BEIRNE IDENTITY
Scarlets second row poses huge threat to Leinster but looks like a godsend for Ireland
SECOND ROW remains a problem position for Irish rugby.
James Ryan has been phenomenal and is still just 21, Iain Henderson has proven his worth at the highest level and is entering into his peak years and Devin Toner’s lighthouse qualities continue to offer assurance.
All three made significant contributions to Ireland’s Grand Slam glory, but beneath that trio there is undeniably an issue.
And, with Joe Schmidt successfully pursuing his policy of developing squad depth in all positions (to safeguard against the injury factor that compromised Ireland’s ambitions at the last World Cup), now is the time to address it.
There were high hopes for Kieran Treadwell coming through as a viable option but the Ulster second row has not grasped the opportunity, Connacht’s Quinn Roux has been, at best, unconvincing and Ross Molony has not managed to emerge from the category of back-up to Toner, Ryan and Scott Fardy at Leinster.
Ultan Dillane undoubtedly has the ability but has had a fractured season with Connacht and, even supposing he gets back to his best in the build-up to next year’s World Cup, there is still a need for a fifth quality option to guard against the injury threat at Japan 2019. Enter Tadhg Beirne. Let go by Leinster in 2016, Beirne contemplated stepping away from the professional game but gambled on a move to Wales and has revived his career to such a degree that he constitutes a significant threat to his home province as one of the most effective members of the Scarlets side coming to Dublin for the Champions Cup semi-final this Saturday.
Indeed, the Kildare man has become something of a cult hero at Parc y Scarlets, receiving a standing ovation and special presentation on what could have been his last home appearance for the club in their 26-8 win over Glasgow a couple of weekends ago.
Scarlets did not want to let him go, but Beirne wanted to return to Ireland to further his international ambitions and IRFU high performance director David Nucifora, Munster and Schmidt deserve credit for making it happen.
‘Joe Schmidt gave me a phone call and said he had pushed for it [the move] because I’m on the radar. That’s all I can ask for,’ said Beirne a few weeks ago.
‘When Munster approached at the end of the summer, I had quite a big decision to make. I obviously spoke to Scarlets. They put a serious offer in front of me. They completely outbid Munster,’ he revealed.
‘It was a big decision for me but, ultimately, international ambitions are what I want to chase.’
In an environment where money is increasingly the overriding influence, it is refreshing to see a player embrace the bigger picture and back himself in this manner.
So, how good is Beirne? How much value can he add to Irish rugby from next season on?
Well, based on his performances for Scarlets over the past 18 months, Munster and Ireland have access to a serious talent, with Beirne a standard-bearer for the type of multi-functional back-five forward that flourishes in the modern game.
As well as power and mobility, Beirne’s game intelligence, the ability to make telling interventions at the right time stands out.
This is most evident in his turnover stats where Beirne is leading the way in the Pro14 with 37, 15 ahead of his nearest challenger — Nick Williams of Cardiff.
That counter-rucking, grappling focus would benefit any team and fits in perfectly to the possessionbased style favoured by Schmidt’s Ireland. Beirne augments it with aggressive carrying and tackling and his footballing skills (chiefly the knowledge of when the pass or off-load is on and when it is too risky) have also stood out with the Scarlets.
Those qualities have seen Beirne shift seamlessly between the second and back rows but, while that flexibility is a bonus to any squad, this is where the first caveat surfaces in an international context.
While Ireland is awash with quality backrows, it is as a second row that Beirne is most needed, necessitating a closer examination of the Kildare man’s ability to meet the core requirements of that position.
He is small by international standards, hovering around the 6ft 4-5in mark, which has selection implications, even with lifting making every player a potential target (e.g. Conor Murray).
Beirne is not renowned as a lineout presence, preferring to let others such as Aaron Shingler and David Bulbring shoulder the burden of ball-winning out of touch for the Scarlets.
If he was selected alongside Toner or Ryan for Ireland, his lack of height could be catered for — particularly with someone like Peter O’Mahony in the backrow — but it might be a factor, for example, if Iain Henderson, not a major lineout presence either, was his second-row partner.
That is for down the road and is certainly not a deal-breaker in terms of Beirne graduating into the Ireland set-up.
Schmidt brought him into camp for acclimatisation purposes in January and, in terms of deepening second-row resources, selecting Beirne for the summer tour to Australia is the smart move.
All the indications are that Beirne’s repatriation is an excellent piece of business for all concerned, bar Scarlets.
There is cautionary precedent in the story of the similarly sized second/backrow Robin Copleand who, after failing to make it at Leinster, was signed by Munster after ripping it up for a couple of seasons with the Cardiff Blues.
A fine player, Copeland could not consistently match his Cardiff displays through his intermittent inclusions in the Munster team and is off to Connacht next season.
However, with Donnacha Ryan departed and Billy Holland hitting his mid-30s, Munster’s need for Beirne is greater.
That said, his immediate priority is repaying the faith shown in him by Scarlets and help ruin the European hopes of his home province this Saturday.
He has the quality to do exactly that and, in the process, hammer home his potential to become part of Ireland’s odyssey towards the World Cup next year.
Selecting Beirne for the tour to Australia is the smart move
ULSTER Rugby chief executive Shane Logan can’t see Paddy Jackson or Stuart Olding playing for the province – or Ireland – again. Both players had their contracts revoked over the weekend following the fall-out from the trial that saw the two men acquitted of rape. Asked if a future return to Ravenhill was possible, Logan told the BBC: ‘That is not something that is being envisaged.’ The decision to revoke the players’ contracts has not been welcomed by some fans, with the official Ulster Rugby Supporters Club consulting its 1,000-strong membership over possible protests for Saturday’s Pro14 meeting with Glasgow, the last home game of the season. Former Ulster and Ireland player, Paddy Wallace, has claimed that Ulster needs to explain why the decision was made to sack the players. ‘I think there’s a sense among the fans that they’ve been left in the dark a bit,’ Wallace told RTÉ radio. ‘Gauging the temperature of the supporters club, they feel that they need a bit more information as how they came to that decision. French giants Clermont distanced themselves from a move for Jackson yesterday. A statement on the club’s website read: ‘There is no contact between Paddy Jackson and the club and no desire on our part to engage his services.’