HE’S ALREADY WELL known for his cannon of a right boot. Ben Healy has hammered a few howitzers off the tee for Munster in recent seasons, while showcasing some sublime long-range spiral kicks to touch.
But those watching closely will also have noticed the 22-year-old’s left boot coming into play more frequently.
For example, take this left-footed restart against Castres.
Healy usually restarts with his right foot and we can see how his short left-footed restart catches Castres off guard, giving Chris Farrell a superb chance to win the ball back.
We have seen Healy spiral-kicking off his left foot in open play too this season, as well as showing huge variety with his right, which he also uses to hammer pinpoint place kicks between the posts.
The Tipperary man bears all the hallmarks of a player who has brought an obsessive approach to his kicking game, but he has actually been easing up slightly in this area over the last two years to his benefit.
“I actually think my kicking has improved in the last year or two, just learning that I don’t have to be obsessive about it in the week of a game,” explains Healy, who first played rugby with Nenagh Ormond RFC.
“When I was younger, mind-boggling hours went into it because that’s what I wanted to do and I enjoyed it. A lot of hours in the front garden!
“But as you get older and more mature, it’s getting that understanding that there’s a bank of work behind you and you can take confidence in that, that I don’t have to kill myself during the week going into a game, so it’s more just around fine-tuning myself.
“The skills that you see, like the left foot and all of those types of things, were actually developed years ago. It’s more just about me being comfortable going into the game at this stage of my career.”
Healy has come across as a very mature young man for many years now. Even when he was captaining Glenstal Abbey to their first-ever Munster Schools Senior Cup title in 2018, he spoke with the calm clarity of a seasoned professional.
So it’s no surprise that he is vividly self-aware about his game now, as a genuine pro with Munster.
His kicking class has always been evident but Healy is focused on rounding out his game.
“All the way up in my school development and underage with Munster and Ireland, I was very much a game-controlling out-half,” says Healy, who has made a positive start to contract talks with his province.
“Like, good core skills, good control of territory, those types of things and I think if you want to get to the next level and be an international out-half and to go beyond that and dominate at international level, you’ve got to have all the strings to your bow.
“You’ve got to be able to run, you’ve got to be able to control the game like I was doing but just have all the skills on top of that as well.
“So that’s probably where my game needs to go to, that I have all the strings to my bow. Working with guys like Steve [Larkham, Munster's senior coach and former Wallabies out-half], he was a perfect example, he could do everything depending on what way the flow of the game was going.
“So I think that’s where I need to go. I’m pretty happy with how I’m progressing, wih something like that you’re learning new things every single day on that. It’s just the finishing touches.”
It has been obvious in Healy’s performances this season that he is pushing himself to be more of a threat in possession, either through his passing game or by darting at the line himself.
Healy has shown signs of improving his vision and decision-making on the ball and explains that his Munster team-mates have been crucial to the process.
“A huge amount of it comes down to the guys outside you and it’s that communication from the outside in,” says Healy.
“Again, growing up I would have been very much of the understanding that the 10 controls things, he controls how you play, but as you get to the top level, it becomes more and more important to develop and the development is that you listen to the guys outside you, what they’re saying.
“So a lot of the time it can be tough because you’ve got eyes on the ruck, you’ve got eyes inside, outside you, but they’re the guys who have more time and can tell you what the picture is and can paint the picture for you.
“So by the time you get the ball, a lot of the time they’ve made the decision for you. So the development there is really just having good players outside me who are able to communicate the pictures they’re seeing into me.”
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Gavan Casey and Murray Kinsella take a break from eating and drinking to chat about some interesting contract news in Irish rugby.
