Jack Conan has stated that the Ireland players picked up on a "lull" in the Aviva Stadium crowd during the Six Nations victory over Italy on Sunday.
The afternoon kicked off in grandstand fashion as young Stevie Mulrooney, of Toy Show fame, belted out Ireland's Call to his adoring fans. Even Andy Farrell commented on how impressive the rendition was but once the on-field action got underway, there was a significant drop in atmosphere. However, the atmosphere in the stadium notable dipped once the anthems were finished.
From the Toy Show to the Aviva, young Stevie Mulrooney is on the up ☘️pic.twitter.com/0Ai2VpChH4
— Balls.ie (@ballsdotie) February 11, 2024
The Aviva crowd has long been criticised for being a bit quiet compared to the Principality or Twickenham.
Ireland fans were praised for the atmosphere they brought to France during the World Cup but there was a clear dip in atmosphere at Ireland's first home game of the Six Nations.
Not surprisingly, Zombie was played frequently, and was heard over the stadium tannoy over the first three Ireland tries and after the fulltime whistle.
The middling atmosphere was something that the players picked up on Sunday, as Conan explained to RTÉ:
"It’s one of those things you only pick up in break moments, at scrums and lineouts and things like that.
"In comparison to Marseille last week [against France] when I came on I nearly got one of the calls wrong because I couldn’t really hear what James [Ryan] was saying for the call for the lineout because of the noise.
"There was definitely some lulls in the crowd but it’s Sunday at 3 o'clock, it’s very different to playing Saturday at 7.45 or 8 o'clock kick-off, it’s a different demographic altogether."
Aviva Stadium atmosphere found lacking
The Sunday 3pm kick-off could well have affected the mood of the crowd.
Speaking to reporters, James Lowe was sympathetic to supporters.
"It’s tough, man, I sort of understand that people have work tomorrow as well. We didn’t really notice it, we just got on with the job."
Ireland have two home games left in this year's Six Nations, starting with a 2.15pm kick-off against Wales on Saturday February 24th, when it's hoped that the absence of work the following day for most of the crowd could boost the atmosphere.
Then, on Saturday March 16th against Scotland, Farrell's men will need the St. Patrick's weekend crowd to be in full voice, particularly if a championship or Grand Slam is on the line.
That one kicks off at 4.45pm, when people will have had more time to sink themselves into a massive evening in Dublin 4.
