The Spain barrier is too much
Spain 8 Ireland 7
By DAIRE WALSH
IRELAND head coach Adam Griggs admitted his side ‘didn’t turn up’ in their shock World Cup qualifier defeat to Spain in Parma last night.
Expected to begin this four-team tournament with a win – and thus put themselves in a strong position to reach next year’s finals in New Zealand – the concession of a 72nd-minute try leaves them in a precarious position.
José Antonio Barrio’s outfit set their stall out from the very opening moments of the game and Ireland struggled to adapt in the manner required.
“I think we just didn’t turn up to play,” said Griggs.
“We were probably outplayed in a lot of facets of the game by Spain.
“You have to give credit to them.”
Having rattled the post off an initial penalty, Exeter Chiefs scrum-half Patricia Garcia edged Spain into an early lead with her second shot at goal on seven minutes.
Ireland were quick to respond, however, with Beibhinn Parsons bursting over the whitewash less than 60 seconds later for a converted score.
This try came off a well-worked lineout on the right-wing, but Ireland suffered a series of set-piece malfunctions throughout the course of the contest.
Still, either side of the interval the 2014 World Cup semi-finalists were extremely close to extending their 7-3 advantage.
Cliodhna Moloney and Amee-Leigh Murphy Crowe both looked set to bag a second Irish try, only for TMO Andrea Piardi to rule out both efforts.
While Ireland dominated possession in the third-quarter, diligent Spanish defence continued to frustrate them.
The 67th-minute sin-binning of debutant Sam Monaghan heaped pressure on the Irish try line, which was eventually breached by Lea Ducher off a quick penalty.
Enya Breen had a chance to steal it at the death for Ireland, but her final minute place-kick was short of the target.