Ireland head coach Andy Farrell has expressed strong confidence in his team's ability to rebound against Argentina this Friday in the Autumn Nations Series at Aviva Stadium.
After a disappointing performance against New Zealand last week, Farrell believes that Ireland will demonstrate their well-known resilience and produce a compelling response.
Since the tail end of the Six Nations in 2021, one consistent trait of Farrell's Ireland has been their capacity to bounce back after defeats or sluggish performances. In the last three seasons, whenever they have stumbled, they have quickly regained form, making the upcoming clash with Argentina all the more intriguing.
Felipe Contepomi's Argentina arrives in Dublin with significant momentum, having secured victories against top-tier teams like South Africa, New Zealand, France, and Australia in 2024.
Farrell remains optimistic, citing Ireland's history of strong responses under his leadership. In 2022, after a heavy defeat to New Zealand in their first Test, Ireland bounced back to win the series in remarkable fashion.
Similarly, concerns of a post-World Cup slump were dispelled when Ireland secured a record win against France in Marseille during this year's Six Nations opener. Last summer, they overcame a poor first Test loss to South Africa by rallying to draw the series.
Reflecting on his team's ability to learn and improve after setbacks, Farrell said on Wednesday, "That’s certainly been addressed.
"We’ve talked about that – our story – this week quite a bit. Lessons learned from those defeats have been really good for us actually in our development.
"It makes a loss that hurts a little easier to take if that’s the case so there’s a determination to make sure the same thing happens this week."