Could Declan Kidney's Ireland beat the All Blacks in 2012?
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Writing in the Irish Independent, Jim Glennon looks ahead and predicts a year of mixed fortunes for Irish rugby in 2012.
"1. The IRFU's controversial proposals on non-Irish eligible players to be diluted, at the very least.
"...2. France to win the Six Nations. When the Six Nations follows a Lions tour or a World Cup, it tends to stretch the less well-resourced nations and so it's to be expected that Italy, Scotland, ourselves, and even Wales, notwithstanding their exceptional performance in New Zealand, will suffer.
"...3. Leinster to regain the Celtic League
"...4. Leinster not to retain the Heineken Cup. There are several reasons why retaining their European crown may well prove beyond Leinster, notwithstanding all of the above, or indeed the manner in which they are progressing through their pool.
"...5. Ireland to defeat the All Blacks for first time...Ireland will play the recently-crowned world champions three times in the space of a June fortnight. We've never beaten them in 24 encounters since 1905 and, more relevantly, in ten games since the turn of this century, but it's a run which must stop sometime and an early-season All Black combination could be caught on the hop by a full-strength Irish team set on proving to their new-found New Zealand support base that their World Cup performance against Australia is the real benchmark of their ability, rather than that against Wales."
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