AFTER THE LIVE press conference following his side’s 20-13 Six Nations victory over Italy, Andy Farrell took a standard, embargoed briefing with journalists in which he slammed “keyboard warriors” for their vitriolic contributions to Ireland’s out-half debate over the last year and more.
Farrell, who had already praised Jack Crowley’s impact off the bench during the live presser, pivoted away from a question about selection for England and became animated, slamming those whose criticisms of Ireland’s two leading 10s have strayed beyond conventional sporting discourse.
“Do you know what, I might be talking out of school here”, Farrell said, “but in my opinion for what’s gone on over the last year or so, especially with the keyboard warriors, I think people need to ask themselves sometimes, ‘Are we Irish? Do we want people to do well or not?’
“Because it can be tough for these kids, you know?,” Farrell added. “It can be tough for these kids. I’ve seen it, to-ing and fro-ing with both of them, and both of them are strong characters.
“It takes a lot to break kids like that. But I’ve seen it affect people, you know? So the keyboard warriors on Twitter, or whatever you call it now, need to cop on and try and help these kids.”
On Monday’s Rugby Weekly Extra podcast for The 42 subscribers, Bernard Jackman, Gavan Casey and Murray Kinsella — the latter of whom was on hand to hear Farrell’s thoughts directly on Saturday evening — assessed Ireland’s out-half situation, and the increasing toxicity that pervades the conversation around the 10 jersey for the national team.
Kinsella noted that Farrell has previous in such circumstances having watched his son, Owen, step away from England duty in part due to social media abuse, and he and his RWE colleagues discussed the topic at length, giving thoughts on what they feel Farrell should do ahead of Ireland’s trip to Twickenham this weekend.
Murray Kinsella: “Even in the stadium, you could hear it and you could sense it: people who are there with an Ireland jersey on, some of them — a very small minority of them — don’t want [Prendergast] to do well.
“It’s jarring and it’s sad to me. I’ve never really come across it to be honest, watching or covering Ireland, that some fans don’t want a player — who’s on the pitch at that moment trying to win a game for Ireland — to do well.”
Gavan Casey: “It’s f***ing weird behaviour, to be honest, to actively root against a player who’s playing for your team that you presumably want to win, and on whom you’ve spent an extortionate amount of money to watch.
“It was jarring during the game, even after the two missed placed kicks, you can instantly hear these hisses of derision from pockets of the stadium.
“I would have thought all along that some of that derision was just coming from Munster fans, that it was a parochial thing, but what was especially jarring to me was when Jack Crowley came on and Sam Prendergast was taken off, the noise that greeted that… I wouldn’t go as far as to say people were ‘jeering’ Prendergast, but they seemed to be cheering the fact that he was being taken off. And it wasn’t just a Munster contingent. It felt like the majority of the stadium at that point — at least that’s just what it sounded like.
“I know Farrell afterwards didn’t agree with that interpretation of it. He basically said people were cheering for Jack Crowley coming onto the field. But look, that’s not really how it felt to us. Certainly, a few of us journalists were looking around at each other going, ‘Jesus, this feels harsh…’
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“With the vitriol involved, is there any way to actually fix this situation?”
Bernard Jackman: “No, I don’t think you can. I think if people want to be dickheads, they’ll be dickheads. You can’t control how people feel. I think it is sad but if people genuinely want to abuse Sam, I think they’ll do it whether Andy Farrell says it or not. Unfortunately, that’s the reality of it.
“I don’t think this is about Sam or Jack. I think both of them are good men. There’s a lot of shit going on here that has nothing to do with them. They’re in the wrong place at the wrong time, fighting for a jersey, and one’s from Leinster and one’s from Munster.
Some of the outside stuff that’s not in their control is a lot of anger [from fans outside of Leinster] towards the IRFU for a lack of support for their province, or for over-supporting Leinster. There are a lot of people who want Leinster to fail as well.
“Unfortunately for Sam on Saturday, he just wasn’t having a good game in all aspects. Even the things that we can do really well — his attack and his kicking — just weren’t at the level. He wanted to get on the ball, he was getting lots of touches, but for whatever reason, it just wasn’t really in flow.
“And of course, then, Jack comes on and straight away, his first play, is the best period that Ireland had. And that’s brilliant from Jack! That’s what you want… And Farrell name-checked [Crowley for his impact].
“So, where do we go from here? I think, unfortunately, this has been built up, but I can see Farrell’s point. He’s gotten 16 caps into Sam now. One of the things they said after the World Cup was, ‘How did we end up in a situation where we didn’t know if Jack was ready to come on and play and we were so reliant on Johnny.’ So, I think [Farrell] wants to see what [Sam] has, and to have ideally three 10s available.
