Farrell's winning Ireland have scripted Triple Crown plot that not even Hollywood would think of
Funny how history can repeat itself. There was Joe Schmidt in 2014, two wins from two against Celtic rivals in his first championship and Ireland heading to Twickenham to see could they deliver a Triple Crown.
Six years later and his successor Andy Farrell is in the exact same position at his first attempt, two from two versus the Celts and London-bound with that same trophy on the line.
It didn’t work out for Schmidt on his particular trip, despite Rob Kearney running a sweet line for a quite memorable try that a certain Andy Farrell can’t have forgotten given he was England’s defence coach at the time.
But now he is on the other side of the divide, all set to plot the downfall of an opposition skippered by his own son, Owen. Not even Hollywood could make this stuff up.
“We’re in a great place,” he chirped on Saturday evening at the Aviva before heading off to catch a glimpse of England’s soap bar slugfest in Scotland.
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Andy Farrell and Johnny Sexton react to Ireland’s win over Wales
“We’ve had two wins… but we know with the boys sat in the changing room after a bonus-point win there is still plenty more in us and that is what we will be looking forward to.”
Farrell will have every reason to feel it will be mission possible. Winning at Twickenham isn’t something Ireland have been shy of during the Six Nations, taking the spoils in four of their ten championship visits and sealing the 2018 Grand Slam when last there on spring duty. Here are a number of examples that are fuelling his optimism:
An Exeter-type no kick at the posts mentality
The Chiefs made a policy in their 2018/19 Premiership season of turning down shots at goal in favour of trying to manufacture something more than just score three points off the tee, and Ireland showed some signs of a similarly ambitious mould versus Wales with Johnny Sexton’s decision making.
Yes, it was windy at the Aviva on Saturday but instead of kicking even a single shot and trying to build scoreboard pressure in that way, as they had done the previous week when Sexton finished four from five off the penalty kicking tee, there was a clear appetite in the conditions to open up a fresh box of tricks and see what might otherwise be manufactured inside the 22.
Whereas against the Scots their three-minute 40-second stay in the 22 yielded just a solitary try, their six minutes 38 seconds in the Welsh red zone was far more rewarding. They had their frustrations with chances lost but they had the patience to not get hung up over those mishaps and stick at it with various long or short and slick moves.
Just one of those days for AWJ having to deal with a pestering POM everywhere he went ? #IREvWAL #SixNations pic.twitter.com/dUbQrT1Njm
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) February 8, 2020
Look at the opening try, multiple pick-and-drive around the corner in the 78 seconds it took to turn Rob Herring’s lineout throw into a Jordan Larmour try. Same with the penalty advantage off the five-metre scrum, Tadhg Furlong getting himself smartly up off the deck to ensure he was driving over two rucks later – just 25 seconds in total between Conor Murray’s feed and referee Romain Poite signalling the try.
Five seconds was all it then took for Ireland to maul over for their third off Herring’s smart lineout to the front-of-line James Ryan and then came the bonus, scrum ball that took 37 seconds to work from one side of the pitch to the other via four rucks for Andrew Conway to successfully work an edge.
All in all, some excellent variety and potency in what to do in the zone that really matters.
Liberally sharing around the kicking duties
Sexton made a note post-match in taking to task the critics who have grown tired of Murray’s dependable box kicking routine. “Sometimes when you do something so well then suddenly everyone gets sick of it and starts giving out about it but it won us the game, the few box kicks he did in the second half that created pressure on them were outstanding in such tough conditions.”
No one was arguing with him but the most interesting thing about Ireland’s overall approach was the point of difference outside Murray who kicked for 220 metres according to AWS, the provider of official Six Nations match statistics. Rather than Sexton also putting loads of boot to ball, the Irish back three merrily chipped in and helped greatly vary the way they worked their way up the field.
Conway on the wing, for instance, kicked for 86 metres, two more than Sexton, Jacob Stockdale on the other wing accounted for 74 and full-back Larmour chalked up 110. In contrast, Welsh full-back Leigh Halfpenny managed only 64 metres while both starting wings and Josh Adams’ replacement Johnny McNicholl didn’t kick at all, that task left instead to the half-backs Dan Biggar and Tomos Williams who kicked a respective 118 and 125 metres.
PLAYER RATINGS@heagneyl rates the Irish players #IREvWAL #GuinnessSixNations https://t.co/iUtWamtrus
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) February 8, 2020
Farrell’s spin on certain players
What you want from a new coach is to see improvements, to look at things from a different perspective. Take Robbie Henshaw. Schmidt was never much of a fan running him in the wider No13 channel, but it was always felt he could pose more of an attacking threat out there than in the narrower confines of a crash ball carrying 12.
