JOHNNY SEXTON HAS delivered encouraging news to Ireland fans after he confirmed he would be fit to play in next weekend’s final test of this three-match series.
The Ireland captain was forced off in the final ten minutes of tonight’s pulsating test here in Dunedin with a knee injury. “It’s just a tweak,” Sexton confirmed, “I’ll be okay (for the third test).
Garry Ringrose, however, will not be. The Ireland centre went off with a head injury and has been ruled out of next week’s final test. Another player whose tour has finished is Harry Byrne, the young Leinster outhalf. He had to return home with a hamstring injury.
In addition, Peter O’Mahony, who had an exceptional game, is undergoing a head injury assessment.
As for Sexton, this win is just the latest entry into an incredible CV one that includes a grand slam, three Six Nations championships, four Heineken Cups, two successful Lions tours and now four victories over the All Blacks.
Instrumental in each of those wins, Sexton tonight became the first Irishman to captain a team to victory over the All Blacks in New Zealand.
“Any time you create a little bit of history, it means a lot,” said Sexton after tonight’s game. “It’s a very, very special day for everyone in the country.
“We talk about it a lot, talk about making people at home feel very proud of us. It’s right at the top of our list.
“We didn’t get the reward for the effort we put in last week. We reproduced the same effort again this week and it was touch and go.
“At half-time, I thought ‘Oh my god!’
“But the reaction in the second-half was superb. To bounce back like we did was great. We stayed in the moment.
“It was by no means a perfect performance. We feel that we could have played better in parts, but look, it’s a very special day.”
It certainly is. To put this win in context, they are the first team to beat the All Blacks in this stadium since it opened in 2011. More to the point, they are in with a chance of becoming the first team to win a series here since 1994.
Key to Ireland’s win was their game-management, the way they retained a sense of composure after the All Blacks reduced the gap to three points just before half-time.
After the game Sexton revealed that the experience of this year’s Six Nations – when they played with a man advantage against England for 78 minutes – was a valuable lesson they were able to lean on during the tougher periods of this evening’s encounter, in the context of the All Blacks being reduced to 14 players with 50 minutes remaining.
“We were playing some really good stuff but weren’t quite taking chances,” he said.
“They, of course, they had a purple patch, and some of our discipline, giving them penalties, didn’t help.
“It was the same against England (who Ireland beat in this year’s Six Nations championship) when we played against 14 men, giving them access and giving them a chance to maul in our 22. New Zealand were very clinical and they scored a good try before half-time, but we are happy with how we regrouped and bounced back in the second-half.”
Bouncing back is what this Irish team does well. They followed up their previous defeat – to France in February – by putting together a three-game winning streak which saw them win a Triple Crown and finish second in the championship.
Then there was the first test of this tour New Zealand, where they were comprehensively beaten last weekend. This was quite a turnaround.
“We had a strong look at our defence this week and responded really well,” said Sexton. “Another thing we did well was on turnover ball – because we know how dangerous they are in that aspect of the game.
“Their players – Will Jordan, Sevu Reece – are dangerous, capable of punishing you at any time. The way we transitioned was much better tonight.”