LEINSTER COACH JOE SCHMIDT says his issue was with the system and not Paul O’Connell after the Munster lock wasn’t cited over an incident which left Dave Kearney hospitalised.
Schmidt was furious when the City Comissioner Eddie Walsh chose not charge O’Connell for kicking Kearney in the head and stated that decision not to act was bad for the game.
However, during an appearance on The Late Late Show last night, the Kiwi spoke glowingly of O’Connell.
“I didn’t really come out against Paul O’Connell, I came out against the system that allows something like that to happen. I particularly conscious of head injury and anything to do with the brain.
We had a young player who was in a pretty sick state. He had to spend the night in hospital and have a few scans. Just for that not to be questioned and for one person to make a decision that wasn’t questionable isn’t great for the global image of the game when something like that happens.
“I don’t think any of us have any doubts about the measure of the man, or the player, who Paul O’Connell is. I don’t think it was anything to do with player to player animosity.”
Schmidt also talked about the possibility of becoming Ireland’s new head coach and explained that he expects to hear back from the IRFU next week.
Watch the interview below:
YouTube credit: rte
