‘Broken’ Schmidt throws in towel

A broken Joe Schmidt signed off as Ireland coach with a crushing loss to his native New Zealand that condemned the Irish team to a record seventh World Cup quarterfinal exit.

That followed a shock pool defeat by tournament hosts Japan, but Schmidt insisted that, with time, he would look back with pride on the job he did with Ireland.

“You tend to carry scars a lot more than your successes so those scars are deep and that’s why I am a little bit broken by it,” the 54-year-old said after his side’s 46-14 defeat by the All Blacks.

“But when I get some distance to reflect, I think it’s 75odd Test matches and we’ve won 75% of them.

“There have been some incredibly good days and I don’t think they get washed away by two defeats and days where we’re incredibly disappointed.”

The former English teacher, known for his work ethic, will return to New Zealand to spend time on family projects.

New Zealand coach Steve Hansen heaped praise on Schmidt, who led Ireland to two memorable victories over the All Blacks (2016, 2018) during his tenure, with retiring skipper Rory Best at the fore.

“Both of them have been instrumental in changing Ireland into a team that earlier in the year were number one in the world, so big congratulations to them,” Hansen said.

“I know they’re both finishing up, it’s probably not the way they wanted to do it.

“They’ve done a marvellous job for Ireland.”

Schmidt took charge in 2013, and he and Best have overseen a purple patch since the disappointment of the 2015 World Cup, when an injury-hit side were run ragged by Argentina in the quarterfinals.

Luke McGrath said: “Everyone goes into championships now saying we have a very good chance of winning

“That’s all down to the work Joe has done over the last 6½ years and we’ll be sad to see him leave.”

Schmidt’s legacy includes three Six Nations titles.