“So, they’ve tried to fast-track Sam, and when you’re fast-tracking someone, there’s ups and downs, and at a time when the team has been struggling. And to be fair, it hasn’t been easy for Jack when he’s been starting as well, because the team haven’t been firing.
“We blame the 10 but I think there’s a multitude of different things here.
I think that probably now, I’d imagine the best thing to do for Sam is not to play him. I would say you’ve gotta go with Jack, give him a chance, and rebuild Sam. Get him working on the areas that are weaknesses.
Murray Kinsella: “Just to clarify here, criticism of players — in rugby terms — is just part and parcel of the game. That’s completely normal. Talk about the game, playing styles, form, attributes. That’s part of professional sport.
“However, when it goes beyond that, it’s unacceptable. And that is the case here, particularly with Prendergast. They (the IRFU) have this software now which reads and intercepts abusive messages and there’s a lot of that coming from what I understand.
“That’s disgraceful and disgusting, and there’s no place for that in society, never mind sport. But that is the case in this instance. It’s gotten to that point.
“I think there’s a nasty edge to it in real life now as well. I think there’s a lot of mocking. It’s gone over the top. I don’t really understand it because half the time in Ireland, people are giving out about younger players not getting their chance — and then one gets his chance and people are picking it apart with more of a mocking edge at the moment.
“On the rugby front, it’s a pity that that now almost comes into the decision-making, because it should just be what’s best for an Ireland team in Twickenham. And you’d think it is Crowley.
“But even the fact that you mention, there, Berch, ‘Is it better for Sam Prendergast to get out of the limelight a bit’: it’s not great that a head coach is having to think that way.
“And listen, some people will say that’s on Farrell, that he backed and backed Prendergast when he hadn’t got a massive body of work with Leinster behind him, but it’s worth remembering he’s had good games for Ireland. Last year’s Six Nations, the first three games, he was excellent. People outside of Ireland were saying he was going to start for the Lions.
“So, it’s not as if he’s played bad international rugby all the time, but he does look like he’s lacking a bit of confidence, certainly, at the moment.”
To listen to Murray Kinsella, Bernard Jackman and Gavan Casey’s full Ireland-Italy review, and their thoughts on selection in other positions ahead of Twickenham, subscribe to The 42 for just €1 for your first month.
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'I don't think this is about Sam or Jack. There's a lot of sh** going on here that has nothing to do with them'
AFTER THE LIVE press conference following his side’s 20-13 Six Nations victory over Italy, Andy Farrell took a standard, embargoed briefing with journalists in which he slammed “keyboard warriors” for their vitriolic contributions to Ireland’s out-half debate over the last year and more.
Farrell, who had already praised Jack Crowley’s impact off the bench during the live presser, pivoted away from a question about selection for England and became animated, slamming those whose criticisms of Ireland’s two leading 10s have strayed beyond conventional sporting discourse.
“Do you know what, I might be talking out of school here”, Farrell said, “but in my opinion for what’s gone on over the last year or so, especially with the keyboard warriors, I think people need to ask themselves sometimes, ‘Are we Irish? Do we want people to do well or not?’
“Because it can be tough for these kids, you know?,” Farrell added. “It can be tough for these kids. I’ve seen it, to-ing and fro-ing with both of them, and both of them are strong characters.
“It takes a lot to break kids like that. But I’ve seen it affect people, you know? So the keyboard warriors on Twitter, or whatever you call it now, need to cop on and try and help these kids.”
On Monday’s Rugby Weekly Extra podcast for The 42 subscribers, Bernard Jackman, Gavan Casey and Murray Kinsella — the latter of whom was on hand to hear Farrell’s thoughts directly on Saturday evening — assessed Ireland’s out-half situation, and the increasing toxicity that pervades the conversation around the 10 jersey for the national team.
Kinsella noted that Farrell has previous in such circumstances having watched his son, Owen, step away from England duty in part due to social media abuse, and he and his RWE colleagues discussed the topic at length, giving thoughts on what they feel Farrell should do ahead of Ireland’s trip to Twickenham this weekend.
The below is an abridged segment from the conversation, which is available in full to The 42 subscribers (get your first month for just €1 here).
***
Murray Kinsella: “Even in the stadium, you could hear it and you could sense it: people who are there with an Ireland jersey on, some of them — a very small minority of them — don’t want [Prendergast] to do well.
“It’s jarring and it’s sad to me. I’ve never really come across it to be honest, watching or covering Ireland, that some fans don’t want a player — who’s on the pitch at that moment trying to win a game for Ireland — to do well.”
