The Wallabies struggled in two key areas in Dublin. They will get more of the same in France

At Wallabies training on Thursday in Dublin before facing Ireland, Collingwood coach Craig McRae was a keen observer. McRae wasn’t there in an official coaching capacity, he was simply there to learn how another elite Australian sporting organisation goes about its business.

The premiership-winning AFL coach could not have picked a worse time to be with the Wallabies, given what ultimately transpired under the high ball in the brutal 27-point loss to Ireland.

Ireland five-eighth Sam Prendergast kicked high nine times in his 60 minutes on the field – with devastating effect: the Wallabies failed to take the ball cleanly five times.

Wallabies tight-head prop Allan Alaalatoa believes his team can address that weakness before facing a French team that will almost certainly use the same tactic against them in Paris.

“You’ve got to take your hat off to Prendergast because he put a torp up there that went missing in the sky,” Alaalatoa said.

“That’s probably just a talent of his ... I think for us, we’ve just got to continue to grow and understand how we can make the back three’s job easier when they receive those contestables [kicks].

The Wallabies’ lineout struggled in Dublin.Credit: AP

“We’ve just got to focus on the work that we do up front and pressuring those kicks as much as we can.

In the lead-up to the Test, Ireland’s lineout had been heavily criticised by local media. The lineout is the responsibility of former British and Irish Lions captain Paul O’Connell.

In Dublin, O’Connell was seen beaming as his side won all 10 of their lineout throws, compared to the Wallabies losing six of their 19 lineouts, two of which were metres from the Irish tryline.

Asked how the lineout had malfunctioned so badly in Dublin, Alaalatoa said that there were several things that had gone wrong in the set piece on the night.

Allan Alaalatoa is confident the Wallabies can bounce back after a tough night in Dublin.Credit: Getty Images

“At one time it was the drill in the lineout and then maybe another time it was the throw,” Alaalatoa said.

“I think the throw was through the pressure that they [Ireland] were putting on throughout the game. Seeing their bodies go up and contesting in the lineout probably pressured our hookers a lot and we could see ourselves more starting to overthrow it towards the back end of the game ...

“It’s a tough learning for us as a forward pack because when we’re getting penalties and kicking into the corner. We saw with the opportunities that we got, we came away with tries, but when you lose the ball at source, it’s hard for us to get into the game ... As a forward pack and lineout callers and hookers, we have to learn from that massively.”

The Wallabies reported no injuries from a physical encounter in Dublin and now face the prospect of being the first Australian team to lose four Tests in Europe since 1958.

Wallabies coach Joe Schmidt is also facing one of the biggest challenges of his career as he leads the team to Paris to take on a strong French side.

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“I guess I can try to add my experience and chat to the group,” Schmidt said. “I’ve had some really good experiences at the Stade de France with massive respect for Les Bleus, but at the same time I’ve got huge respect for the players and how they will try to make sure they’re as well prepared for next week as they possibly can be.

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