HERE’S HOPING THAT Portugal continue their rise in international rugby. Even a one-night pitstop in Lisbon on the way to Ireland’s training camp in Faro was enough to see that regular trips to the Portuguese capital would be special.
Ireland are due in Portugal this July for a Test match and one has to hope it’s only the start. The Irish national team have been visiting the Algarve for training camps since 2019, using The Campus facility in the resort of Quinta do Lago.
Ahead of the 2023 World Cup, Ireland invited the Portugal national team into camp to train against them and the Portuguese impressed, cutting the Irish defence apart several times when the backlines ran plays against each other.
Os Lobos - the Wolves - won’t be training against Ireland this year but they’re currently preparing for the Rugby Europe Championship, which also kicks off next weekend and from which four teams will qualify directly for the 2027 World Cup.
The budding relationship with Portugal will grow further with Ireland’s visit to the country this summer and even though Andy Farrell and a batch of frontline players will be away with the Lions, there is great excitement in Portuguese rugby. A date and venue have yet to be officially announced, with Lisbon and the Algarve both possibilities, but there are some cracking stadiums to choose from.
Lisbon is clearly a wonderful place, even on the evidence of a 17-hour visit en route to the Algarve. It’s not hard to imagine landing in for biennial rugby trips, as we currently have with Cardiff, Paris, London, Edinburgh, and Rome.
A little like the Italian capital, Lisbon is a canvas cluttered with impressive historic buildings, monuments, and tiles. You don’t need to be an architecture specialist to appreciate the beauty. Nor do you need to be a football nerd to see how much they love the sport or how mega a superstar Cristiano Ronaldo is on home soil.
Strolling around the Baixa area in the city centre was a delight. This job has some perks. The self-guided tour began with an old Lisbon tradition, a shot of the local ginjinha. It’s a liqueur made from Morello cherries fermented in brandy with sugar and cinnamon.
The famously tiny A Ginjinha bar opens onto the street just off Rossio Square, one of the most bustling plazas in the city, and has been serving small glasses of the stuff to locals and tourists since 1840.
Everywhere you look are bakeries selling pastéis de nata, another local creation. Whereas a Galician friar is credited with bringing ginjinha into the world, Catholic monks get praise for coming up with the delicious custard tarts. Like most things, you haven’t properly tried pastéis de nata until you’ve had one in its home city.
Lisbon is a hilly place, meaning even a stroll is hard work but rewarding. Quaint, colourful old trams can save you some of the effort, while there are refreshments waiting in the plentiful open-area squares. Quiosques are another iconic element of the city, these small huts selling beer, wine, drinks, and snacks to be enjoyed while pausing to people-watch. Even at this time of year, sitting outdoors is lovely.
Our walk winds all the way down under the breathtaking Rua Augusta Arch, built to commemorate the city’s reconstruction after the Great Lisbon earthquake in 1755, and out onto the marble Cais das Colunas pier looking onto the Atlantic.
Throw in the crucial fact that Portugal play thrilling attacking rugby, which we all saw at the 2023 World Cup, as well as rugby’s urgent need to genuinely grow beyond its traditional bases, and it’s not hard to make the case for more top-level Tests in the country.
This morning involved a 30-minute flight to Faro on the south coast and a short taxi ride to Quinta do Lago, where Ireland were just coming off the pitch after a walkthrough session on the pitch at The Campus.
And while it was overcast today, there weren’t any complaints as the Irish players and coaches checked in on loved ones at home after Storm Éowyn. The pleasant 15°C conditions in Quinta do Lago were relatively dreamy.
As with previous camps, Ireland have had a giant analysis screen erected out on the pristine surface, allowing them to view footage and instantly work through solutions on the pitch.
And as usual, Ireland have block-booked a nearby hotel to ensure they can prepare for the England game without any distractions. Having arrived on Wednesday, they have a big training session tomorrow before a day off on Sunday.
They will then crack into their regular match week build-up from Monday and fly home to Ireland after training on Wednesday.
“It’s a bit of a change of scenery,” said Ireland assistant coach Paul O’Connell when asked what it is that keeps them coming back to Portugal ahead of big campaigns.
“When we come out here, the players definitely enjoy it. It’s a great training facility, they really enjoy the hotel. I suppose there’s a bit of a feeling of ‘we’re in with Ireland now.’ We’re out of the country and there’s this special experience because it is a great week.
“The training pitch out there is beautiful. We get to have a lot of meetings outdoors because of the weather. Generally, you stay around on the pitch a bit longer, you get to have a few more conversations with players. We have the hotel to ourselves so it’s a great way in week one when the players have to take on a lot.
“It’s amazing how much they love each others’ company, the players. They’re spending a lot of time around each other, a lot of time on the pitch before training chatting things through, spending time on the pitch after training chatting things through.
“We do that at home as well but not as much with the weather, it’s a bit of a chore to stay out after training in Ireland at times, even if they do it.
“They get a day off and some of them go play golf, play a bit of padel, they get to connect with one another again and it makes it feel special, like they’re in with Ireland and it’s a bit different.”
