Name: Duncan Casey: Mercurial, enigmatic, dangerous - the trouble with Scotland...
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Duncan Casey: Mercurial, enigmatic, dangerous - the trouble with Scotland...

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X     You could be forgiven for thinking part one of the job was done and dusted. World champions defeated, we can now shift our focus to the business end of the competition.&nbsp;At least, that seems to be general consensus. You can’t have a conversation about the World Cup – even here in Vancouver – without getting into the weeds of our upcoming quarter-final clash with the All Blacks. While it’s understandable to be looking two steps ahead, it’s also a tad foolish, as sport has so often taught us.No side, least of all Ireland, can afford to assume anything at a World Cup. We only need to rewind four years for a stark reminder of where this can lead, when we were outplayed and outclassed by a spirited Japanese side who had done their homework, spotted our weaknesses and exploited them to great effect.Saturday's game against Scotland will be far from straightforward. Ireland will be tested sternly by a capable side with nothing to lose and everything to gain. Only one of these countries is under pressure to perform, and it isn’t the home of Buckfast and Billy Connolly.In rugby terms, the Scots really are an enigma. The “you never know what side you’re going to get” line was usually reserved for the French in recent history, until their rebirth under Fabien Galthie in the last couple of years. Now, that assessment much more accurately nails this Scotland side. They can be brilliant, they can be awful, sometimes in consecutive weeks, sometimes in consecutive halves, or even quarters, of rugby.Their thrilling battle with New Zealand at Murrayfield in November of last year encapsulated this perfectly. Having coughed up two converted tries in the opening seven minutes, it looked like Scotland were going to be at the wrong end of a massacre. They surprised us all, however, by then scoring 23 unanswered points and taking a nine-point lead after 54 minutes. They had the Midas touch and looked unstoppable.Having dominated the Kiwis for an hour, they imploded. New Zealand ran riot in the final quarter, seizing control of the match and ultimately winning the game by eight points. It was yet another valiant, if avoidable, defeat for the Scots; another illustration of why they haven’t been able to secure a seat at the top table of rugby despite the abundance of talent in their ranks.That talent poses a series of threats that will challenge Andy Farrell’s side to be firing on all cylinders on Saturday in Paris. Complacency in any facet of the game could well be punished severely and when you’re facing a side that can afford to throw all caution to the wind, it adds another layer of pressure to what is already a crucial game.The X factor Darcy Graham and Duhan van der Merwe are two of the tournament’s most dangerous wingers. While they can be hot and cold, Graham, in particular, looks to be on fire in France. With the joint highest number of tries and line breaks in the competition so far, his tail is up and he will most certainly bring his free-roaming style to the party when he lines up against James Lowe.Both he and van der Merwe will come off their wings and look for weak links to exploit in Ireland’s defensive line. Both can create try-scoring opportunities out of nothing and thrive off loose kicks and broken ball. Limiting Scotland’s ability to get the ball wide will be central to containing them.The string puller In many ways, Finn Russell is more of a French out-half than Scottish. attitude to the game – both on and off the pitch – is a breath of fresh air in an era that requires athletes to be obsessively diligent all the time. The former apprentice stonemason plays rugby with a smile on his face and has the ability to turn a game on its head in seconds.Russell always plays like Russell, meaning he will always go for the speculative pass, kick, offload and everything else. The guarantee he will try things is, unfortunately for the Scots, not matched by a guarantee that these things will come off. While he is one of the most entertaining tens in the world to watch on his day, he has broken the heart of many a Scottish fan over the years by pushing the limits a little too much.If Ireland allow Russell the time and space to find his groove, he will combine with the likes of Graham and van der Merwe to turn on the magic and make life difficult for his opponents. If there’s one player in the world who thrives when he has a licence to go and make things happen, it’s this guy.The heavies The Scottish front row, particularly at scrum time, does a good job of personifying the national team as a whole. They are very capable but entirely unpredictable. They can be excellent, then brutal a short time later. Take their opening game against South Africa, for example. At half-time, they had gotten the upper hand on their opposite numbers, winning several penalties and getting the referee onside.In fact, I remember thinking Scotland’s scrum could provide the platform from which they could mount a serious challenge to South Africa in the second half. When the bomb squad appeared, however, this sentiment disappeared, and the Scottish scrum was running backwards for the rest of the day. Even the introduction of wily old fox WP Nel could do nothing to stem the tide of misery hammering at their door.Props Pierre Schoeman and Zander Fagerson have caused problems for plenty of sides with a set piece that was much better on paper. Andrew Porter and Tadhg Furlong should have enough to come out on top in this particular match-up but the scrum will be more of a nip-and-tuck contest than most people are predicting.The Munster man Any lingering doubts that Ben Healy may have made an error of judgement by choosing to declare for Scotland evaporated last weekend as the Tipperary native seized his opportunity to impress in a first World Cup start for his adopted country. While the opposition wasn’t the strongest, Healy assisted multiple tries, scored one, and above all else, kicked 11 out of 11 shots at goal.As we saw many times during his time at Munster, one of Healy’s greatest strengths is his ability to remain ice cool under pressure and score points off the tee in the dying stages to win games. Should this game end up coming closer to the wire than Ireland would like, the appearance of Healy off the bench with 10 minutes to go might have Irish bums shifting uneasily.more articles Ireland team to face Scotland at Rugby World Cup, live updates&nbsp;Tadhg Furlong embracing the pressure ahead of Scotland clashStaying focused key to Ireland's success, says Paul O'ConnellMore in this section Duncan Casey: Whisper it, but Ireland's lineout issues aren't newDonal Lenihan: Ireland will need every bit of their downtimeDonal Lenihan: South Africa's strategy is obvious. Can Ireland negate it?#Rugby World Cup#Sport - Top PicksREAD NOWSubscribe NowFOLLOW IRISH EXAMINERSport NewsletterLatest news from the world of sport, along with the best in opinion from ouroutstanding team of sports writersSign upSelect your favourite newsletters and get the best of Irish Examiner delivered to your inboxSign UpCookie Policy Privacy Policy FAQ Help Contact Us Terms and Conditions © Examiner Echo Group Limited

X     You could be forgiven for thinking part one of the job was done and dusted. World champions defeated, we can now shift our focus to the business end of the competition.&nbsp;At least, that seems to be general consensus. You can’t have a conversation about the World Cup – even here in Vancouver – without getting into the weeds of our upcoming quarter-final clash with the All Blacks. While it’s understandable to be looking two steps ahead, it’s also a tad foolish, as sport has so often taught us.No side, least of all Ireland, can afford to assume anything at a World Cup. We only...

Duncan Casey: Mercurial, enigmatic, dangerous - the trouble with Scotland...

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