BRIAN O’DRISCOLL WAS delighted with both Ireland’s win and performance against Italy on Sunday – giving a large amount of credit to the tens of thousands of Irish supporters that witnessed the match in Dunedin.
Declan Kidney’s men won a cagey first-half battle to lead 9-6 at the interval but tries after the break from the centre himself along with winger Keith Earls (2) sealed a 36-6 victory, sending Ireland through to face Wales in the quarter-finals of the tournament.
“We’re very pleased with the way we’ve come through the pool in first place,” O’Driscoll told reporters after the game. “We didn’t bring results into this World Cup but we never panicked. We came here with big belief in our ability and what we’re capable of and we’ve managed to deliver a couple of times.
“We knew it would take a good while to grind Italy down and we were clinical in the chances we took. There was a distinct pressure on us to perform because it was win or go home, but we responded well to it.
“We’ve got ourselves in a place where we’re playing Wales for a place in the semi-finals and that’s all we could have hoped for at this stage.
On the crowd, he added: “That was the best support we’ve had yet. It was a sea of green. Everywhere you looked it was there. It was just like playing at Lansdowne Road. In fact, I’ve played in Dublin in the past when the support hasn’t been that good.
“There are also the Kiwis, who have jumped on board supporting us as well, and we’ll welcome anyone who’ll wear green and shout for us.”
Looking forward to next weekend’s quarter-final against Wales, coach Declan Kidney said there would be little to choose between the sides – no matter who triumphs in the encounter.
“It will be like a Six Nations game because the players know each other so well, space will be cut down,” he insisted. “It will be like a cup final. That’s what this competition is all about. Today was a cup final and thankfully we’ve qualified for another one.”
There was no immediate update on hooker Rory Best, who went off with a shoulder injury, and there could well be a citing for Italian Leonardo Ghiraldini following an incident with Cian Healy in the first half.
Italy coach Nick Mallet, meanwhile, has tipped Ireland for further success in the tournament.
“My view is that they didn’t come into his World Cup as big favourites because they lost four games (in the build-up), but they targeted Australia and ourselves as key games,” he said. “Once they get into the quarters and semis, they’ve got a team that can knock over anyone on that side of the draw.
“No team can be confident playing against Ireland at the moment and say we’ve got a genuine chance of beating them. Where is their weakness?”