JOE McCARTHY SAYS he’s not interested in outing the teammate who caused the facial injury that delayed his start to this Six Nations championship, but mere seconds later he’s detailing exactly what happened during the pre-tournament training camp in Portugal.
“It was a bit of an unlucky accident,” McCarthy explains.
“It was actually non-contact training but I think Finlay (Belham) hit Gus and Gus McCarthy has quite a hard head. He whacked me in the face and broke my nose and stuff. I took a bit of a head-bang, so I was instantly out for 12 days after that.”
The bang left McCarthy looking a little worse for wear.
“I didn’t look great the next few days! It kinda looked like I’d been stung by a bee. I’d a bit of a black eye, didn’t look too cool.
I went into The Shelbourne the day after and fans were like, ‘Can I get a photo with you?’ And then they looked at me and it was, ‘Oh Jeez, maybe we’ll leave it for today.’ I was like, ‘Okay, cheers bud!’”
The practical damage was more frustrating than the cosmetic. McCarthy had to sit out Ireland’s opening two Six Nations fixtures, ending a strong run in the team. Last year the lock was one of only three players to start every Test game for Ireland, with McCarthy a regular in the starting side alongside Andrew Porter and captain Caelan Doris.
Advertisement
His sheer size alone has made him a valuable addition to the squad. So much so that at the age of just 23, the IRFU recently handed him a crisp new three-year central contract. Days like today’s meeting with France [KO 2.15pm, RTÉ 2], where Ireland face a formidable les Bleus side backed by a 7/1 bench split, are where they most need to see the return on that investment.
McCarthy speaking to the media in Abbotstown this week. Rory Barker / INPHO
Rory Barker / INPHO / INPHO
It was this fixture last year where McCarthy properly announced himself on the Test stage. He’d only been capped five times but on the opening weekend of the 2024 Six Nations in Marseille McCarthy delivered a towering performance, carrying with menace and proving a nuisance in the loose. It was a picture perfect Six Nations debut, apart from the questionable haircut delivered by a friend of Hugo Keenan’s.
“He’s an accountant by trade, definitely not a hairdresser by trade!” McCarthy says. “I kinda liked it though, it’s memorable that haircut. But yeah, it was a different feel, that Six Nations. It was after a World Cup so the group felt a bit different.
“I was definitely nervous going into that game. It was my first Six Nations game and a bit of a new group. We’d a good build-up for it, prepared really well because France at home are usually a really tough test but things clicked quite well for us.
“I got my hands on the ball quite early in the game. I remember being quite chuffed that I had just caught the ball and managed to get it back, because sometimes in the game if you don’t get a touch early on, you get a bit anxious, a bit jittery.
“If you can get a good carry and get on the front foot at the start of the game, it definitely makes things a bit easier. I’ve had games before, sometimes in a big Test match, you’re really geed up to try and carry hard and then you lose it in contact or something. You just focus on keeping the ball and getting into the game.”
McCarthy had a massive game against France in Marseille last year. Ben Brady / INPHO
Ben Brady / INPHO / INPHO
Two years previously McCarthy had caught Andy Farrell’s eye for the first time, with the Ireland head coach ringing the Leinster player up after watching him debut for the province in a January 2022 defeat to Cardiff. Farrell was in Portugal at the time as Ireland prepared for the upcoming Six Nations. The Ireland boss wanted this burly young second row to come in and get a taste of Ireland camp. Unfortunately, it clashed with McCarthy’s plans for a trip to Barcelona with his mates.
“I said, ‘Oh no Faz, I’m good to come in!” McCarthy remembers. “I cancelled my plans to go away and went in at the end of the Six Nations. I was a bit nervous on the phone call, but it was good.”
McCarthy cites Devin Toner, James Ryan, Tadhg Beirne, Iain Henderson and Leinster coach Robin McBryde as some of the biggest influences on his career but in Ireland camp, forwards coach Paul O’Connell is the man tasked with honing McCarthy, who turns 24 later this month, into a more rounded Test match animal.
“The big thing he is on about is habits, from training habits, breakdown, getting touches on the ball, getting more involved in the attack. That’s a big area he would always be looking at. Can you accelerate early and get a little hole and get your hands free? So stuff like that. He drills these habits into you to get more touches in games.”
Discipline would be one area McCarthy is keen to clean up, and a penalty he conceded in the Wales 22 last time out gave O’Connell plenty of ammo for the post-game review.
“He was on to me about that, big time. A few times during the week, I don’t think that will be the last!
O'Connell and McCarthy in training. Dan Sheridan / INPHO
Dan Sheridan / INPHO / INPHO
“I was a small bit early. We plan to get after teams in the air and on the ground as well, just as important. I probably just got my timing a little bit off and got there a bit early. In real time it looked okay but then on slow mo on the big screen in the Principality there was no getting away from that.
Related Reads
Prendergast enjoys rapid rise as Ntamack makes up for lost time
'He’s like a fine wine. The older he gets the better he is'
Ireland get huge Doris and Conan boost but will need big bench impact
“He would show clips in training where you have been more patient. I went to kind of slap the ball and in the week I would have been more hitting into it and finding a slot to get through, so probably more sticking to the plan that we talked about. I was probably going a little bit off script.”
McCarthy is looking forward to the battle with French second row Thibaud Flament today, as well as Emmanuel Meafou, who starts on the bench after overcoming a lung infection.
“He’s some crazy off-loads clips if you look at him, similar to what Snyman does,” McCarthy says of Flament.
“They use Meafou a lot in they’re mauls. If they are shift-driving, he adds a lot of weight there, trying to get edges. They use him as a strike-carrier as well so it will be important to target them in the contact area, not let them win the gainline. Once they do that, they start getting off-loads in behind you. We’ll be teed up for that.
