GAVIN COOMBES WILL turn 26 in four months’ time and he must be wondering when, or if, things are going to take off for him with Ireland.
Today brought news that Coombes is one of five players released from the wider World Cup training squad, so his race appears to be run unless there are injury issues.
The Munster man has two Test caps to his name but both of them came back in 2021 when Ireland had a few front-liners away with the Lions. Though he has been involved in many squads since, Coombes hasn’t been able to get a look-in for selection.
Caelan Doris, who is four months younger than Coombes, now has 29 caps and is one of Ireland’s key players. And herein lies much of the issue for Coombes. Not only does he have the brilliant Doris ahead of him, but there’s also the excellent Jack Conan, who has played for Ireland 39 times and has three Lions Test caps.
That’s serious competition at number eight and it’s a stretch to think that any 33-man squad needs three specialists in that position. Coombes also had to contend with CJ Stander’s presence for Munster and Ireland before his retirement in 2021.
Coombes has been a pivotal figure for Munster ever since. And yet, Farrell and Ireland haven’t appeared to be convinced that he can make an impact at Test level. The players ahead of him are an issue but Ireland have never searched for a way to get Coombes’ power into the mix.
Indeed, Coombes was dropped from the Ireland squad midway through their November campaign last year, which is a rare occurrence when it doesn’t involve injury. Having done well for Ireland’s midweek team in New Zealand last summer, Coombes had a poor game for Ireland A against the All Blacks XV in November.
When they sent him back to Munster last autumn, Ireland coaches seemingly told Coombes they wanted him to get fitter in order to make more contributions over the entire course of games rather than having the occasional lull in between eye-catching big moments. They apparently wanted to see more evidence of good decision-making too and more impact in areas other than ball-carrying.
It would have been easy for Coombes to feel sorry for himself but he responded superbly, notably stepping up his performances with Munster. His number of involvements in games grew and grew, with Coombes regularly topping the charts for carries, tackles, and ruck contributions.
So it was no surprise when Coomes returned to the Ireland squad for this year’s Six Nations. He earned it. But again, there was no window of opportunity on game day. Doris was the first-choice number eight and Conan got a start there against Italy as Doris moved to the blindside flank.
Still, Coombes went back to Munster and had a strong end to the season as they marched to URC glory. The number eight was particularly impressive in their final victory against the Stormers in Cape Town, so he would surely have gone into this World Cup pre-season with Ireland feeling confident.
He would have desperately hoped for just one chance on the pitch to show what he can do, a late opportunity to highlight to Farrell and co. that he has something different to offer, but it hasn’t come. The fact that he was left out of the matchday 23 for the Italy clash two weekends ago, when Ireland shook things up, didn’t bode well and now he has been cut from the squad before the second warm-up game against England on Saturday.
This suggests Conan is recovering well from the foot injury he suffered against the Italians. Ireland are set to start with either Cian Prendergast – who has played at number eight for Connacht – or Doris at the back of the scrum against the English as Farrell goes with a strong team full of his front-line players.
There’s a nagging suspicion that Coombes could have added value to Ireland’s World Cup squad, with his size and ball-carrying power a threat even against the best club sides. Perhaps Farrell and his assistant just don’t see it translating to Test rugby or perhaps they still have the same concerns they had last autumn.
Farrell has generally been vindicated with his selections and it’s worth remembering that Paul O’Connell, who has a shrewd rugby brain, is the forwards coach and would have an influence when it comes to selecting players up front. They’ve watched Coombes up close and personal at training repeatedly in the last few years, as well as studying his Munster performances in detail, and haven’t seen enough to think he can make Ireland a better team. That doesn’t mean they’re right, but their only interest is Ireland winning.
That said, they do still see Coombes as being among the best back row players in the country. There is fierce competition in that department and though provincial biases might colour some people’s views of Coombes’ rivals, there is no shame in missing out to those who remain in Ireland camp now.
So what next for Coombes? Presumably, he will be licking his wounds again but he will then refocus on being ready if Ireland suffer injuries in the back row and need to belatedly call on him for the World Cup.
He will reintegrate with Munster where he remains a key man and hugely popular figure within the squad. Coombes has rebounded from disappointment with Ireland impressively before. Now he has to do it all over again.
