Wallaby legend Horan weighs in with more sour grapes after Ireland defeat

The sour grapes emanating from Ireland’s victory over Australia have continued unabated, with legendary Australian centre Tim Horan blasting Ireland’s time-wasting tactics last weekend.

It’s fair to say that the folks Down Under haven’t reacted to well to defeat at the hands of Declan Kidney’s men and have been coming up with all sorts of excuses in an attempt to explain just how the Tri-Nations champions could have lost to a team that was so out of form coming into the tournament.

Legendary centre Tim Horan, a veteran of Australia’s World Cup successes in 1991 and 1999, is the latest to add his two cents to the debate and reckons that Ireland were helped by deliberate time-wasting tactics, a ploy he says was revealed to him by a member of the Irish management team.

“Ireland had a deliberate plan to fake injuries each time there was a breakdown in play last Saturday, so they can slow the game down and frustrate the Wallabies,” Horan wrote in a column for Australian rag The Daily Telegraph.

“How can I be so sure? By talking to Irish assistant coach Alan Gaffney in the dressing rooms afterwards.”

Horan added that the Aussie players should have kicked up more of a fuss when Ireland were running down the clock and added that it will be a tactic that other teams will try and replicate in future.

“If James Horwill was more experienced as a captain, he would have blown up about it to referee Bryce Lawrence and really created a scene,” said Horan.

“There is no way Richie McCaw would have stayed silent if a team if a team used the same tactic against the All-Blacks. Australia’s future opponents will have taken notice of the strategy. The shame was that Lawrence destroyed the spectacle of the game.”

Horan reserved particular ire for Lawrence, who he says should pay for his poor performance by being excused from duty for the rest of the competition.

“Ireland deserved to win and always would have won, but the way Lawrence handled the match means he should not get another game at the World Cup. It is about the spectacle, not just for the rugby diehards but general sports fans who want to enjoy this tournament,” Horan added.

“One thing that really bugs me is if the ball is at the back of the scrum, why reset it or blow a penalty? Why not let the game continue? When you are on the world stage, the referee has a responsibility to let the game flow.”

Although Horan grudgingly acknowledged that Ireland deserved to win the game, he wasn’t a big fan of Ireland’s style of play, accusing them of using simple tactics and a lack of ambition.

“Ireland came in with a very simple game that suited the conditions. They hardly threw the ball wide and took short line-outs that allowed their forwards to run off centres Gordon D’Arcy and Brian O’Driscoll, which worked well during the Six Nations,” he said.