Andy’s a leading light for Paul

PAUL O’Connell admits that he has learned lots about leadership under Andy Farrell — despite being a Munster, Ireland and Lions skipper in his own right.

O’Connell was renowned as an inspirational leader during his own playing days, and he told the Captains with Sam Warburton podcast that Mick Galwey, his first captain at Munster, was a massive influence on how he went about things when he grew into the role himself with the province.

Currently in Portugal with Farrell as his forwards coach, the Limerick man has made a real difference to the Ireland set-up since coming on board in January 2021, with the side reaching No.1 in the world rankings ahead of the start of the Six Nations on Saturday.

“The biggest learning for me since I’ve gone into Irish camp, Andy Farrell talks about leadership all the time and the first thing he says is it’s about how you make people feel,” said O’Connell, who did some coaching work with Munster’s academy before a stint with Stade Francais in 2018.

“So we think of leadership as driving standards, but if you’re driving standards by embarrassing people or humiliating them or making them feel bad about themselves, it’s not leadership.

“The quiet guy who is a really diligent trainer, that’s a great example for other people to copy.

Trust

“He’s out early and finishes late, he’s really organised, he does his recovery, that’s leadership, he makes people feel good, they trust him when they walk onto the field with him.

“Players can copy what he’s doing and be curious about what his process is. That’s leadership.

“That’s been the biggest learning for me since I’ve come out of the game. It’s being yourself. You