SAM PRENDERGAST CONTINUES to tick important boxes, with a visit to Thomond Park as Leinster’s number 10 the latest milestone for the 21-year-old.
Over the last five weeks, the Kildare man has enjoyed his first two Test starts for Ireland, his first two Champions Cup starts for Leinster, and now his first senior win over Munster with his province.
Typically enough for a young Irish man, he feels that everything is going “grand, like” in his burgeoning career.
Several of the Leinster forwards had strong claims to be the official player of the match in Friday night’s 28-7 win over Munster, but Prendergast impressed as he claimed another of those awards.
His kicking from hand was strong, including several eye-catching spirals, he passed as well as ever, took his first-half try sharply, and generally stood up to the physical and mental challenge. He felt there were a few “sloppy” moments in his performance against Munster but overall he was happy.
“I’m enjoying playing and enjoying these opportunities,” said Prendergast after the game.
“I had never played against Munster. I had never played down here at senior level so I enjoyed the crowd getting on top of us a bit.
“It makes it quite enjoyable. I was only saying that that’s the good thing about the derbies – there are such good crowds at all the games that it just makes it very enjoyable and a bit more intense. That’s where the fun really is.”
The Munster fans got stuck into Prendergast after he and Tom Ahern kicked off a second-half schemozzle and though they didn’t boo him when he was replaced later on, it’s clear that Prendergast wasn’t going to be the most popular man in Limerick. That comes with the territory for a Leinster number 10.
Not that Prendergast felt they were particularly getting on his back.
“No, I think they just hate all of us so it was equally across all of us!” he said with a smile.
Prendergast was quick to praise his forwards for the armchair ride they gave him at times in Thomond Park.
The likes of Caelan Doris, Josh van der Flier, James Ryan, Rónan Kelleher, Andrew Porter, Rabah Slimani, and Joe McCarthy were powerful in the set-piece and around the pitch to give Leinster physical dominance.
“I thought the pack were unbelievable,” said Prendergast. “They give you such a good platform. They are bringing defenders in and that is giving you more space.”
And yet, Prendergast believes there’s lots of room for Leinster to get better over the coming months as they head into the second half of the season.
They have won nine from nine in the URC, seven of those victories coming with bonus points, while they’re two wins from two in the Champions Cup.
Next up is a visit to La Rochelle on 12 January and Prendergast knows there are areas where Leinster can improve for that clash.
“I think our defence was very good again today,” he said. “When you look at the first 10 minutes of the second half, we maybe slipped up in our discipline a little bit because we were good in defence. They were only getting ‘ins’ to our 22 when we were being indisciplined so we could maybe work on that.
“There are a few chances we left out there in attack and around the breakdown but that’s just the way these games are. Munster go hard at the breakdown and that’s just the way it is, you need to be able to deal with it.”
Prove who wrong??? Prove everyone right you mean… there has never been so much hype about a young Irish player from all circles and he is proving everyone right so far
@anthony davoren: wouldnt agree. needs to step up big time defensively. at the top top level you cant carry a player whos selection calls for a modification to the defensive system of the team. for this very reason i can guarantee now that he wont start v la rochelle.
@anthony davoren: 100% right. Normally I shy away from hype, but I just cannot help it with this young lad. He seems to have all the ingredients – he even makes the “Munster fans hate us” chip on his shoulder seem like a good thing!!
@Niall English: except he has??? They don’t hand out Irish caps to lads who can’t tackle, he gets his man to ground and that’s all that matters, he will 100% start against La Rochelle and you can keep seething away but please stop subjecting the rest of us to your inherent misery
@Robert O’Connor: but the defensive system for ireland is one system for Crowley and a different system for prendergast. one of which will work against the big teams and one which won’t work. I’ll see if you can figure out the difference in the systems. if not, then you don’t really know what you’re talking about.
@Robert O’Connor: he won’t start against la Rochelle. look forward to reminding you of that fact when the teams are announced.
@Robert O’Connor: did you see the fiji game? or his ‘tackle’ against bristol? think he thought he was playing soccer in that game.
