IRELAND DON’T AGREE with the apparent consensus that they have had a decline or are in the midst of one.
Last Thursday’s defeat to France in Paris was the latest loss for this Irish side against one of the top teams in the game.
That’s two wins in a row for les Bleus against Ireland, while New Zealand have won the last two meetings with Andy Farrell’s side, who also suffered something of a battering at the hands of South Africa in November.
That has led to a widespread belief that Farrell’s men are in a low ebb or a lull, although some pundits and supporters also have longer-term concerns that the future may not be bright for Ireland.
It’s not a consensus that the Irish camp agree with. They believe that last week’s defeat to France was not part of a trend and that there is a huge amount to play for in the weeks ahead, with games against Italy, England, Wales, and Scotland to come in the Six Nations.
Ireland feel that there are many reasons to be positive about the next few years too.
“I have so much excitement,” said scrum coach John Fogarty, who went on to point to some of the younger players he has been working with.
“I know Paddy [McCarthy] is injured, but Paddy’s 22 years of age. It felt like a big call in November to pick him, to start him against Australia. It seems like a no-brainer now. He did so well. It’s so exciting.
“I’m outside watching Izzy [Cormac Izuchukwu]. I’m outside watching Bryn Ward, and you can see the hunger and they’re not bothered about stuff. They’re ripping into training sessions.
“I’m watching Tadhg Furlong come back, and it starts to feel a little bit different.
“It’s disappointing and it’s frustrating for anyone involved in Irish rugby. And now I’m talking about supporters having to watch the first half of rugby [against France]. Everyone will think the same thing, that’s just not them.
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Ulster forward Cormac Izuchukwu. Ben Brady / INPHO
Ben Brady / INPHO / INPHO
“To say we’re on the decline, I think, is a bit disingenuous.
“I think that didn’t look like an Irish team. It didn’t feel like it, and that simply isn’t it. And it’s clear that that’s not acceptable.
“I’m excited to see how we react and how long we can sustain that reaction.”
There are other reasons for the current pessimism about Irish rugby.
Ireland XV, the second-string Irish side, were hammered by England A last Friday in Limerick, while the Ireland U20s were second best against their French counterparts on Saturday in Perpignan.
But again, Fogarty disagrees with the notion that the next wave of talent might not be enough to ensure Ireland remain one of the top teams in senior Test rugby.
“There are four provinces,” said Fogarty.
“There’s always going to be a limit to what you can… It was interesting that the French U20 side had 98 or 99 caps in the Top 14. And there were two URC caps in the Irish group.
“I watched how good the [Irish] scrum was in the first half. I thought our set-piece in general was very good in that game. So there’s players in France getting exposed to top-level rugby more than there are in Ireland, for sure.
“There’s more teams for them to play in [in France]. With the conveyor belt thing, we had Billy Bohan [Connacht's 20-year-old loosehead] in the last couple of weeks. He’s a 21-year-old, 22-year-old loosehead that’s playing professional rugby.
“Alex Usanov [Leinster's 20-year-old loosehead] played on the same 20s team as him. We brought him on an Emerging Ireland tour. He has stalled a little bit in Leinster, but he needs to be playing rugby. He needs to be seeing the pitch a lot more than he is.
“Paddy McCarthy is 22. He’s an international rugby player now. So I hear this, that the conveyor belt is not happening. But there’s two 21-year-olds, a 22-year-old.
John Fogarty with Andy Farrell. Ben Brady / INPHO
Ben Brady / INPHO / INPHO
“Gus McCarthy, what age is Gus McCarthy? 22. Tom Stewart [Ulster's 25-year-old hooker].
“I looked at that front row from the 20s game. I think [Sami] Bishti is going to be a really good player.
“I’m looking at our front row groups from Finlay [Bealham], who I think is the eldest on the tighthead side, down to a Bishti. And I know Niall Smyth is in there, and Big Red [Fiachna Barrett] down at Connacht, and there’s a boatload of them. So I’m not stressing or worried.”
However, Fogarty does believe that promising young players getting limited chances to play senior professional rugby is an issue.
“I would love more contact time with the professional game,” he said. “I’d love players to get exposed more often. But it’s difficult when you’ve got four teams. Every team is trying to win. I’d love them to get exposed more often. They need to get exposed more often.
“Keith Earls came up [to Ireland camp yesterday], and he was talking to me about Luke Fitzgerald. He got capped at 18, and he started to figure things out, and Keith was saying he was annoyed that he didn’t get capped until he was 23, and then he had to figure things out. He said he wished he had been capped at 18 so the penny could drop a bit sooner.
“I was sitting there listening to him going, ‘Absolutely, absolutely’. I’m watching props across the country from underage, from 20s, all the way up, and I’m going, ‘He’s ready and I want him to play and I hope he gets exposed because the penny will drop sooner for him. He will learn quicker. If he’s got the right mentality, he’s going to learn quicker, etc.’
“So we want to see our players get exposed. There’s a few guys that need more time.
“Stephen Smyth [Leinster's 21-year-old] is a cracking young hooker. He needs to be playing more.
