Larmour the very best fit to slip in when Kearney is not around
‘We have a licence, it’s not PlayStation rugby...’
ROB KEARNEY has become such an institution in the Ireland No15 jersey that whenever the Leinster veteran is unavailable, the news inevitably arrives with nerves attached.
The most decorated player in Irish rugby history is a hard man to replace and Ireland coach Joe Schmidt entered World Cup year still unsure of who was first-up understudy at full-back – trialling Robbie Henshaw unsuccessfully in the role for Ireland’s Six Nations defeat to England last February.
It was far from ideal that the issue was still a live one going into the World Cup and, when Kearney was ruled out of the opening clash with Scotland, the nerves were back when Jordan Larmour got the nod over Andrew Conway.
They have settled somewhat now – Larmour was excellent in the thumping win over the Scots and there was no debate over who should step up against Samoa when it became clear that Kearney would not be risked.
Today is only the fifth time the 22-year-old will have started at full back since winning the first of his 19 caps in February last year but Larmour is confident he can do justice to the position and admits he has leaned heavily on Kearney to grow into the role.
‘Rob’s probably one of the best in the world at grass-field cover so you can learn a huge amount from him,’ said Larmour this week.
‘Any time he’s playing or training, you’re just trying to learn from him, even now just trying to pick his brains and see what he thinks of different scenarios.
‘He’s been a massive help to my game. Getting to play with him and train with him is pretty cool and you can learn a lot.
‘It’s a bit of everything. Your positioning, where you’re starting off, then reading body language when a 10 is shaping up to kick – reading that early and being in the right position at the right time. Little things like that – where you’re starting off and reading body language and cues are probably the two big things,’ added Larmour, who says he has also turned to another Leinster colleague, out-half Johnny Sexton, for guidance.
‘Definitely, when he’s shaping up for a kick, just trying to read that. Sometimes 10s might drop back in the pocket and then kick it over the ruck into the other corner. It’s good when they do that. It challenges you and you can learn from it always.’
However, while Kearney has frequently, and often unfairly, been criticised for being too much of a defensive-minded ‘goalkeeper’ and not enough of a counterattacker, Larmour is seen as being at his most effective when running back ball into broken play.
With his pace and rapid change of direction, having Larmour at the back is an exciting proposition – especially today when Ireland set off in pursuit of a fourtry bonus point.
However, Larmour is wary of advocating an all-out attacking game-plan as he feels that could leave them vulnerable against the Samoans.
‘We have a gameplan. We know what we want to do. We know Samoa are gonna want to play and we know with the ball-carriers they have, they have some serious threats and we know we’re going to have to put out a very good performance,’ said Larmour.
‘Obviously, we’re going to be looking for a bonus point but they’re looking to come here and play and put us under pressure. You saw with the Fiji game, they nearly turned Wales over, so we’re expecting them to come out with all guns blazing.
‘It’s just how we deal with that and how we build into the game and taking our chances.
‘Any time you have the ball in hand, you’re assessing your options, seeing what the best thing to do is – run, kick or pass. If there’s a half-gap there, go for it. Sometimes you get tackled and sometimes you get through and you make a break.
‘We’ve licence, if something is on, you can take it. We don’t want to be playing PlayStation rugby.’
This is the type of day where Larmour could cut loose, just as he did in his first Ireland start at full back against Italy last November when picking up a hat-trick in Chicago, and there would be no better time for him to run riot.
However, Ireland’s fitful campaign to date cautions against too much expectation, individually or collectively.
The ideal scenario would be Larmour sparkling as Ireland seal the bonus-point win. That would create a fascinating debate over who should wear 15 in the quarter-finals — the apprentice or the master.