Admittedly, he might have only got his start at 13 due to Garry Ringrose’s finger injury versus the Scots and Henshaw himself fell victim to this revolving injury door by not coming back from HIA five minutes into the second half versus Wales. Before that he has influenced the game differently, making a reported 90 metres off ten carries. No mean feat.
Then there was the situation at hooker. Herring never got much of a look in under Schmidt, just eight caps – mostly as a sub and none in the Six Nations – as Sean Cronin and Niall Scannell were the preferred alternatives to Rory Best.
Yet, eleven weeks shy of his 30th birthday, the outsider has now belatedly come of age and has provided a greater ball-carrying impetus than the now-retired veteran skipper did in his last season. Across his two starts, Herring made 60 metres off 13 carries. That eclipsed the 38 metres off eleven carries Best managed in his four Six Nations starts in 2019.
Some massive moments from CJ Stander so far in this competition #IREvsWAL #SixNations pic.twitter.com/Xr5sVeZKAG
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) February 8, 2020
Even Johnny is learning unusual new things
Sexton might have been a veteran of 89 Ireland caps and a half-dozen more with the Lions heading into the game versus Wales, but even the wizened 34-year-old learned a lesson about how not to prepare to a match.
Rather than fulfil his duties as skipper and introduce his team to Irish president Michael D Higgins, he instead had to make his apologies and allow Peter O’Mahony step into the role as he had made a mess of getting the knee that sidelined him for eight weeks ready to play.
“My strapping just slipped off,” he explained in the aftermath of his 90th Irish cap. “I stupidly got a rub before I got strapped and I was all oily. Lessons learned. I had to strap it again at half-time as well. The physios weren’t too happy with me. But Pete did a great job introducing the president to all the players.”
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Comments on RugbyPass
The Springboks tried going down the road of only picking home-based players and it was an unmitigated disaster in 2016 and 2017. Picking overseas-based players has been one of the main reason the Boks have done so well since 2018, not only because of the quality Rassie could call on, but because of the knowledge and experience those players brought into camp from England, France and Japan. With some of the big names playing abroad it also gave younger players in SA the chance to break through at franchise level. Would we have seen the emergence of a Ruan Nortje if RG and Lood were still at the Bulls? Not so sure. I understand why Jake would want to block players leaving since his job depends on good results but it’s an approach that would take Bok rugby back to the bad old days and no South African wants to see that.
8 Go to commentsExeter were thumped by 38 points. And they only had to hop on a train.
34 Go to commentsI am De Groot.
1 Go to commentsHad hoped you might write an article on this game, Nick. It’s a good one. Things have not gone as smoothly for ROG since beating Leinster last year at the Aviva in the CC final. LAR had the Top 14 Final won till Raymond Rhule missed a simple tackle on the excellent Ntamack, and Toulouse reaped the rewards of just staying in the fight till the death. Then the disruption of the RWC this season. LAR have not handled that well, but they were not alone, and we saw Pau heading the Top 14 table at one stage early season. I would think one of the reasons for the poor showing would have to be that the younger players coming through, and the more mature amongst the group outside the top 25/30, are not as strong as would be hoped for. I note that Romain Sazy retired at the end of last season. He had been with LAR since 2010, and was thus one of their foundation players when they were promoted to Top 14. Records show he ended up with 336 games played with LAR. That is some experience, some rock in the team. He has been replaced for the most part by Ultan Dillane. At 30, Dillane is not young, but given the chances, he may be a fair enough replacement for Sazy. But that won’be for more than a few years. I honestly know little of the pathways into the LAR setup from within France. I did read somewhere a couple of years ago that on the way up to Top 14, the club very successfully picked up players from the academies of other French teams who were not offered places by those teams. These guys were often great signings…can’t find the article right now, so can’t name any….but the Tadgh Beirne type players. So all in all, it will be interesting to see where the replacements for all the older players come from. Only Lleyd’s and Rhule from SA currently, both backs. So maybe a few SA forwards ?? By contrast, Leinster have a pretty clear line of good players coming through in the majority of positions. Props maybe a weak spot ? And they are very fleet footed and shrewd in appointing very good coaches. Or maybe it is also true that very good coaches do very well in the Leinster setup. So, Nick, I would fully concurr that “On the evidence of Saturday’s semi-final between the two clubs, the rebuild in the Bay of Biscay is going to take longer than it is on the east coast of Ireland”
11 Go to commentsWhat was the excuse for the other knockout blowouts then? Does the result not prove the Saints were just so much better? Wise call to put your eggs in one basket when you’ve got 2 comps simultaneously finishing.