Gavan Casey: “It’s f***ing weird behaviour, to be honest, to actively root against a player who’s playing for your team that you presumably want to win, and on whom you’ve spent an extortionate amount of money to watch.
“It was jarring during the game, even after the two missed placed kicks, you can instantly hear these hisses of derision from pockets of the stadium.
“I would have thought all along that some of that derision was just coming from Munster fans, that it was a parochial thing, but what was especially jarring to me was when Jack Crowley came on and Sam Prendergast was taken off, the noise that greeted that… I wouldn’t go as far as to say people were ‘jeering’ Prendergast, but they seemed to be cheering the fact that he was being taken off. And it wasn’t just a Munster contingent. It felt like the majority of the stadium at that point — at least that’s just what it sounded like.
“I know Farrell afterwards didn’t agree with that interpretation of it. He basically said people were cheering for Jack Crowley coming onto the field. But look, that’s not really how it felt to us. Certainly, a few of us journalists were looking around at each other going, ‘Jesus, this feels harsh…’
“With the vitriol involved, is there any way to actually fix this situation?”
Bernard Jackman: “No, I don’t think you can. I think if people want to be dickheads, they’ll be dickheads. You can’t control how people feel. I think it is sad but if people genuinely want to abuse Sam, I think they’ll do it whether Andy Farrell says it or not. Unfortunately, that’s the reality of it.
“I don’t think this is about Sam or Jack. I think both of them are good men. There’s a lot of shit going on here that has nothing to do with them. They’re in the wrong place at the wrong time, fighting for a jersey, and one’s from Leinster and one’s from Munster.
“Unfortunately for Sam on Saturday, he just wasn’t having a good game in all aspects. Even the things that we can do really well — his attack and his kicking — just weren’t at the level. He wanted to get on the ball, he was getting lots of touches, but for whatever reason, it just wasn’t really in flow.
“And of course, then, Jack comes on and straight away, his first play, is the best period that Ireland had. And that’s brilliant from Jack! That’s what you want… And Farrell name-checked [Crowley for his impact].
“So, where do we go from here? I think, unfortunately, this has been built up, but I can see Farrell’s point. He’s gotten 16 caps into Sam now. One of the things they said after the World Cup was, ‘How did we end up in a situation where we didn’t know if Jack was ready to come on and play and we were so reliant on Johnny.’ So, I think [Farrell] wants to see what [Sam] has, and to have ideally three 10s available.
“So, they’ve tried to fast-track Sam, and when you’re fast-tracking someone, there’s ups and downs, and at a time when the team has been struggling. And to be fair, it hasn’t been easy for Jack when he’s been starting as well, because the team haven’t been firing.
“We blame the 10 but I think there’s a multitude of different things here.
Murray Kinsella: “Just to clarify here, criticism of players — in rugby terms — is just part and parcel of the game. That’s completely normal. Talk about the game, playing styles, form, attributes. That’s part of professional sport.
“However, when it goes beyond that, it’s unacceptable. And that is the case here, particularly with Prendergast. They (the IRFU) have this software now which reads and intercepts abusive messages and there’s a lot of that coming from what I understand.
“That’s disgraceful and disgusting, and there’s no place for that in society, never mind sport. But that is the case in this instance. It’s gotten to that point.
“I think there’s a nasty edge to it in real life now as well. I think there’s a lot of mocking. It’s gone over the top. I don’t really understand it because half the time in Ireland, people are giving out about younger players not getting their chance — and then one gets his chance and people are picking it apart with more of a mocking edge at the moment.
“On the rugby front, it’s a pity that that now almost comes into the decision-making, because it should just be what’s best for an Ireland team in Twickenham. And you’d think it is Crowley.
“But even the fact that you mention, there, Berch, ‘Is it better for Sam Prendergast to get out of the limelight a bit’: it’s not great that a head coach is having to think that way.
“And listen, some people will say that’s on Farrell, that he backed and backed Prendergast when he hadn’t got a massive body of work with Leinster behind him, but it’s worth remembering he’s had good games for Ireland. Last year’s Six Nations, the first three games, he was excellent. People outside of Ireland were saying he was going to start for the Lions.
“So, it’s not as if he’s played bad international rugby all the time, but he does look like he’s lacking a bit of confidence, certainly, at the moment.”
To listen to Murray Kinsella, Bernard Jackman and Gavan Casey’s full Ireland-Italy review, and their thoughts on selection in other positions ahead of Twickenham, subscribe to The 42 for just €1 for your first month.
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