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'I'm not surprised': The O'Driscoll verdict on O'Gara for England
Brian O’Driscoll has given his verdict on Ronan O’Gara ambitiously throwing his hat into the mix for the England head coach job. La Rochelle coach O’Gara was asked during an appearance on Rugby Tonight whether he would consider becoming the English boss and the Irishman’s reply was intriguing with the race now on for the RFU to identify a successor to Eddie Jones post the 2023 World Cup.
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“Yeah, it would be a great job I think actually. Yeah, what a team. There’s so much potential there,” replied O’Gara to BT Sport presenter Craig Doyle on Sunday evening. “There is serious rugby players and serious passion for the game in England. It’s a cracking job, you’d love to have a go off that.”
O’Gara’s candid admission generated a flurry of headlines on either side of the Irish Sea as the assumption was that the former Munster and Ireland player would eventually return home to coach either club or country following a tracksuit apprenticeship that started out at Racing, continued at the Crusaders in New Zealand and has now taken another leap forward by the 45-year-old taking on the top job at La Rochelle.
O’Driscoll, who these days works as a pundit with BT Sport, was intrigued by what he heard last weekend. When asked on Tuesday by RugbyPass in a feature interview to be published later this week what he made of the O’Gara for England headlines, he suggested that the allegiances people have when they are players don’t apply in coaching when it comes to the most attractive jobs.
“The thing with allegiances as a player, they go as soon as you retire,” explained O’Driscoll about O’Gara, his fellow Irish Test centurion who is nearing the end of his ninth season as a coach following his 2013 retirement as a player.
“When you are a coach that goes out the window. I couldn’t have thought of anyone more of a Munster man than Denis Leamy, but yet there he is with the Leinster set-up and the Leinster environment. Work is work but also you want to work to be able to learn more and ultimately bring it back to your own province or the team that pulls on your heartstrings the most.
“It’s Munster or Ireland I would imagine with Rog, but the most attractive jobs are very attractive as a coach. It is not to do with who you have got the most ties with. That is gone. Those days are past when you cease to be a player. I’m not surprised Rog got asked the question, ‘Would he be interested in the English job?’ He said he would. Lots of great players to choose from, lots of ambition, so why wouldn’t you want to be involved in a ticket like that if you were a coach?”
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O’Driscoll and O’Gara spent 14 years together as Ireland players, the midfielder enjoying a Test career that was two years longer as he started in 1999 and finished in 2014 – unlike O’Gara who made a 2000 debut and retired in 2013. He has watched his former teammate’s coaching career with great interest in recent years, but does he think O’Gara really has the attributes to genuinely be considered as the next England coach?
“He has got a very clear understanding on how he wants to play the game,” enthused O’Driscoll about the credentials O’Gara has for the England job. “He is a good strategist, he is very passionate about bringing his point of difference, a very personable guy, creates a good fun environment to be around and to be in, so he has got all of the traits that you would imagine you need for a coach.
“International coaching is slightly different. You need a wealth of knowledge and understanding as to how to do a top job. Maybe it’s a little bit early for him to be getting into international coaching but it feels inevitable that it will come down the line.”
- BT Sport is the home of the European Rugby Champions Cup. The 2021/22 season continues with a weekend full of games, including Connacht vs Leinster live on BT Sport 1 at 7.15pm on Friday, April 8. Find out more information on how to watch at BT Sport bt.com/sport
Comments on RugbyPass
A wallaby front-row of Bell, Blake and Tupou…now that would be hefty
1 Go to comments“But with an exceptional pass accuracy rating “ Which apart from Roigard is not a feature of any of the other 9s in NZ. Kind of basic for a Black 9 dont.you. think? Yet we keep seeing FC and TJ being rated ahead of him? Weird if it’s seen as vital to get our backline beating in your face defences.
1 Go to commentsThanks BeeMc! Looks like many teams need extra time to settle from the quadrennial northern migration. I think generally the quality of the Rugby has held up. Fiji has been fantastic and fun to watch
13 Go to commentsLets compare apples with apples. Lyon sent weak team the week before, but nobody raised an eyebrow. Give the South African teams a few years to build their depth, then you will be moaning that the teams are too strong.
41 Go to commentsDid footballs agents also perform the scout role at some time? I’m surprised more high profile players haven’t taken up the occupation, great way to remain in the game and use all that experience without really requiring a lot of specific expertise?