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'To say we're on the decline is a bit disingenuous'
IRELAND DON’T AGREE with the apparent consensus that they have had a decline or are in the midst of one.
Last Thursday’s defeat to France in Paris was the latest loss for this Irish side against one of the top teams in the game.
That’s two wins in a row for les Bleus against Ireland, while New Zealand have won the last two meetings with Andy Farrell’s side, who also suffered something of a battering at the hands of South Africa in November.
That has led to a widespread belief that Farrell’s men are in a low ebb or a lull, although some pundits and supporters also have longer-term concerns that the future may not be bright for Ireland.
It’s not a consensus that the Irish camp agree with. They believe that last week’s defeat to France was not part of a trend and that there is a huge amount to play for in the weeks ahead, with games against Italy, England, Wales, and Scotland to come in the Six Nations.
Ireland feel that there are many reasons to be positive about the next few years too.
“I have so much excitement,” said scrum coach John Fogarty, who went on to point to some of the younger players he has been working with.
“I know Paddy [McCarthy] is injured, but Paddy’s 22 years of age. It felt like a big call in November to pick him, to start him against Australia. It seems like a no-brainer now. He did so well. It’s so exciting.
“I’m outside watching Izzy [Cormac Izuchukwu]. I’m outside watching Bryn Ward, and you can see the hunger and they’re not bothered about stuff. They’re ripping into training sessions.
“I’m watching Tadhg Furlong come back, and it starts to feel a little bit different.
“It’s disappointing and it’s frustrating for anyone involved in Irish rugby. And now I’m talking about supporters having to watch the first half of rugby [against France]. Everyone will think the same thing, that’s just not them.
“To say we’re on the decline, I think, is a bit disingenuous.
“I think that didn’t look like an Irish team. It didn’t feel like it, and that simply isn’t it. And it’s clear that that’s not acceptable.
“I’m excited to see how we react and how long we can sustain that reaction.”
There are other reasons for the current pessimism about Irish rugby.
Ireland XV, the second-string Irish side, were hammered by England A last Friday in Limerick, while the Ireland U20s were second best against their French counterparts on Saturday in Perpignan.
But again, Fogarty disagrees with the notion that the next wave of talent might not be enough to ensure Ireland remain one of the top teams in senior Test rugby.
“There are four provinces,” said Fogarty.
“There’s always going to be a limit to what you can… It was interesting that the French U20 side had 98 or 99 caps in the Top 14. And there were two URC caps in the Irish group.
“I watched how good the [Irish] scrum was in the first half. I thought our set-piece in general was very good in that game. So there’s players in France getting exposed to top-level rugby more than there are in Ireland, for sure.
“There’s more teams for them to play in [in France]. With the conveyor belt thing, we had Billy Bohan [Connacht's 20-year-old loosehead] in the last couple of weeks. He’s a 21-year-old, 22-year-old loosehead that’s playing professional rugby.
“Alex Usanov [Leinster's 20-year-old loosehead] played on the same 20s team as him. We brought him on an Emerging Ireland tour. He has stalled a little bit in Leinster, but he needs to be playing rugby. He needs to be seeing the pitch a lot more than he is.
“Paddy McCarthy is 22. He’s an international rugby player now. So I hear this, that the conveyor belt is not happening. But there’s two 21-year-olds, a 22-year-old.
“Gus McCarthy, what age is Gus McCarthy? 22. Tom Stewart [Ulster's 25-year-old hooker].
“I looked at that front row from the 20s game. I think [Sami] Bishti is going to be a really good player.
“I’m looking at our front row groups from Finlay [Bealham], who I think is the eldest on the tighthead side, down to a Bishti. And I know Niall Smyth is in there, and Big Red [Fiachna Barrett] down at Connacht, and there’s a boatload of them. So I’m not stressing or worried.”
However, Fogarty does believe that promising young players getting limited chances to play senior professional rugby is an issue.
“I would love more contact time with the professional game,” he said. “I’d love players to get exposed more often. But it’s difficult when you’ve got four teams. Every team is trying to win. I’d love them to get exposed more often. They need to get exposed more often.
“Keith Earls came up [to Ireland camp yesterday], and he was talking to me about Luke Fitzgerald. He got capped at 18, and he started to figure things out, and Keith was saying he was annoyed that he didn’t get capped until he was 23, and then he had to figure things out. He said he wished he had been capped at 18 so the penny could drop a bit sooner.
“I was sitting there listening to him going, ‘Absolutely, absolutely’. I’m watching props across the country from underage, from 20s, all the way up, and I’m going, ‘He’s ready and I want him to play and I hope he gets exposed because the penny will drop sooner for him. He will learn quicker. If he’s got the right mentality, he’s going to learn quicker, etc.’
“So we want to see our players get exposed. There’s a few guys that need more time.
“Stephen Smyth [Leinster's 21-year-old] is a cracking young hooker. He needs to be playing more.
“That’s how I feel about it.”
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Six Nations Decline France Ireland trajectory