WHILE JOE SCHMIDT is currently spending much of his time pondering the make-up of his Six Nations squad and preferred XV, the Ireland coach must also make a decision on a replacement for Paul O’Connell as captain in the coming weeks.
The loss of the legendary second row is likely to be heavily felt by Ireland this year, particularly with Iain Henderson having sustained a hamstring injury that rules him out of the championship.
Devin Toner and Donnacha Ryan are the favourites to fill the second row during the Six Nations, although Mike McCarthy is in strong form for Leinster and there are a number of less experienced but nonetheless exciting options for Schmidt to consider.
Whatever about O’Connell’s undoubted value as a world-class lock, his importance as a leader is the aspect that Schmidt and his side may miss most of all.
There are a range of candidates for Ireland to select from as O’Connell’s successor: Jamie Heaslip, Rory Best, Sean O’Brien, Johnny Sexton, Conor Murray, Rob Kearney and perhaps the youthful Robbie Henshaw.
But for his ACL injury, Peter O’Mahony would now be figuring chief among Schmidt’s thoughts.
Given that the Munster captain will miss the Six Nations, it makes sense for Rory Best to assume O’Connell’s role for the upcoming championship at least and perhaps on into the tour of South Africa in June.
The current Ulster skipper is hugely respected by his Ireland teammates and coaching staff and has figured heavily in the leadership group during Schmidt’s tenure. The ‘burden’ of captaincy doesn’t appear to rest heavily on his shoulders at provincial level and, at the age of 33, he is more than capable of dealing with the additional stress in Test rugby.
Best is a nailed-on starter for Ireland and in strong individual form at present, probably more so than any of the other candidates Schmidt is considering. His current record as Ireland captain reads: played four, won three, lost one.
Managing referees and having an understanding of when to push them is a key skill in captaincy. It was something O’Connell become proficient in as he developed as a leader, and the feeling is that 33-year-old Best is the most advanced in this area of any of the contenders.
Heaslip certainly has extensive experience in dealing with referees one-on-one, given his 12 Ireland caps as captain and his leadership with Leinster, but the sense is that match officials don’t quite warm to him consistently.
The Leinster number eight is the most obvious choice as the next Ireland captain, but there remains a certain amount of doubt around his credentials.
Ireland have won six games from 12 with Heaslip captaining, although the disastrous 2013 Six Nations obviously doesn’t rest solely on his shoulders. Nonetheless, that win rate may be one of the reasons weighing against the 31-year-old.
The captaincy appears to rest more heavily on Heaslip’s individual performances, and the sense is sometimes that the Leinster man offers more impactful leadership when he is not the official skipper.
Leo Cullen’s decision to replace Heaslip with Isa Nacewa as Leinster captain can be read in two ways: either it paved the way for him to take the Ireland leadership, or it was in order to allow the number eight to concentrate on his own game in blue.
Allowing him to focus purely on ball-carrying, hitting a mountain of rucks, hammering into tackles repeatedly and contributing excellent communication and set-piece work makes more sense for Ireland – without the distraction of captaincy.
The same, to a degree, applies to several of the other candidates. Sexton is Schmidt’s on-field brains and needs to direct his thoughts purely to tactical matters – where is the space? How is the opposition backfield looking? How can I lure them into an error?
Sexton’s demands on teammates are famously severe and it’s unclear whether his training-ground relationships with others extend much beyond reprimanding them. A captain certainly needs to be able to bring the light as well as the sharp.
O’Connell was capable of motivating in several different ways, as is Best and someone like O’Mahony.
Murray is another man who must have game management issues at the forefront of his mind, particularly with much of the kicking game revolving around him. The feeling is that Ireland can hand the 26-year-old more responsibility as a sniping, arc-running playmaker this season too.
Back row O’Brien so often has his head buried in rucks competing for turnovers, while he pushes the laws to the limit of the game and quite often beyond. He has captained Ireland once, but his value is as a totemic battering ram and breakdown specialist.
Kearney’s positioning at fullback is certainly a stumbling block to his claim, despite the fact that he is highly regarded as a leader within the squad. Being so removed from the centre of play is an obvious issue, and, like O’Brien, the 29-year-old would continue to provide motivation and encouragement even if not handed the honour.
What about Best’s age? What about the fact that he looks very unlikely to be around for the next World Cup in 2019?
O’Mahony’s return from injury is an important part of the jigsaw here. The Cork man was O’Connell’s long-standing heir as Munster captain and the same has often applied to his growth as an international player too.
From the first time O’Mahony trained with Munster as an academy player, he was laying down the law to senior Ireland internationals, demanding more of them, engaging them, praising them at different turns, wise to relationships beyond his years.
Those who came across O’Mahony even as a 16-year-old PBC schoolboy will have likely picked him out as a future professional captain. Little in the meantime has suggested he is not built for the role at Test level and he has developed his skills in this department as impressively as his lineout capabilities.
O’Mahony has had to experience the sharp learning curve that comes with managing referees, particularly given his full-blooded approach to playing and dealing with opponents.
He certainly retains a truly aggressive edge, but O’Mahony’s temperament has cooled as his career has developed.
The Cork Con clubman turns 27 early next season and with 35 international caps already under his belt, that may be the perfect time for him to assume a role that he has been tipped for throughout his career.
While he has had to adapt his approach to the breakdown after referees began strictly penalising his habit of resting his forearms on the ground while jackaling, the rest of his game has steadily improved with each passing season.
His displays at the World Cup were among the best of any Irish player before the knee injury struck against France. Some might point to O’Mahony as too injury prone, but then exactly the same could be said for O’Brien and, increasingly, Sexton.
Best is the most ideal candidate for the Six Nations ahead, and possible the June tour to South Africa, with O’Mahony ready to take up the role thereafter and lead an Ireland squad with several new faces into the future.
Win rates as Ireland captain:
Jamie Heaslip: 50% (6 wins in 12 games)
Rory Best: 75% (3 wins in 4 games)
Sean O’Brien: 100% (1 win in 1 game)
Johnny Sexton and Conor Murray: Have not started a game as Ireland captain
Paul O’Connell: 61% (17 wins in 28 games)
Brian O’Driscoll: 63% (52 wins in 83 games)
Keith Wood: 42% (15 wins in 36 games)
Who would you like to see as Ireland’s new captain?