34 Go to commentsReally hope Kuruvoli and his partner rock the Canes.
1 Go to commentsI wonder what impact Samson has had on their attack, as the team seems less prone to trundle it up the middle, take the tackle and then trundle it up again. I lost faith in the coach last year as the Rebelss looked like a 2nd/3rd rate South African team. I also disliked Gordon standing back, often ignored as the forward battle went on and on. Maybe its our Aussie way of not getting off our A***’s until the enemy is at the gate.
86 Go to commentsThanks for the write up. Great to see the Rebs winning, I am a little interested in how they will go against the remaining kiwi teams, I think they’ve only played Hurricanes and Highlanders but how great to see these players performing!! I also see Parling has a job beyond June 30! A good move by RA? Also how do you fix the Rebels previously scratchy defence?
86 Go to commentsbe smart - go black
13 Go to commentsNext week the Crusaders hopefully have Scott Barrett back. Will be great to have the captain back. Hopefully he will be the All Black captain as well.
12 Go to commentsExciting place to be for the young fella. I expected he was French Polynesian when I saw him included in the France 6N squad (after seeing him in NZs), and therefor be strong grounds we might loose him to rugby down here. Good, in that he is good enough to warrant such a profile, and from a journalism’s fan interaction aspect, to finally get a back ground story on the fella. Hope he has settled into NZ OK and that at least one rugby country will fit with him to help his development, which, if so, he should surely continue for a few years, and then that he can experience France to it’s fullest with a bit more maturity and less reliance on family than you would have at his current age. A good 3 or 4 years before he would be ready for International duty if he wanted to wait. Of course he already sounds good enough to accept a call up, and to cap himself, in the more immediate future (he’d have to be very very good in the case of the ABs), and he’ll get a great taste of that being with the Canes who have a bunch who are just a few years further into their career and looking likely Internationals themselves.
13 Go to commentsI remember towards the end of the original broadcasting deal for Super rugby with Newscorp that there was talk about the competition expanding to improve negotiations for more money - more content, more cash. Professional rugby was still in its infancy then and I held an opposing view that if Super rugby was a truly valuable competition then it should attract more broadcasters to bid for the rights, thereby increasing the value without needing to add more teams and games. Unfortunately since the game turned professional, the tension between club, talent and country has only grown further. I would argue we’re already at a point in time where the present is the future. The only international competitions that matter are 6N, RC and RWC. The inter-hemisphere tours are only developmental for those competitions. The games that increasingly matter more to fans, sponsors and broadcasters are between the clubs. Particularly for European fans, there are multiple competitions to follow your teams fortunes every week. SA is not Europe but competes in a single continental competition, so the travel component will always be an impediment. It was worse in the bloated days of Super rugby when teams traversed between four continents - Africa, America, Asia and Australia. The percentage of players who represent their country is less than 5% of the professional player base, so the sense of sacrifice isn’t as strong a motivation for the rest who are more focused on playing professional rugby and earning as much from their body as they can. Rugby like cricket created the conundrum it’s constantly fighting a losing battle with.
8 Go to commentsOh wow… “But as La Rochelle proved in winning in Cape Town this season, a cross-continental away assignment need not spell the end of days.” La Rochelle actually proved quite the opposite. After traveling to Cape town and back they (back-to-back and current champs) got mercilessly thumped the next week. If travel is not the reason, why else would a full-strength powerhouse like La Rochelle get dumped on their @r$e$ one week later?
34 Go to commentsYou know he can land a winning conversion after the full time siren is up. (Even if it takes two attempts.)
5 Go to commentsA very insightful article from Jake. I would love to know how South African’s feel about their move to Europe. Do you prefer playing in Europe or want to go back to Super Rugby?
8 Go to commentspure fire
1 Go to commentsA very well thought out summary of all the relevant complications…agree with your ”refer the Cricket Test versus 20/20 comparison”. More also definitely doesn't necessarily mean better!
8 Go to commentsMust be something when you are only 19 y.o and both NZ and France want you. Btw he wasn’t the only new caledonian in french U20 as Robin Couly also lived in Noumea until 17. Hope he’s successful wherever he chooses to play.
13 Go to comments“Several key players in the Stade Rochelais squad are in their thirties” South Africans are going to hate the implications of that comment!
11 Go to commentsI know Leinster did a job on La Roche but shortly after HT Leinster were 30-13 ahead of them and at a similar time Toulouse were trailing Exeter. At 60 mins Leinster were 27 ahead but after 67 mins Toulouse were only 19 ahead before Exeter collapsed. That’s heavier scoring by Leinster against the Champions. I think people are looking at Toulouses total a little too much. I also think Northhampton are in with a real chance, albeit I’d put Leinster as favourites. If Leinster make the final I expect them to win by more than ten and with control.
11 Go to comments