@Niall English: Just a little reminder to take you off the cloud you’re floating around on, you don’t select the Leinster team or the Irish team. You don’t put in place any defensive system or decide what player is capable carrying out a game plan. Your just a lad with an opinion. I think we have figured that out, have you? #notions # delusional
@Niall English: you’re embarrassing yourself bud
@Eugene Canavan: you dont see handre pollard, beadun barrett, ntamack, crowley, marcus smith being moved out to the wing because they cant defend their channel. you end up with 14 players able to put their body on the line, whilst also baby sitting a guy on the wing. and even out there he has been exposed against fiji and bristol. munster exposed him but only once with an up and under to the wing he was on whereby instead of going to claim the ball, he let it bounce, and no munster player within 10 yards of him. the guy is 6′ 4″ and is fearful of claiming a ball? the only player i can think of in recent memory of who was accomodated for in similar fashion was when joey carberry was on the pitch for munster. they can cut it to a certain level, but not at the top top level. likes of toulouse will have a field day.
@Niall English: in any approach to a match, first port of call is to identify weakness in the opposition. with prendergast out on the wing, you give them an easy option. it also puts added pressure on your centres who now not only have to defend their own channel, but then scramble to cover the outside channel to cover him. you are putting additional stress on the defensive system to accomodate one players defensive frailties, and the concern i have is that its not a case of stepping up to senior rugby, he was also very passive in defence at age grade rugby.
@Niall English: Carbery is playing regularly for Bordeaux now, 2nd only to Toulouse in Top14 and would trash Munster home and away.
@adizlack93: club rugby. not the top level. i think prendergast is a fantastic talent but he has glaring weaknesses which he needs to address otherwise he wont fulfill his potential. it may not suit the messiah narrative and the media hype but im just calling it as it is. im sure he knows this himself what he needs to work on. my only concern is its nothing to do with coaching or ability but mental. you either have it or you dont.
@Niall English: get a life mate
@Niall English: Who are u again ? Ya you aint picking the team he will most likely be starting against everyone
@Niall English: You also guaranteed that Mack Hansen would not be picked for the AIs as “him and Farrell had a huge falling out.” You preached that as gospel as you claimed you were in the know.
@Carmine Lorenzo: I remember that one also. He was so adamant – he’d heard it directly from a player in the squad! LoL
@Niall English: This must be a Ray Ridge burner account. Given the level of arrogance and ignorance, in equal measure.
@Niall English: He’s been quite good actually. As the games have gone by, I’d say you’re mistaken there. He had good D over the two 20s seasons as well, so it’s not a shock. I’ve spoken to quite a few people who don’t rate him, so you’re not alone
@Niall English: what?!
@Niall English: His feckin debuts ffs. Yawn
@adizlack93: Yeah, he’s growing into it there nicely. And some good D as well in fairness
Good man Sam. Prove them all wrong.
@Harry O’ Callaghan: Let’s see what he does behind a beaten pack ( and that will happen) and measure him then. “The press have him captain of the lions” and his mom last Friday was given at 19.30!!
@Lulu: Why? Most 10s have poor games behind a beaten pack. The days of a single guy in a single position carrying a team are long gone. These markers being set for him are ridiculous. “Let’s see what he’s like when the whole team is injured and he has to play all the positions at the same time and the opposing team have the ghost of Jonah Lomu and prime Dan Carter. Let’s see how he does then before we get too excited”
@Lulu: change it to delulu
@Gary D: Sarcasm is the lowest form of wit!
@Harry O’ Callaghan: He sure is and im so happy he is
@adizlack93: Or LooLa
@Lulu: Billy Burns had a good game behind a badly beaten pack on Friday night. Should we be picking him for Ireland Lula?
Giving him MOM was a joke. He played reasonably well but also made a couple of mistakes. Doris or McCarthy were far better on the night and even Luke McGrath probably shaded him. He’s a very good player but the hype is out of control. We had the same hysteria about Ross Byrne and Ian Madigan.
@Jim Fitzhenry: nope, we definitely didn’t. SBW tweeted about Sam P saying remember the name at u20s level
@Jim Fitzhenry: another nonsene comment
@Jim Fitzhenry: Leave Mads outta this
“Greatest player on Earth at the moment by a country mile. Nobody can touch him. He can pass. Kick. Run. He’s got it all! And playing behind such a mediocre pack just shows how good he is! Who cares if Doris and VDF played 10x better. He deserved POTM. He deserved more than that. They should have draped him in gold and paraded him around on his rightful, jewelled throne. The messiah? It’s hard to argue against it. Can we just forget about having nominations for the 2025 to 2040 World Player of the Year award? It’s surely pointless now?” – The Irish Times
@Colm O’ Brien: was funny in the november internationals when he missed two kicks in a row to touch. ryle nugent went silent. if was almost as if he didnt mention it, people would not realise or that it didnt actually happen.