1 Go to commentsSuper rugby is struggling but that has little to do with sabbaticals. 1. Too many teams from Aust and NZ - should be 3 and 4 respectively, add in 2 from Japan, 1 possibly 2 from Argentina. 2. Inconsistent and poor refereeing, admittedly not restricted to Super rugby. Only one team was reffed at the breakdown in Reds v H’Landers match. Scrum penalty awarded in Canes v Drua when No 8 had the ball in the open with little defence nearby - ideal opportunity to play advantage. Coming back to Reds match - same scrum situation but ref played advantage - Landers made 10 yards and were penalised at the breakdown when the ref should have returned to scrum penalty. 3. Marketing is weak and losing ground to AFL and NRL. Playing 2 days compared with 4. 4. Scheduling is unattractive to family attendance. Have any franchises heard of Sundays 2pm?
11 Go to commentsAbsolutely..all they need is a chance in yhe playoffs and I bet all the other teams will be nervous…THEY KNOW HOW TO WIN IM THE PLAYOFFS..
2 Go to commentsI really hope he comes back and helps out with some coaching.
1 Go to commentsI think we are all just hoping that the Olympic 7s doesn’t suffer the same sad fate as the last RWC with the officials ruining the spectacle.
1 Go to commentsPersonally, I’ve lost the will to even be bothered about the RFU, the structure, the participants. It’s all a sham. I now simply enjoy getting a group of friends together to go and watch a few games a year in different locations (including Europe, the championship, etc). I feel extremely sorry for the real fans of these clubs who are constantly ignored by the RFU and other administrators. I feel especially sorry for the fans of clubs in the Championship who have had considerable central funding stripped away and are then expected to just take whatever the RFU put to them. Its all a sham, especially if the failed clubs are allowed to return.
10 Go to commentsI’m guessing Carl Hayman would have preferred to have stayed in NZ with benefit of hindsight. Up north there is the expectation to play twice as many games with far less ‘player management’ protocols that Paul is now criticising. Less playing through concussions means longer, healthier, careers. Carter used as the eg here by Paul, his sabbatical allowed him to play until age 37. OK its not an exact science but there is far more expectations on players who sign for Top 14 or Engl Prem clubs to get value for the huge salaries. NZR get alot wrong but keeping their best players in NZ rugby is not one of them. SA clubs are virtually devoid of their top players now, no thanks. They cant threaten the big teams in the Champions Cup, the squads have little depth. Cant see Canes/Chiefs struggling. Super has been great this year, fantastic high skill matches. Drua a fantastic addition and Jaguares will add another quality team eventually. Aus teams performing strongly and no doubt will benefit with the incentive of a Lions tour and a home RWC. Let Jordie enjoy his time with Leinster, it will allow the opportunity for another player to emerge at Canes in his absence.
11 Go to commentsLove that man, his way to despise angry little men is so funny ! 😂
4 Go to comments“South African franchises would be powerhouses if we had all our overseas based players back in situ. We would have the same unbeatable aura the Toulouses, Leinsters or Saracens of this world have had over the last decade or so.” Proof that Jake white does not understand the economics of the game in SA. Players earning abroad are not going to simply come back and represent the bulls. But they might if they have a springbok contract.
24 Go to commentsA lot of fans just joined in for the fun of it! We all admire O'Gara and what he has done for La Rochelle
4 Go to commentsThe RFU will find a way to mess this up as usual. My bet is there will be no promotion into the the Premiership, only relegation into National League One. Hopefully they won’t parachute failed clubs into the league at the expense of clubs who have battled for promotion.
10 Go to commentsWell that’s the contracts for RG and Jordie bought and paid for. Now, what are the chances we can persuade Antoine to hop over with all the extra dosh we’ll have from living at the Aviva & Croke next season…??? 🤑🤑🤑
35 Go to commentsWow, that’s incredible. Great for rugby.
35 Go to commentsYou probably read that parling is going to coach the wallaby lineout but if not before now you have.
17 Go to commentsIf someone like Leo Cullen was in O’Gara’s place I don’t hear Boo-ing. It’s not just that La Rochelle has hurt Leinster and O’Gara is their Irish boss. It’s the needle that he brings and the pantomime activity before the game around pretending that Munster were supporting LaRochelle just because O’Gara is from Cork. That’s dividing Irish provinces just to get an advantage for his French Team. He can F*ck right off with that. BOOOOO! (but not while someone is lying injured)
4 Go to commentsDid the highlanders party too hard before the game? They were the pits.
1 Go to comments