‘My head’s been fried, but I’m excited’
Decision to leave home province for Munster caused Carbery ‘sleepless nights’
THIS was the IRFU’s version of ‘The Decision’, the live TV broadcast of basketball super-star Le Bron James’ decision to “take his talents” from his home-town of Cleveland to Miami in 2010.
A conference room full of expectant journalists might have lacked the glitz of that production, but on the eve of the summer tour to Australia Joey Carbery arrived with news of his move to Munster.
“I’ve decided to go down to Munster,” he said as an opener.
“It’s been a tough few weeks, my head’s been a bit fried, trying to get all my cards on the table. I’ve had the help of some really good advisors, giving me confidence, telling me a few things.
“I’m really excited by the opportunity, it’s obviously extremely tough to be leaving Leinster, all my friends, all my mates. But I’m looking forward to the opportunity and I feel that a really good thing could come from it.”
Thus ended one of the longest transfer sagas of its kind in Irish rugby, one which the player openly conceded gave him and his father, Joey Sr, “sleepless nights”.
The weight of the world has been on the 22-year-old’s shoulders for a number of weeks now and, while he spoke of his excitement at the next stage of his burgeoning career, it was apparent that it hasn’t quite lifted yet.
He has put his international future first.
Despite his protestation that he didn’t have much of a role in the youngster’s decision, it is a result that suits Joe Schmidt (pictured below) down to the ground, while Munster will welcome one of the most talented players the prodigious Leinster academy has produced in some time with open arms.
SADNESS
His home province aren’t happy, and Carbery moves with a tinge of sadness, while retaining an open mind.
The summer tour will see him afforded game-time to show his wares and, by pre-season, he will be fully on board with his new club.
“It’s still pretty new to me,” he said when asked if he is comfortable with his decision. “This whole thing has come up pretty quickly. I do feel comfortable that I’ve made this decision and I can get on with it now, and it will get easier with time.
“It’s still quite raw at the moment but I’m happy that I made the right decision.
“I came to the decision properly yesterday (Wednesday). It’s been within my gut for the last few days but I wanted to be with my family when I made the decision and I wanted them to be the first ones, so I did that just before coming into camp yesterday.
“I wanted to get this decision made and out there before leaving (for Australia) for my own mental state. I can just get it out there and move on with things.
“It’s been tough. It’s been a tough four or five weeks, especially with the magnitude of the games that I’ve been
playing in and then having to get all my detail right during the week while there’s so much other stuff going on and in my mind. “I’m glad I’m on the other side of it.” When it came down to it, the idea of being a starting No 10 was at the heart of Carbery’s call. “The game time, getting more of an influence at No 10 maybe, that’s the big one,” he said. “I know people down there too, they’ll make things more easy. Just getting to play more regularly is the main one. It’s purely a rugby-based decision. I’m excited for the opportunity.”
Schmidt and David Nucifora initially ignited the idea of moving for more game-time when they came and met both Carbery and Ross Byrne with a view to one of them moving to Ulster and, while that didn’t materialise, the seed was planted in the Athy man’s head.
He later met the Ireland coach with his father for further advice, before sitting down with Johann van Graan to discuss his plans.
“Leinster have got me to a stage now where I feel like I’m just about ready,” he said. “Now I need to go out and develop even more now. I’ll always have a huge part of Leinster in me for that.
“But I suppose it was all a self-based decision with my dad being my closest advisor. I’ve been chatting to him a lot and he’s had a few sleepless nights as well as I have.
“It’s purely based on the opportunity of playing 10. That’s what it came down to, and going out of my comfort zone I suppose is going to be pretty tricky.
“Joe wouldn’t have told me what to do. He was more as an adviser. I contacted him as regards meeting up and I’m sure you guys saw that picture.
“So it was more to get his opinion because me and my dad had never gone through anything like this and Joe has been in the professional game for a long enough time that he’d know. It was good to get his insight on it.
“I met up with (van Graan) and he’s a really good guy. I felt like I connected with him and he seemed like a really honest guy, which I like; someone I can go to, especially if I’m living away.”
Asked if he would be staying in Leinster in an ideal world, Carbery said: “An ideal world would be that I’d be the best No 10 in the world, didn’t have to train – a lot of different things. I don’t know. My friends live in Leinster, all my friends, my girlfriend, are all living in Leinster. That’s the tough part, but this decision was purely based on rugby.”