@Niall English: The first one didn’t happen
@Colm O’ Brien: 21, debut, try, silenced crowd, motm, left with a W. In no particular order.
@Niall English: URC kick success for first half of season; Prendergast 91%, Crowley 29%.
@adizlack93: Tony Butler 100%
@Thesaltyurchin: WHO??
@adizlack93: exactly.
@Thesaltyurchin: I know who he is. Lad looks like he’s playing Junior cup rugby. Definitely not a future international
Fantastic player end of story
@Shanie: End of story?… beginning I would say. Money/content to be made.
@Thesaltyurchin: i mean end of story with all the comments above pure cringe saying over hyped etc support the iriah players ffs
@Shanie: irish
Already the best 10 in Ireland. Now first choice for Leinster and by extension Ireland. Crowley should only be starting 6 Nations games against the likes of Italy and Wales.
@Aidan Farrell: No… that is plain wrong. I would be perfectly happy to have either of the 2 boys starting anybof the 5 games. Just because Sam is turning into a great player doesn’t mean that Jack no longer is. On the balance of probability, Easterby will go with a safe & experienced team v England. I reckon he still starts with Crowley and we were perfectly happy with that choice last season so we should still be very happy with it this season. Ease Sam into the 6N with a bench spot and then start him in Cardiff or Edinburgh.
@Paul Ennis: nonsense talk, if he’s good enough he’s young enough. It’s this conservative type of thinking which has meant we lose World Cup quarter final after World Cup quarter final. Prendergast is the better player – ergo he should be starting as soon as possible.
@Paul Ennis: makes sense and I tend to agree but you do want your 10 involved as much as possible to get the backline moving.
That would be the argument for starting SP against England.
I would be happy either way and it’s a great position to be in!
@Oran Burns: For sure… and like I said, I am happy for either of the boys to start. I would pick Sam, but that is easy to do from my armchair. They are both good enough. I can just see Easterby, in his first Ireland team selection, picking a team without any players making their first 6N start.
@Oran Burns: I wouldn’t say that SP gets the back line moving any better than Crowley. Jack has always been very good in this regard with IRl and Munster. This Leinster team is not renowned for its attacking play, in fact it’s very one dimensional although I’d point the finger at the coaches rather than players for that. Sam’s biggest difference is his kicking from hand. He gets more distance than Jack with those pens to touch and general kicking for territory. There’s been a mis kicks but it’s clear that is a huge point of difference in Sam’s favor. Jacks defence is a lot better, so good in fact that he can cover 12 (and 15).
@Aidan Farrell: I didn’t say he wasn’t good enough. I think it is still a 50/50 between both players and they have different qualities and characteristics that can be used against different types of opposition. When you have this type of choice, many coaches go for the conservative approach and I have a funny feeling Easterby will be quite conservative for his first team selection. Is this not understandable? Or is your only response to reasonable opinion to shout people down?
@Oran Burns: hed be the weaker of the two against England’s blitz defence. he plays far too lateral will just play into their hands.
@Aidan Farrell: “Crowley to start in the likes of Italy and Wales games”… what a dismissive and one-dimensional comment. Both 10s bring different attributes to the game and while no doubt Prendergast is an exciting and talented player, in 6 nations, experience brings a lot to the table.
@Aidan Farrell: agreed, he deserves a start vs England based on form now. URC goal kicking stats for season so far SP 91% , JC 29%
@Niall English: In terms of durability, I’m not even sure if that’s fair anymore. He’s shown the past few weeks that he’s got a lot more weight and strength behind him than he gets credit for. He’s also far more comfortable using backfield space with the boot than Crowley or Frawley so that can nullify a rush defence.
@Paul Ennis: and let’s not forget Ciaran Frawley either when he gets back from injury. We can’t just rely on 2 top class out halves, and it’s a huge bonus that we have 3, so let’s hope all of them get regular Ireland game time as well as at their provinces.
@adizlack93: How many of that 91% were in front of or within 10 metres either side of the posts ………
@Rob O’Connor: Absolutely… but I have always said that Frawleys role is going to be 23 for Ireland and utility back for Leinster
@Oran Burns: SA are starting Sacha every game he’s fit since he debuted