THE BEST BACK rows in rugby read the game just that little bit quicker than those around them.
Whether it’s identifying an opening to jackal over the ball, pre-empting a teammate’s carry to offer the ideal support line or perfectly positioning themselves to make important tackles, it’s what separates the best from the rest.
“Skate to where the puck is going, not to where it has been,” is the advice ice hockey superstar Wayne Gretzky famously gave, and what applies on the rink rings true on the rugby pitch too.
At the age of 24, Jordi Murphy appears to be reading the game better than ever, so often finding himself in position to have a positive affect on the rucks for Ireland, even if he admits he’d like to win more turnovers.
The sight of the Barcelona-born back row causing havoc at defensive rucks and clearing bodies away effectively when Ireland are attacking is commonplace when Murphy is part of Schmidt’s team.
“I think so,” says 11-times capped Murphy when asked if he feels he is reading the game more intuitively.
I suppose when I got my first Leinster cap – that’s a few years ago now (it was in 2011) – it was one of those things where I didn’t have my head on my shoulders as much as I do now.
“Whereas now I feel I can make decisions pretty quickly and I do feel I can read the game a bit better.”
Schmidt’s Ireland are famous for the amount of detail involved in their game plans, set plays, set-pieces and preparation. In a way, that might suggest that the ability to read the game is not as important.
Just be in this exact place like Joe told you to be and everything will work out.
There is a degree of truth in that exaggeration of course, but Murphy points out that the fluidity of rugby means players must be able to make decisions on the move too.
“When we have set plays it registers in your head, you know what we need to do,” says Murphy. “But in the game of rugby, you don’t know what is going to happen every time.
“When we do set plays or are running certain lines, you have to register that in your head pretty quickly and if, say, the ball is broken up and moves into open play, you have to play your natural game.”
Either way, Murphy is finding himself in a high number of rucks these days, whether he’s used at blindside, openside or number eight, and his involvements there mean Schmidt continues to be a fan.
I suppose it’s just one of those things where I feel like I’m growing in confidence every time I play,” says Murphy as an explanation for this growing effectiveness, which is also evident in the tackling stakes and as a strong lineout option for Ireland at the front.
“Obviously the first few caps you’ve got the nerves. I’ve still go the nerves when I play, but I definitely feel more comfortable in an Irish shirt and in the environment and that I can express myself a bit more.
“I still haven’t played at the level I want to play at when I’m wearing a green jersey, but I think I’m getting there.”
Chief among the elements that Murphy wants more of in his game are the regular turnovers Sean O’Brien made last weekend against Scotland, or that David Pocock and Richie McCaw provide for Australia and New Zealand.
“If I was to look at the likes of McCaw and Pocock, their work at the breakdown, their poach, turnover ability and their conversion-rate whenever they do get to the breakdown, it is pretty outstanding.
“We saw Seanie the other day did a great job. I don’t know how many turnovers he had, three or four, but it is just one of those things that definitely when I am thinking about things to work on and bring to the table, turnovers and poaches are one of things I would be working on.”
Perhaps the biggest moment of Murphy’s international career so far came in this year’s Six Nations, when injury to Jamie Heaslip saw Schmidt install Murphy at number eight in his starting XV.
The confidence Murphy took from that experience – having started at eight against Italy and England – still stands to him now as he looks to confirm his place in the World Cup squad.
That was massive,” says Murphy. “I started against Italy and that was my second start (for Ireland) but my first Six Nations start. That was definitely a big confidence booster, that the coaches had that faith in me to put me there.
“They played me at 8 and they were going to play Seanie at 7 before he pulled out just before in the warm-up. It’s one of those confidence builders when the coaches give you that sort of a boost or have that faith in you to play in those games.
“When I came to England, that was definitely the biggest game of my career to that date. To be able to go out there and put in a pretty solid performance and put away a good side, that definitely helped.”