Ireland keep on coming back for more and they’re not the only Irish team in that boat. Big rugby schools and some clubs have been known to visit this neck of the woods for warm-weather camps and pre-season trips.
That’s all great but it would be even better if Portugal became a major rugby destination for top-level international games.
If Ahern is valued because of his hybrid abilities, Coombes really should be too. He can offer real ballast at 2nd row if needed and has the height and weight. If there was a ‘last man standing’ scrap between himself, McCarthy and Ryan I think he’d be my bet. Devine hopefully get’s a look in and I’m hoping we see Osborne at 12 or 15. Very interested to see who Easterby gives 10 to v England, nothing between them at the moment imo.
@Lochlainn Garvey: a last man standing scrap??? Too bad it’s not playground rugby. Coombes isn’t a second row and won’t be considered as one for Ireland
@adizlack93: Yep, a scrap. Coombes is big, tough and abrasive in short quarters. All things we have historically lacked when bigger teams have gotten in our faces. Secondly (pun not intended), think you might have missed a few Munster games the past few seasons. Coombes has been deployed at TH lock to great effect.
@Lochlainn Garvey:
Coombes might get away with playing 2nd row with Munster but at international level he is not tall enough.
@Lochlainn Garvey: very aware but Munster and Ireland are not the same. Izzy will be next cab off the rank at SR, then prob Ahern. Whatever way you try to shoehorn Coombes into the squad, he is not better than the incumbent no. 8 Doris or backup Conan and def not a better SR than Beirne, Ryan, McCarthy or Izzy, Baird & Ahern
@Lochlainn Garvey: Coombes just doesn’t seem to have it for international rugby… he is a beast for Munster, but the step up just hasn’t suited him to date. He certainly won’t replace any of the current crop of 2nd row forwards and there are 2 or 3 ahead of him for 8 and 5 or 6 ahead of him for blindside. I am not an international coach so I cannot explain why. Leo Cullen suffered the same problem and never broke into Irish teams… Stu McCloskey did too until he came back stronger. Luke McGrath still does a great job for Leinster but will never be good enough for Ireland. Just the way it is sometimes.
@Paul Ennis: yep, the coaches definitely think there’s a missing link, for the life of me I can’t see what it is (as he’s improved his workrate in fitness this year) but I’m not going to suggest I know more than them! I hope he can get a breakthrough and, like McCloskey, show us what he’s really made of.
@Padraig Fallon: Same height as McCarthy (according to Google at least).
@adizlack93: No doubt there’s a lot of competition (lucky us), and the lads ‘ahead’ of him are all class. I think he’s too good and his skill set too unique for an Irish player not to give him a proper crack. Anyway, hoping Easterby trusts some young lads in any event.
@Lochlainn Garvey: Sorry but Coombes is nowhere near international standard for the second row, especially with the others we have in the country. He’s not up to it when it comes to our other backrows either, we have way too much talent there and his one dimensional game is not enough. It’s not a last man standing scrap. If it was, I’d get Seamus from WWF and throw him in at 8.
@Lochlainn Garvey: he’s definitely improved and it’s one of those good problems to have. I think the issue is he’s slow compared to others and doesn’t have the soft hands Doris and Conan would. Absolutely crucial for Munster though but international rugby is a step up and AF has already had a look a few times
@Paul Ennis: yes. In those two games where he was part of a scratch Irish teams. If we’re deciding guys’ test potential based on those opportunities rather than their ability to deliver excellent performances for their provinces week over week, then pretty soon we’ll have nobody fit for the Irish jersey. He has a nearly 50% strike rate for Munster. In fact, looking at the two paltry chances he was given with Ireland, he has a 50% strike rate with them too.
@Brenda Collins: excellent performances week after week? He wasn’t excellent against Leinster at all and that was the last game before saracens so your statement is wrong
Surely Tom Farrell deserves a mention. He has been the best centre in Irish Rugby this season. I know age might come against him but sometimes form has to be rewarded.
@Marc O’ Meara: it’s a shame but I expect age will go against Farrell much as it did for Frisch.
@Brenda Collins: laughable at how ever Munster player should be in the Ireland squad after a few URC performances. He’s been on Connacht for years doing the same thing ..
Gleeson, Coombes, Ahern or Izzy haven’t done enough in recent games to get a call up. Maybe McNabney and even Murphy get a call???
@Noel Lynn: Izzy and Ahern will be called up if I had to bet
@Noel Lynn: fancy Murphy as a bolter
Yep, a scrap. Coombes is big, tough and abrasive in short quarters. All things we have historically lacked when bigger teams have gotten in our faces. Secondly (pun not intended), think you might have missed a few Munster games the past few seasons. Coombes has been deployed at TH lock to great effect.
Jheez the Coombs argument is over. has been fore a while, don’t see Easterby undercutting AF’s preferences and he simply doesn’t see a place for Coombs in the squad. Aherne might get a call as he was due one before and is returning from injury amicably. Ben Murphy would be excellent in the srum half space and is worth developing given his form, that or Doak, Dont think we should be looking at Blade but he might get the nod on experience.