SHREWD INVESTMENTS
Farrell reaping rewards after backing youth during early years of his coaching reign
THE pre-Six Nations trip to Portugal has become something of a tradition for Ireland in recent times. Former head coach Joe Schmidt saw plenty of benefits in whisking his squad off to the Algarve ahead of big tournaments.
A bit of sun and a couple of rounds of golf can do wonders for morale. In terms of training facilities, the national team want for nothing either. The Campus, a high-performance facility, is on their doorstep in Quinta da Lago.
It ticks a lot of boxes, on and off the field. When this squad touch down in Cardiff on Thursday evening, they will be in good nick, both mentally and physically, ahead of the Six Nations opener against Wales on Saturday.
It’s one of the few parallels you could make with Schmidt and Farrell’s terms as Ireland supremo, however. Since succeeding the New Zealander as head coach after the 2019 World Cup, the latter has taken the whole operation in a new direction.
In terms of team culture and tactics, Schmidt’s Ireland and Farrell’s regime are worlds apart.
There has been a massive shift in personnel as well. A glance at the matchday squad which faced the All Blacks in an ill-fated World
Cup quarter-final in Tokyo is instructive on that front.
The likes of Cian Healy, Rory Best, CJ Stander, Conor Murray, Keith Earls and Rob Kearney held prominent roles. All of the above have either retired or fallen down the pecking order.
Players such as Niall Scannell, Rhys Ruddock, Jordi Murphy and Luke McGrath were familiar faces as well.
The 46-14 hammering at the hands of New Zealand was Schmidt’s final game after almost seven, trophy-laden, years. Farrell immediately stepped up from defence coach to front of house.
In the past three years, he has overseen a major shift in Ireland’s attacking approach.
A historic series win in New Zealand and No1 status in the world rankings have been major achievements. Farrell has yet to secure silverware but his Ireland squad aren’t far off landing a trophy in the near future.
This week, he will oversee a vibrant young squad with big ambitions. It may have taken a few seasons for Farrell to reap the investment, but he set his stall out from his first Ireland squad selection in December 2019. He summoned 45 players to a pre-Christmas ‘stocktake’ at Ireland’s training base in Abbotstown. Kearney, the most decorated Irish rugby player in the professional era, was deemed surplus to requirements. The 95Test Leinster veteran would never get the international call again.
It’s been the case throughout Farrell’s tenure. He has backed form players, while systematically moving others along.
Sourcing a new full-back to fill Kearney’s boots was not an overnight fix. Jordan Larmour and Jacob Stockdale both had difficult auditions in the No15 shirt before Hugo Keenan made the position his own during a breakout campaign in 2020.
Farrell’s first few seasons were ropey in terms of performances and results, but there was no shortage of bold selections, with shrewd investment in uncapped rookies. He handed Caelan Doris his first cap in Ireland’s openinground Six Nations clash with Scotland in 2020. Doris’s dream debut would only last four minutes due to a concussion, but the Leinster backrower’s potential was obvious. He’s a nailed-on starter these days. Ronan Kelleher won his first cap off the bench in the same game. Max Deegan was the next greenhorn to enter the fray the following week against Wales. After Covid had disrupted the Six Nations, the tournament returned in the autumn and Farrell wasted no time in blooding more players.
Keenan, Will Connors, Jamison Gibson-Park and Ed Byrne all made their Ireland bows against Italy in October 2020.
The Autumn Nations Cup allowed more scope for widening the player pool. James Lowe, after qualifying on residency, scored a try on his first Ireland appearance against the Welsh that November, while GibsonPark started his first game as the hosts cruised to a 32-9 win at Aviva Stadium.
Shane Daly and Eric O’Sullivan were the next players off the rank, both donning the green shirt for the first time against Georgia and Scotland respectively.
Munster scrum-half Craig Casey and Leinster lock Ryan Baird would become the 12th and 13th new caps on Farrell’s watch when they were sprung from the bench against the Azzurri in Rome during the 2021 Six Nations.
Robert Baloucoune, Tom O’Toole, Nick Timoney, Harry Byrne, Fineen Wycherley, Gavin Coombes, Caolin Blade and Paul Boyle all won their first caps during summer meetings with Japan and the USA in 2021.
Dan Sheehan was next to make his Ireland debut in 2021 when he replaced Kelleher in the second half of a 60-point trouncing of Japan.
Ciarán Frawley, Thomas Ahern and Jamie Osborne were invited to training with Ireland in a transformative month for Farrell and his squad, featuring a statement win against the All Blacks.
“Ireland aren’t far off landing a trophy now”
“Farrell was forced to think outside the box”
Farrell has continued to back inexperienced players even during the ultra-intense Six Nations windows. Mack Hansen was handed a shock start against the Welsh last year, while Ulster full-back Mike Lowry followed suit in the third round against the Italians in Dublin.
Proposed summer tours of Australia and Fiji were derailed by Covid-19, meaning Farrell had to think outside the box.
The midweek Maori games on the New Zealand tour as well as the Emerging Ireland tour and Ireland ‘A’ clash with New Zealand were sourced to provide further exposure.
And the rewards have been reaped in spades. Jack Crowley (left), Joe McCarthy and Tom Stewart have been the big success stories from those ventures. Tellingly, all three are on board in Portugal this week. Stewart was a late call-up for Kelleher, who has a hamstring injury, but the young Ulster hooker has been mapped for quite some time.
When Farrell names his team later this week, it will contain no shortage of players who have flourished under his guidance.