“Every week in the Six Nations is massive but some games feel extra special,” he adds.
“France, how well they’ve been going, how strong a side they are, there’s that extra bit of big game feel about this but we’ve prepared how we usually would.”
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Close
Comments
This is YOUR comments community. Stay civil, stay constructive, stay on topic.
Please familiarise yourself with our comments policy
here
before taking part.
'Some games feel extra special' - McCarthy ready to rumble against France
JOE McCARTHY SAYS he’s not interested in outing the teammate who caused the facial injury that delayed his start to this Six Nations championship, but mere seconds later he’s detailing exactly what happened during the pre-tournament training camp in Portugal.
“It was a bit of an unlucky accident,” McCarthy explains.
“It was actually non-contact training but I think Finlay (Belham) hit Gus and Gus McCarthy has quite a hard head. He whacked me in the face and broke my nose and stuff. I took a bit of a head-bang, so I was instantly out for 12 days after that.”
The bang left McCarthy looking a little worse for wear.
“I didn’t look great the next few days! It kinda looked like I’d been stung by a bee. I’d a bit of a black eye, didn’t look too cool.
The practical damage was more frustrating than the cosmetic. McCarthy had to sit out Ireland’s opening two Six Nations fixtures, ending a strong run in the team. Last year the lock was one of only three players to start every Test game for Ireland, with McCarthy a regular in the starting side alongside Andrew Porter and captain Caelan Doris.
His sheer size alone has made him a valuable addition to the squad. So much so that at the age of just 23, the IRFU recently handed him a crisp new three-year central contract. Days like today’s meeting with France [KO 2.15pm, RTÉ 2], where Ireland face a formidable les Bleus side backed by a 7/1 bench split, are where they most need to see the return on that investment.
It was this fixture last year where McCarthy properly announced himself on the Test stage. He’d only been capped five times but on the opening weekend of the 2024 Six Nations in Marseille McCarthy delivered a towering performance, carrying with menace and proving a nuisance in the loose. It was a picture perfect Six Nations debut, apart from the questionable haircut delivered by a friend of Hugo Keenan’s.
“He’s an accountant by trade, definitely not a hairdresser by trade!” McCarthy says. “I kinda liked it though, it’s memorable that haircut. But yeah, it was a different feel, that Six Nations. It was after a World Cup so the group felt a bit different.
“I was definitely nervous going into that game. It was my first Six Nations game and a bit of a new group. We’d a good build-up for it, prepared really well because France at home are usually a really tough test but things clicked quite well for us.
“I got my hands on the ball quite early in the game. I remember being quite chuffed that I had just caught the ball and managed to get it back, because sometimes in the game if you don’t get a touch early on, you get a bit anxious, a bit jittery.
“If you can get a good carry and get on the front foot at the start of the game, it definitely makes things a bit easier. I’ve had games before, sometimes in a big Test match, you’re really geed up to try and carry hard and then you lose it in contact or something. You just focus on keeping the ball and getting into the game.”
Two years previously McCarthy had caught Andy Farrell’s eye for the first time, with the Ireland head coach ringing the Leinster player up after watching him debut for the province in a January 2022 defeat to Cardiff. Farrell was in Portugal at the time as Ireland prepared for the upcoming Six Nations. The Ireland boss wanted this burly young second row to come in and get a taste of Ireland camp. Unfortunately, it clashed with McCarthy’s plans for a trip to Barcelona with his mates.
“I said, ‘Oh no Faz, I’m good to come in!” McCarthy remembers. “I cancelled my plans to go away and went in at the end of the Six Nations. I was a bit nervous on the phone call, but it was good.”
McCarthy cites Devin Toner, James Ryan, Tadhg Beirne, Iain Henderson and Leinster coach Robin McBryde as some of the biggest influences on his career but in Ireland camp, forwards coach Paul O’Connell is the man tasked with honing McCarthy, who turns 24 later this month, into a more rounded Test match animal.
“The big thing he is on about is habits, from training habits, breakdown, getting touches on the ball, getting more involved in the attack. That’s a big area he would always be looking at. Can you accelerate early and get a little hole and get your hands free? So stuff like that. He drills these habits into you to get more touches in games.”
Discipline would be one area McCarthy is keen to clean up, and a penalty he conceded in the Wales 22 last time out gave O’Connell plenty of ammo for the post-game review.
“He was on to me about that, big time. A few times during the week, I don’t think that will be the last!
“I was a small bit early. We plan to get after teams in the air and on the ground as well, just as important. I probably just got my timing a little bit off and got there a bit early. In real time it looked okay but then on slow mo on the big screen in the Principality there was no getting away from that.
“He would show clips in training where you have been more patient. I went to kind of slap the ball and in the week I would have been more hitting into it and finding a slot to get through, so probably more sticking to the plan that we talked about. I was probably going a little bit off script.”
McCarthy is looking forward to the battle with French second row Thibaud Flament today, as well as Emmanuel Meafou, who starts on the bench after overcoming a lung infection.
“He’s some crazy off-loads clips if you look at him, similar to what Snyman does,” McCarthy says of Flament.
“They use Meafou a lot in they’re mauls. If they are shift-driving, he adds a lot of weight there, trying to get edges. They use him as a strike-carrier as well so it will be important to target them in the contact area, not let them win the gainline. Once they do that, they start getting off-loads in behind you. We’ll be teed up for that.
“Every week in the Six Nations is massive but some games feel extra special,” he adds.
“France, how well they’ve been going, how strong a side they are, there’s that extra bit of big game feel about this but we’ve prepared how we usually would.”
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Ireland Joe McCarthy locked and loaded Rugby six nations 2025