Italy head coach Gonzalo Quesada says Ireland are similar to the All Blacks in their ability to keep their foot on their throats.
Andy Farrell’s side put in a great performance to beat the Azzurri 36-0 in Dublin on Sunday.
They were expected to beat the Italians, and although they won comfortably, they were facing a team that tested England last weekend.
set piece problem
There was a visible improvement in the first leg of the Six Nations, but in Dublin it was almost back to square one as the Irish stopped setting pieces and applying pressure.
Italy managed to stay in the fight and looked more resilient defensively, but Quesada felt Ireland had a relentless approach, which he compared to New Zealand.
“Ireland compete so hard for the ball at the breakdown that it slows down our ball speed, and defensively they have very good line speed,” he said.
“We had prepared for them and we knew what they would bring, but they are like the All Blacks and when you get ahead they come looking for more points.”
After praising Ireland, Quesada criticized his team, saying they “did nothing special” to help the hosts win at the weekend.
“They didn’t have to do anything special, just break through the system attack,” he said. “They were always at the front. And after a certain phase, in the first phase it was like we were waiting for them, but in the second phase it was a little different.
“Until that 19-point lead, I think they just had to keep doing the basics, they were 100% lineout, 100% scrummaging, so it was easy for them. They can really work very efficiently.
“It was frustrating because we wanted to put more pressure on them.”
Second half improvement
Italy conceded three tries in each of the first and second halves, but Quesada was satisfied with how they played after the break.
The problem was with the set-pieces, they were unable to capitalize on their aggressive defence, and the final 40 minutes turned into a complete disaster from poor set-pieces.
Quesada’s team earned a number of penalty turnovers in the second period, but an inconsistent lineout combined with mistakes in the first phase prevented them from building a sustained attack.
“I don’t think we were that bad in the second half. Our defense was a little bit better, but this is a rugby game and it’s about putting pressure on the other team. We never forced them into mistakes. There was no one,” added the Azzurri head coach.
“I’ve only been with the team for a little over two weeks, but I’m confident in what we’re trying to do and how we want to play. We’re trying to be a little more realistic in order to utilize our kicking game a little bit better. I think I can become a target.”
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