A few weeks back, with Ireland’s possible decline ahead of the Six Nations, the subject de jour I ventured the opinion in these pages that they would still be a force to reckon with... if Jamison Gibson-Park could rediscover his best form. Yesterday the New Zealander did precisely that and a frankly pitiful England were, for the second week on the bounce, left for dead.
“The oil that lubricates the Ireland machine” was how I described the leprechaun-like Gibson-Park and I’m happy to stick with that.
When he plays at extreme pace; feeds his fly-half with smooth alacrity; scores with his sharp w...