AS PAUL O’CONNELL furrows his brow and leans forward to fully listen to the questions coming his way, the thought strikes you that he could never have really stepped away from all of this.
There was a time only a few years ago when O’Connell was unsure whether professional rugby coaching was really for him. Having invested so much of his life into playing, he worried about doing the same with coaching. His family were foremost among his thoughts.
Then came the offer from Andy Farrell to join the Ireland set-up as forwards coach. It was perfect, involving intense blocks of time in camp but also long stints at home around his wife and kids. And it also thoroughly quenches O’Connell’s obsession with the game.
Ireland are lucky to have him around. He has had a massive influence on the squad since joining in early 2021. As much as his work around the lineout, maul and breakdown is vital, it’s also the presence, mindset, and aura that O’Connell brings.
In weeks like this one, as Ireland ready themselves for tomorrow night’s battle royale with the Springboks, there’s no doubt that O’Connell’s influence and energy are invaluable.
The media are also happy that O’Connell is about. He is riveting to listen to. Even a simple question about what kind of performance Ireland need to deliver to win tomorrow elicits an in-depth answer.
“It’s going to take a big performance for sure,” said O’Connell after Ireland’s captain’s run at Stade de France. “They’re an excellent side, they’ve been together a long time as a group, together a long time as a coaching group as well and they obviously understand how they want to play and how they want to deal with certain situations in the game.
“I think they’ve developed their game since the last World Cup and developed their game a lot since last autumn in particular. So our boys are under no doubt about how big a challenge it is.
“They obviously present a big physical challenge, I think we present a big physical challenge and they present a real technical challenge as well. They’re a very smart side and that’s one of the things you probably admire most about them, the smarts they can bring along with their physicality.
“I think it’s a strength of our side as well, so we speak about this Irish team and what this Irish team stands for, I think they’ve got to bring everything they’ve brought to the big occasion they’ve been in in the last few years.
“We’ve had a Test series decider down in New Zealand in Wellington, we’ve had a Grand Slam decider, we’ve had a tough autumn series against some very tricky opposition and the boys have always found a way and figured it out. It’s a real strength of theirs.
“They’re going to have to play super well tomorrow but they’re also going to have to figure things out and it’s something I really enjoy watching them do when they have a challenge in front of them, how they manage to figure it out as a group and they’re going to have to do that at the weekend.”
O’Connell confirmed that all 33 players in Ireland’s World Cup squad trained at Stade de France today and while it was a light session involving no contact, it’s highly pleasing for them to have such a healthy group.
All the more so when contrasted with injury woes elsewhere. The big story in France today, and not just in rugby circles, is Antoine Dupont’s injury.
O’Connell expressed his disappointment for Dupont, who makes France “very unpredictable,” but highlighted how rugby teams have to be able to deal with these setbacks and challenges.
“Nothing is ever straightforward,” said O’Connell. “We were down in New Zealand, loads of people… I remember I’d meet Mack [Hansen], he’d be down in the park training on his own because he had Covid. Some of the coaching staff had Covid.
“We’ve had all sorts of challenges thrown at us. It’s a big strength of Andy that he revels and enjoys it. There is no doubt there are going to be ups and downs during the World Cup and ups and downs during the games.
“Players’ experience and their willingness to embrace those challenges and those obstacles is what has gotten them to where they are at the moment. There will be plenty of that tomorrow, there is no doubt about it.”
No one knows exactly what lies ahead in Paris but Ireland are certainly better off with O’Connell in their ranks.
