Payne’s last-ditch tackle on JP Pietersen, ably assisted by Robbie Henshaw, Paddy Jackson and replacement Rhys Ruddock, will live long in the memory as Ireland held on for a stunning 26-20 victory at Newlands.
“It shows how good they were because that was the only tackle I had to make in the game, so it shows how good the frontline was,” said Payne.
“I was just lucky enough to get a bit of help from a few boys because he’s a pretty tough competitor is JP.
“So, there was nothing going through my head except to try and stop this big guy running at you as best you can. I got a bit of support from the lads.”
Payne was class personified on his first Test start at fullback having won all his 14 previous caps at outside centre before the clash at Newlands.
The Ulster man provided a new attacking edge to the Irish attack making four out of his side’s seven offloads, including two audacious back door efforts to Andrew Trimble out wide.
It certainly seemed to disprove the theory that the Irish players are discouraged from offloading under Joe Schmidt’s tactical blueprint.
“They’ve always said that if it’s on you throw it and they’ve said it’s the right thing to do, so he was happy enough. He [Schmidt] didn’t tell me off or anything,” he explained.
“No, you’ve always got the freedom and you just do it. It’s just rugby, you don’t really think about whether you should or you shouldn’t; you just do it.
“If it’s there you play it, if it’s not you don’t. You don’t have it going through your head whether you’re allowed to or not. There’s none of that chat, there never has been.
“You’re always encouraged to play what’s in front of you.”
It was a proud day for the northern province with all six of their Ireland contingent putting in tireless shifts during the Cape Town thriller. Payne, Trimble, Luke Marshall, Rory Best and Iain Henderson all made huge contributions but it was Jackson who produced a career-defining display.
The New Zealand-born fullback has watched Jackson develop at Ulster and sees a bright future ahead for the 24-year-old fly-half.
“I think Jacko’s going to be a cracking fly-half,” said Payne.
“He’s got everything you need, he’s gutsy, he’s fit, he’s an awesome defender, he’s just got everything and he’s still really young, you’ve got to remember.
“People in Ireland probably crucified him a little bit back in the day because he got thrown in so young, which was pretty unfair. If I was as good as him at his age I’d be over the moon.
“He’s only going to get better and better and it’s going to be good for Irish rugby having both him and Johnny that can do a job at 10 for a team and are competing for the position can only be good.”
It was a huge statement of intent from Jackson who is set for a monumental battle with Johnny Sexton for the Ireland No 10 jersey over the coming seasons.
“Yeah, look, I’ve been lucky enough to play with Paddy for a long time now so I trust him
but I think, hopefully, other guys might trust him a bit more,” Payne continued.
“You’ve got to, especially in that position, nine and 10, even if it’s a new guy coming in you’ve got to trust him as much as you would a seasoned pro because it gives them confidence to control the game.
“If you’ve got people talking over them and stuff it probably dulls their confidence a bit and makes it tougher for them and adds to the pressure. So the sooner you can just trust what they say, get the whole team behind it and not too many voices.
“It’s easier for them and everyone did that for Jacko at the weekend and I think he probably will have earned a bit more respect for the way he performed and it’s cracking for him. I can’t wait to see him get better.”
With a Springbok backlash on the way not to mention the physical demands of playing at
altitude in Ellis Park here in Johannesburg, Schmidt’s men will arguably need to produce an even better performance this weekend.
“Oh, massively, hugely,” Payne added.
“We need to improve massively not only physically, we’re going to have to go to a darker place again mentally. We’re going to have to be more on the ball.
“We’ve identified areas that we can improve on and it’s both mental and physical, so if we can do that and raise our game then hopefully we can meet the level that the Boks will be at because I guarantee you they’ll be a lot better as well.”
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