Incoming Humphreys needs to act local for Ireland to think global
#justsayin...
DAVID HUMPHREYS will arrive through the doors of IRFU HQ in March, about midway through the 2024 Six Nations. The former Ulster and Ireland out-half will then spend the next few months working closely alongside David Nucifora to facilitate a handover in the summer.
Nucifora will step aside following the Paris Olympics – which will feature both the men’s and women’s Sevens teams for the first time. After almost a decade in the role as IRFU performance director, Nucifora is stepping aside and Humphreys will be taking over. For the former Wallabies hooker, it’s a good time to walk away.
There won’t be many tears shed when Nucifora clears his desk. The Australian has been a polarising figure since he was appointed to the newly-created role in 2014.
Nucifora put plenty of noses out of joint, not that he ever seemed too bothered. Say what you like about him, but he definitely played a big role in taking the game forward in this country. Was it all perfect? Far from it. Nucifora had some big blind spots, particularly with the amateur clubs and the women’s game. The national men’s team – despite the recent disappointment at the World Cup – had a memorable 24 months while the Ireland Under 20s have dominated the Six Nations landscape for the best part of five years.
The provinces – especially Leinster – have all made big strides on Nucifora’s watch but one Champions Cup title in 10 years seems a paltry return. In terms of recruitment, Nucifora played a key role in luring coaches such as Andy Farrell, Stuart Lancaster, Graham Rowntree, Andy Friend and Dan McFarland into the Irish system.
So, it’ll be business as usual when Humphreys does his handover next year, right? There are plenty of areas which need work. It might be an uncomfortable truth but the current Ireland team is comprised of Leinster players – primarily sourced from the south Dublin private schools system – and overseas players who have been naturalised either by residency or ancestry. A smattering of other provincial players make up the rest of the squad.
Long term, that is not a sustainable model. And for a country of this size, in which rugby plays a supporting role to GAA and soccer, we are clearly not maximising our resources.
The squad which pitches up at the 2027 World Cup in Australia is likely to be sourced from a far broader base. Munster have a galaxy of young stars coming through while Ulster have a brilliant stable of youthful backs along with promising forwards such as Tom Stewart and David McCann. The Murray brothers and Cathal Forde are showing great promise in Connacht as well.
Humphreys can still do more, however. The IRFU needs to drill down into the grassroots and find fresh avenues.
Extending a hand of friendship to the AIL clubs would not be a bad place to start. Relations between Munster and the clubs have improved a lot in recent years. Nucifora had a radical plan to overhaul the amateur game a few years back. When the AIL committees pushed back, he subsequently folded his tent and walked away.
Here’s hoping Humphreys – who led Dungannon to an AIL title in 2001 at the old Lansdowne Road – can build some bridges on that front. Some of the provinces and a lot of big players at the IRFU might not feel they need the clubs, but they remain the lifeblood of the game here. Virtually every single player who has broken into the professional ranks first pitched up at a minis rugby session at their local club.
And the same goes for the women’s game. After years of neglect – a lot of which occurred on Nucifora’s watch – there has been renewed investment, both financial and emotional, into the game of late. Again, it’s important. The women’s game is growing at an exponential rate on a global level and Ireland can’t be left behind, again.
There is plenty of room for thinking outside the box as well.
How about bringing an autumn international or Six Nations game to Páirc Uí Chaoimh or another stadium across the country in the coming years? Ireland played the All Blacks in Chicago, why not bring a big Test match to Semple Stadium? If you’re trying to win new supporters and change perceptions then it would be no harm to take the big show on the road and get out of D4 once in a while.
What about loaning players out to English or French clubs to get more exposure and widen the player base? It did Tadhg Beirne no harm when he took off to the Scarlets for a few years after exhausting his options at home.
Nucifora was always quick to laud the IRFU’s player management system but has it helped Ireland at World Cups? Farrell was picking from a very small base by the end of the tournament, and it showed.
Nothing should be off the table in the years ahead. Here’s hoping Humphreys isn’t afraid to shake things up.