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John Cooney's potential Scotland switch fires up a Twitter debate
Ex-Scotland scrum-half Chris Cusiter has questioned the idea that John Cooney, the out-of-favour Ireland No9, is considering a change in allegiance and declaring for the land of his father in time for next year’s World Cup in France.
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The 32-year-old Dubliner won the last of his eleven Ireland Test caps in February 2020 and with the three-year standdown period required to change national team allegiance now just months away from being fulfilled, the Ulster player has claimed he has a big decision to make.
In an interview for the Ulster Rugby Show on BBC Northern Ireland, Cooney explained: “I’ll make the decision on my own terms and whatever I feel is right for me. Half of my family live in Scotland and my dad’s a proud Scotsman. I have to make sure everything is right with me with Ulster in terms of the contract and stuff like that.
“I have seen people commenting – I can see other people’s perception of it but they are generally people who have no connection or affiliation to another country. I can see both sides of the conversation but I won’t be listening outside. Either way, I know my dad would be immensely proud if I did play (for Scotland).”
This ‘Cooney for Scotland’ scenario quickly caught the eye of Cusiter on social media. “Cracking player but I would be properly annoyed if a 32/33-year-old was brought in ahead of me and I was a young Scottish scrum-half,” he commented on Twitter.
Cracking player but I would be properly annoyed if a 32/33 year old was brought in ahead of me and I was a young Scottish scrum half. https://t.co/KQU35d3H42
— Chris Cusiter (@chriscusiter) November 30, 2022
“However, as a fan, if he came off the bench and kicked the winning penalty against Ireland in the World Cup then I think my opinion could be changed. It’s not so much about that (though partly given his age) but the emotional connection and ambition to play for Scotland. Can’t blame him if he’s eligible and gets picked but I’m just not sure I’d agree with it.”
Cooney isn’t the first Test No9 to generate headlines in recent months about a potential change in allegiance. Tawera Kerr-Barlow, the 2015 All Blacks World Cup winner, previously spoke about his desire to play for Australia, the country where he was born before going to second-level school as a teenager in New Zealand.
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Go for it @JCooney09
Hopefully you'll stay at @UlsterRugby when you do.
Your continued omission from @IrishRugby is criminal so go shine on the international stage.
BBC News – John Cooney: Ireland scrum-half considering switch to Scotlandhttps://t.co/lok4hAzQTu
— Don Gregory (@bigtiny42) November 30, 2022
It must be personal between Andy Farrell & John Cooney! Makes no sense Cooney isn't in the Irish team.
— JJ CASEY (@JJCASEY8) November 30, 2022
I have no particular issue with him playing for Scotland if he’s eligible, it is a 32-33 year old as a fourth choice really a better prospect than bringing on Jamie Dobie?
— Ian MacGilp (@IanMacGilp) November 30, 2022
Would be a massive loss for Ireland and a huge gain for Scotland. Cooney is clearly good enough to play internationally and if he's not appreciated within Ireland why not go somewhere he would be appreciated? Sad, no doubt, but I don't blame him one bit. https://t.co/nm4xmaht1w
— Sergeant Rugby (@SergeantRugby) November 30, 2022
Comments on RugbyPass
What a dagg in more ways than one
5 Go to commentsRegroup come back next year but sack some of the coaching team and don't be like the ABs last minute sacking. If Crusaders don't do well ABs don't do well.
5 Go to commentsProctor Definitely inform again this year had a hell of a season last year and this year is looking even better. Still mixed feelings about Ioane tho.
4 Go to commentsDagg is still trying to get enough headlines to make himself relevant enough to get a job. The Crusaders went back to square one at all levels. Shelve this season and nail the next one.
5 Go to commentsHe was in such great form. Sad for him but only a short term injury and it will be great to see him back for the finals.
1 Go to commentsAfter their 5/0 start, I had the Crusaders to finish Top 4 only…they lost the plot in Perth but will reload and back themselves vs 4th placed Rebels…
5 Go to commentsBoth nations missed a great opportunity to book a game that would have had a lot of interest from around the world. I understand these games can’t be organised in 5 minutes but they should have found a way to make it happen. I don’t think Wales are ducking anyone but it’s a bad look haha.
3 Go to commentsIt will be fascinating to see the effect that Jo Yapp has. If they can compete with Canada and give BFs a run for their money that will be progress
1 Go to commentsFollowing his dream and putting in the work. Go well young fella!
3 Go to commentsPerhaps filling Twickenham is one of Mitchell’s KPIs. I doubt whether both September matches will be at Twickenham on consecutive weekends. I would take the BF one to a large provincial stadium so as not to give them the advantage and experience of playing at Twickenham before a large crowd prior to the RWC.
