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The 37.8 km/hr teenager speeding through Irish rugby

By Neil Best

The weeping of an heir is laughter in disguise

Just as athletics has been scraping around trying to find a replacement for the now soccer playing Usain Bolt – rugby union has still not found a true “heir to Habana”.

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Sure, there are some rapid players like Perry Baker and Carlin Isles from the US, but they are making names for themselves in Sevens not fifteens. And the US isn’t yet able to be described as a top bracket test side.

The fastest player I played with was undoubtedly Chris Ashton, and we all know what impact a player with extra gears can have – with Ashton now back in England with Sale Sharks, Eddie Jones would be crazy not to consider him for Japan next year.

But it seems that Habana’s true heir might not feature in Japan next year, if only because the World Cup will come too soon.

Aaron Sexton is still at school but in recent weeks he has scored seven tries in Ulster A’s Celtic Cup campaign. Last weekend in picking up two tries against Connacht A he accelerated to 37.8 km/hr – according to Ulster Rugby the fastest player speed ever recorded by an Ulster player in a match.

In June this year aged 17, Sexton smashed the Northern Irish Boys 100m record with a time of 10.52 seconds in winning the all-island Irish Schools Athletics Championships. He also went on to win the 200m title in a pretty handy 21.12 seconds. In July he took that 200m time down further to 21.06 at the World Under-20 Championships in Finland.

Roll forward one month and still aged 17, Sexton made his full Ulster debut as a second half replacement in pre-season against Gloucester.

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But Sexton isn’t some fast kid giving rugby a go, he’s been combining rugby with athletics for some time, having represented Ireland Rugby at underage levels. And whilst the buzz about Sexton might not yet have created waves outside the notorious Belfast bubble – it’s only a matter of time.

In an interview with Luke Fitzgerald’s Left Wing podcast, Ulster scrum half John Cooney has already publicly predicted that Sexton is in line to become a big star.

Sexton’s easy transition to the Ulster A-side suggests the next step to first team regular isn’t too far away. The same backroom team that handled Jacob Stockdale’s transition are handling Sexton’s, and that gives good reason to expect similar positive outcomes for the teenager.

With the retirement last season of Ulster wing legends Andrew Trimble and Tommy Bowe, Ravenhill was gripped with anxiety about squad depth and where Jacob Stockdale and Craig Gilroy might receive back up. But that anxiety has been replaced by a debate not about how far Sexton can be progressed -but how soon.

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It’s a great position for Ulster Rugby to find themselves in with another teenage winger Angus Kernohan already blooded in the first team this season, and Ireland Sevens success Robert Baloucoune, himself only twenty-one, scoring freely for the A-side on the opposite wing to Sexton.

And when ambitious players must to compete hard just to be selected, you know great things lie ahead.

A lion runs the fastest when he’s hungry

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Trevor 1 hours ago
Will forgotten Wallabies fit the Joe Schmidt model?

Thanks Brett.. At last a positive article on the potential of Wallaby candidates, great to read. Schmidt’s record as an international rugby coach speaks for itself, I’m somewhat confident he will turn the Wallaby’s fortunes around …. on the field. It will be up to others to steady the ship off the paddock. But is there a flaw in my optimism? We have known all along that Australia has the players to be very competitive with their international rivals. We know that because everyone keeps telling us. So why the poor results? A question that requires a definitive answer before the turn around can occur. Joe Schmidt signed on for 2 years, time to encompass the Lions tour of 2025. By all accounts he puts family first and that’s fair enough, but I would wager that his 2 year contract will be extended if the next 18 months or so shows the statement “Australia has the players” proves to be correct. The new coach does not have a lot of time to meld together an outfit that will be competitive in the Rugby Championship - it will be interesting to see what happens. It will be interesting to see what happens with Giteau law, the new Wallaby coach has already verbalised that he would to prefer to select from those who play their rugby in Australia. His first test in charge is in July just over 3 months away .. not a long time. I for one wish him well .. heaven knows Australia needs some positive vibes.

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Bull Shark 5 hours ago
Jake White: Are modern rugby players actually better?

Of the rugby I’ve born witness to in my lifetime - 1990 to date - I recognize great players throughout those years. But I have no doubt the game and the players are on average better today. So I doubt going back further is going to prove me wrong. The technical components of the game, set pieces, scrums, kicks, kicks at goal. And in general tactics employed are far more efficient, accurate and polished. Professional athletes that have invested countless hours on being accurate. There is one nation though that may be fairly competitive in any era - and that for me is the all blacks. And New Zealand players in general. NZ produces startling athletes who have fantastic ball skills. And then the odd phenomenon like Brooke. Lomu. Mcaw. Carter. Better than comparing players and teams across eras - I’ve often had this thought - that it would be very interesting to have a version of the game that is closer to its original form. What would the game look like today if the rules were rolled back. Not rules that promote safety obviously - but rules like: - a try being worth 1 point and conversion 2 points. Hence the term “try”. Earning a try at goals. Would we see more attacking play? - no lifting in the lineouts. - rucks and break down laws in general. They looked like wrestling matches in bygone eras. I wonder what a game applying 1995 rules would look like with modern players. It may be a daft exercise, but it would make for an interesting spectacle celebrating “purer” forms of the game that roll back the rules dramatically by a few versions. Would we come to learn that some of the rules/combinations of the rules we see today have actually made the game less attractive? I’d love to see an exhibition match like that.

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