HIGHER CALLING
Leinster coach must be part of conversation on future of Irish rugby
IT WAS interesting to hear Brian O’Driscoll suggest that Leo Cullen could become the ‘Guy Noves’ of Leinster. Noves led Toulouse for a staggering 22 years, guided them to nine domestic championships and four European Cups while playing a brand of rugby that established his hometown club as one of the most entertaining outfits in the world game.
And O’Driscoll believes Cullen could thrive at his native province for a similarly extended period.
‘The important thing is that he doesn’t have an ego and that’s why this has worked,’ O’Driscoll told Newstalk’s Off the Ball.
‘Leo oversees a lot of things, Stuart (Lancaster) appears to do a lot of the coaching and then they pick the team collectively. He’s happy to share the credit when there is success, when you do that there’s potential for longevity.’
It was an engaging discussion, and O’Driscoll’s regard for his former Blackrock, Leinster and Ireland teammate is obvious, but what is most intriguing is that Cullen is not featuring as part of the national conversation.
We do not know what Joe Schmidt’s plans are after next year’s World Cup, what we do know is that Ireland’s most successful head coach will be an incredibly hard act to follow.
A list of candidates has been mooted as possible replacements, with Englishmen Andy Farrell and Stuart Lancaster leading the way. Scalded by their experience with England at the last World Cup, both men have rebuilt their careers superbly — Farrell’s defensive coaching a crucial cog in Ireland’s rise to second in the world and Lancaster earning universal praise for his contribution to Leinster becoming the premier club in Europe.
Ronan O’Gara’s achievements with the Crusaders and Racing 92 have thrust the Corkman into the succession discussion, while Mark McCall’s ongoing success at Saracens has seen his name mentioned regularly also.
But not a peep about Cullen for Ireland. Why not? It is as though Leinster is seen as the limit of his coaching aspirations.
As O’Driscoll points out, the bulk of the Leinster coaching responsibilities fall on Lancaster’s shoulders, with Cullen taking on the part of overseer — charged with bringing all the constituents part together into a cohesive force.
He is perfectly suited to the role — an intelligent, methodical strategist, willing to lean on the expertise of others for the common good and, as O’Driscoll highlighted, utterly devoid of ego.
And it is that temperament that is perhaps the most impressive aspect of Cullen’s make-up.
After a highly distinguished playing career, that saw him lift the European Cup three times as captain and included a successful stint in the exacting environs of Leicester Tigers, Cullen moved straight into coaching with Leinster, first as assistant and then, abruptly, as head man when Matt O’Connor was moved on in 2015.
When he acceded to the top post at Leinster, the consensus was that it had come too soon for Cullen and there were knee-jerk calls for his removal when the province struggled in his first season at the helm.
But, rather than be fazed by those initial challenges or adopt a defensive position, the Wicklow man consistently emphasised his tenure was a work in progress and set about installing the foundation stones for progress.
He had no hesitation recognising his need for technical assistance, first turning to former All Blacks coach Graham Henry on a consultancy basis and then Lancaster as full-time senior coach.
The former England boss made an instant impression, with Leinster players falling over themselves to laud his impact, and there was plenty of talk doing the rounds that Lancaster was the de facto head coach and Cullen’s influence was marginalised.
While none of that conjecture was fuelled by the new man, Lancaster was widely portrayed as the bigger name on the ticket — the master to Cullen’s pupil — and that perception still exists, as evidenced by the debate over who should succeed Schmidt when that day arrives.
It does a disservice to the environment Cullen has created at Leinster which allows Lancaster to flourish — something the Englishman repeatedly acknowledges — and now the question should be why can’t the Cullen-inspired formula that has worked so well with his province be replicated at national level?
Cullen as Ireland head man with Lancaster as senior coaching assistant is a compelling concept.
It would allow Lancaster to continue doing what he does best — work directly with players — while Cullen could take care of all the planning that goes into building a successful squad.
When you look at eccentric Eddie Jones imploding with England and wound-up Wallabies boss Michael Cheika lurching from crisis to crisis, the case for Cullen’s calm control carries extra weight.
The frequently fraught obligations of post-match media duties open a window onto that composure.
While the likes of Jones, Cheika, Kieran Keane and, most recently, Geordan Murphy have all let their frustrations show in interview situations — it simply does not happen with Cullen.
Even when the flak was falling all around during his first season in charge, he presented a rational front and it is known that if he feels frustrations are getting the better of him, he will take himself away to have a cup of tea and calm down before facing the media.
Cullen also understands the need for Irish rugby to work together from the top down and, when the reports were circulating about ‘Leinster fury’ at the prospect of losing Joey Carbery to Munster, there was never any danger of O’Connor-style public denouncements.
Whatever was felt privately at Leinster losing a talented player they had nurtured for many years to their chief rivals, the reaction was practical and progressive — ‘it’s happened, we wish Joey all the best, we’ve moved on’.
Even allowing for their loss away to Scarlets, Leinster have made an accomplished start to the season and the early indications are that the squad Cullen has so painstakingly put in place has realistic designs on another Pro14-Champions Cup double.
As chief architect of this phenomenal success story, Cullen now deserves to be considered for elevation to an Ireland role down the line and the fact he is not being talked about in those terms is a puzzle.
As O’Driscoll suggests, he could conceivably lead Leinster successfully for the next 20 years but why put a limit on his career? Particularly when all the evidence suggests that, if Leo Cullen did graduate to the top job, he would have a plan to make it work.
He is perfectly suited to the role of national boss