3 Go to commentsvery unfortunate for Kitshoff, but big opportunity potentially for Nché to prove he is genuinely the best loosehead in the world, rather than just a specialist finisher. Presuming that if Kitshoff is out, it will also give Steenekamp a chance to come into the 23? Or are others likely to be ahead of him?
1 Go to commentsA long held question in popular culture asks if art imitates life or does the latter influence the former? Over this 6 nations I can ask the same question of the media influencing the thoughts of its audience or vice versa. Nobody wants to see cricket scores in rugby, as a spectacle it is not sustainable. With so many articles about England’s procession and lack of competition it feeds the epicaricacy of many looking for an opportunity to pounce. England are not the first team to dominate nor does it happen only in rugby, think Federer, Nadal, Red Bull or Mercedes, Manchester Utd, Australia in tests and World Cups. Instead of celebrating the achievements why find reasons to falsify it pointing towards larger playing pool, professional for a longer period or mitigate with the lack of growth in other nations. Can we not enjoy it while it is here and know that it won’t last for ever, others coveting what England have will soon take the crown, ask the aforementioned?
6 Go to commentsShame he won’t turn out for the Netherlands now they’re improving. U20s are Euro champs and in the U20 Trophy this year. The senior sides gets better every year too.
3 Go to commentsWill rugbypass tv be showing these games?
1 Go to commentsWell where do you start, the fact that England have a professional domestic league and Ireland’s is fully amatuer, that they have fully seperated professional squads at Fifteens and Sevens (7’s thinly disguised as GB), and Ireland have fully pro Sevens squad who loan some players back to the Semi-Professional Fifteens squad (moved from amateur for only a year or so) for a few games at 6N & RWC’s. The Women’s games is a shambles, and is at risk of killing itself by pushing for professionalism when the market isn’t really there to support it outside one or two countnries..
6 Go to commentsWayne Smith's input didn't have as much impact on the last final as Davison's red card for Thompson. England were 14 points up and flying when that happened.
6 Go to commentsBilly's been playing consistently well for 2 - 3 seasons now and deserves a look in at the top level. Ioane and ALB are still first choice but there needs to be injury cover and succession. His partnership with Jordie gives him first dibs you'd think. Go the Hurricanes.
4 Go to commentsIt’s not up to Wales to support Georgian Rugby. That’s up to International Rugby and Georgia. I sympathise with Georgia’s decent attempt to create this fixture. But for Wales the proposed match up is just a potential stick to beat them with and a potential big psychological blow that young Welsh team doesn’t need. (I’m Irish BTW.)
3 Go to commentsCale certainly looks great in space, but as you say, he has struggled in contact. At 23 years old, turning 24 this year, he should be close to full physical maturity and yet there exists a considerable gap in the power and physicality required for international rugby. Weight doesn’t automatically equate to power and physicality either. Can he go from a player who’s being physically dominated in Super rugby to physically dominating in international rugby in 1 or 2 years? That’s a big ask but he may end up being a late bloomer.
38 Go to commentsIf rugby wants to remain interesting in the AI era then it will need to work on changing the rules. AI will reduce the tactical advantage of smart game plans, will neutralize primary attacking weapons, and will move rugby from a being a game of inches to a game of millimetres. It will be about sheer athleticism and technique,about avoiding mistakes, and about referees. Many fans will find that boring. The answer is to add creative degrees of freedom to the game. The 50-22 is an example. But we can have fun inventing others, like the right to add more players for X minutes per game, or the equivalent of the 2-point conversion in American football, the ability to call a 12-player scrum, etc. Not saying these are great ideas, but making the point that the more of these alternatives you allow, the less AI will be able to lock down high-probability strategies. This is not because AI does not have the compute power, but because it has more choices and has less data, or less-specific data. That will take time and debate, but big, positive and immediate impact could be in the area of ref/TMO assistance. The technology is easily good enough today to detect forward passes, not-straight lineouts, offside at breakdown/scrum/lineout, obstruction, early/late tackles, and a lot of other things. WR should be ultra aggressive in doing this, as it will really help in an area in which the game is really struggling. In the long run there needs to be substantial creativity applied to the rules. Without that AI (along with all of the pro innovations) will turn rugby into a bash fest.
24 Go to comments