JACK CROWLEY’S PERFORMANCES for Ireland so far this Six Nations season were discussed on yesterday’s Rugby Weekly Extra, the podcast for subscribers to The 42.
The out-half has been widely praised for the manner in which he has filled the role which for so long belonged to Johnny Sexton. Yet there has been some criticism of his goal kicking stats against Italy, where Crowley missed three out of five.
Gavan Casey of The 42 said on yesterday’s podcast that fans have been excited by Crowley’s off-loads and handling skills “but equally give the guy a little bit of space to make the mistakes he’s been making, be it off the tee or elsewhere”.
Casey added: “He’s 24 year’s old. Johnny Sexton had his absolute prime at, what, 30?
“They don’t need to be directly aligned throughout their careers, but it just should be remembered that he’s at a very formative stage of not only his test career but his senior rugby career. His try against Italy was his first senior try, which is nuts to think about considering he does have a little bit of line threat.
Has Jack Crowley been too heavily criticised?
— The42.ie (@The42_ie) February 12, 2024
"Give the guy the space to make mistakes"
"It should be remembered he is at a very formative stage of his career"@GavanCasey says it is unfair to put too much pressure on Crowley☘️
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“And I guess, when we’re comparing him to Sexton, maybe it’s a better idea to compare him to the Sexton who broke into the Irish team around 2009 rather than the Sexton who won World Player of the Year in 2018, or was nominated a couple of years later. Let’s look at this through the prism of him still being a young out-half rather than the guy who has to do it all right now.”
Ciarán Kennedy, rugby journalist with The 42, said: “I think it’s even a different conversation if we had doubts about Crowley’s kicking based off performances week in week out for Munster but his kicking percentages at Munster are quite good. We know he’s well capable of kicking off the tee.
“It’s only if his kicking against Italy starts to repeat itself, and it becomes a pattern, but otherwise, you’re dead right – it’s a young player. Every 10 has bad days off the tee. Even Johnny had bad days off the tee in the latter stages of his career. It happens the best of them.
“I just think for Crowley to be the age he is, for the 10 succession to have worked out as the way it has unfolded with Joey Carbery being there for so long and now he’s out of the picture. Ross Byrne was maybe next up, and he’s out injured. To have a young player coming in and playing with such authority and making the contributions that he’s made across the last two weeks – I don’t actually think it could have gone much better for Ireland.”
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