Who is the masked man? It’s someone Kate McEvoy misses dearly as she runs the rule over Irish rugby for the new year…
We’re back with a bang after the festive season, although the provincial derbies in the Rabo make it feel like we were never away. However it’s a good a time as any to take a look back at what the season has taught us about Irish rugby in 2012 and what lies in stores in 2013. The first part of this series concerns itself with looking back at 2012, with an emphasis on what the season so far has meant for the national squad.
So what have we learned? Looks like the “International-Standard Tighthead Crisis” ™ is still on-going. Mike Ross is an uncomfortable combination of overworked & slightly out-of-condition (don’t hurt me, I can’t be the only person who’s noticed). Michael Bent had a solid start with his international cameos but failed to build on that in his subsequent provincial outings. I do think it’s early doors to be passing a verdict on Bent but other contenders haven’t exactly been clamouring for attention. This is an issue that’s not going away and the fact Ireland used John Hayes remarkable decade of consistency to shirk at developing props is going to continue to bite. The time has come to widen the search. For a more in depth analysis of this particular issue check out the “Bent Cops” post on Whiff of Cordite.
To hooker next, am I the only one who’s a little worried that throwing a straight line-out ball seems to be going out of fashion? It was a major issue for me during the end of year Heineken Cup games. It’s probably not necessary to state the obvious here, but I’m going to do it anyway. If you are a hooker, skills around the park & in the scrum are lovely, but the line-out should be your bread and butter. While watching roundy-ball games, Daddy Mc gets frustrated when players claim they’re left or right-footed. “Practice til you can kick the ball with both bloody feet.” Practice until you can throw the ball straight. It was a sour note in a position with good cover, although I will say that for me the Munster pair of Varley & Sherry give me seizures with their lack of consistency. I miss you Jerry (pic). At least I can still feast my eyes on your magnificent barnet as you battle with a golf umbrella in the driving rain pitchside at The Sportsground.
Healy is still my nailed on number one. Tom Court does what he does best, provides solid loose-head cover, that is when he’s not being marched out as a sacrificial tight-head lamb to the baying Twickenham crowds. Never again. Sorry, I drifted off there. To sum up, it’s not as critical as the “International-Standard Tighthead Crisis” ™ but in general, prop development needs to be a huge priority for the IRFU.
One of the high points of the November Internationals was the second row pairing of Ryan & McCarthy. I’ve been a big fan of Ryan for a long time & am thrilled he’s getting the recognition he deserves and turning in such inspiring performances. He is a player who never shirks at putting in a shift, especially when those around him go missing. Also, it tickles me that he goes from being an enforcer on the pitch to by all accounts an all-round nice guy off it.
The emergence of McCarthy came as a big relief to those worrying about the absence of Paul O’Connell. Reams have justifiably been written about his performance against South Africa. It was great for him, great for Ireland, great for Connacht and great for me. When a hit has you yelling “Sit down, son,” from the Upper East Stand you know it’s a good’un. And of course then he had to go and spoil it all by doing something stupid like moving to Leinster. That I hasten to add is a JOKE. Again, ample words have been penned on the subject but my bottom line on the whole thing is this – I can understand why Connacht feel hard done by, he’s a big player to lose. But Leinster have done nothing wrong here and as a professional at the end of his contract, McCarthy was entitled move to where he felt was best for him. It’s a huge win for Leinster in a position that has been a consistent Thorn in their side since Nathan Hines was forced to seek pastures new, and don’t get me started on that. McCarthy didn’t know who his coach was going to be or if he was going to be playing Heineken Cup rugby next year. Regardless of the financial side of things, that’s a massive uncertainty for a player to live with, particularly one who has made an overdue international breakthrough and wants to keep that momentum going.
I’m going to keep things brief on the subject of the back-row. The jury is still out on Peter O’Mahony to a certain extent. I personally think he’s a very fine player and a good line-out option but the hype around him did no favours to a young player who’s still developing. He’s got a weak shoulder than he needs to work on and to drop the hard chaw act post haste. We’ll wait and see in 2013.
Jamie Heaslip was solid in the autumn tests but failed to grasp his captaincy opportunity with both hands. His decision-making was lacking, especially against South Africa and, much like O’Connell when he plays, I don’t think he’s the best candidate for Phase 1 ball and he seemed to be calling a lot on himself. I understand it from a leadership point of view but it limits him as a player in terms of the lines he runs and thus has a negative effect on the team. Being a captain should be about making sure people are doing the job that’s best for them at the best of their ability. And when you’re a man up in your opponent’s half after a period of sustained pressure results in a penalty please consider kicking for the corner.
There’s a plethora of young and emerging back-row talent across the provinces, which could be subject to an article on their own. Munster’s young guns, working successfully with the largely under-rated James Coughlan have been the brightest point in their season. Iain Henderson at Ulster is, put simply, the real deal. Whether his future is in the back or second row remains to be seen. Another highlight for me is Jordi Murphy and his dominance of Sam Warburton when Blue Magic hosted the Blues, and to see Chris Henry delivering when given a proper shot at 7. Between that and the strong provincial showings across the loose forwards, hopefully the “we haven’t got an out-and-out 7” argument can be rested.
The biggest issue at scrum-half seems to be the fact that Conor Murray is undroppable. I think, dependent on opposition of course, he’s usually the best choice for green number 9 - when he’s on form. The fact that he starts no matter how badly he plays isn’t doing him any favours in the long run, given he’s a player who seems to struggle to identify the strongest aspects of his game (hint: not being buried at the bottom of a ruck) and it’s certainly turning supporters against him. This was the year the opportunity to take a good look at Paul Marshall and it largely wasn’t taken. Yes, he’s small, and in the words of Billy Bob Thornton in Friday Night Lights (the film, not the series, watch both if you haven’t already, and read the book while you’re at it) he’s going to be smaller every week. However his lightening quick service and inventive play seems to offer options that should be exploited at international level.
Regarding the Leinster duo, as per above, Eoin Reddan isn’t really given a fair shout by the aforementioned undroppability of Murray and some believe we need to see Leinster’s provincial partnership in tandem at test level more often. On the other hand, it could be argued that we need to be looking for a partnership and given Reddan’s age, that isn’t it.
Boss ended the year on a sour note for me. I thought he showed a total lack of leadership when captaining his side in their defeat over Connacht, leaving Jordi Murphy in a very bad way while dawdling over one scrum in particular. But then he got man of the match which just goes to show how subjective opinion can be. For me the stand-out player at that match was in fact the Connacht 9, Kieran Marmion who is also on track to challenge Murray for the scrum-half’s berth in the national squad.
I assume by now the majority of us are in agreement that one of Europe’s form 10s, likely Lions outhalf and possible tour captain Jonathan Sexton is Ireland’s pivot? I’m hoping that argument is winding down. I’ll merely add that I’d like to see him be trusted and allowed to finish out a game where appropriate. The real issue for Ireland is back-up 10 and the problem there is three letters – ROG. More on that, and the state of our young outhalves, in the second half of this article as we look towards 2013.
Looking at the centres, D'arcy had somewhat of a renaissance towards the end of the year but is Luke Marshall the coming man, with some strong displays? I wonder does this mean everyone’s favourite MVP Fergus McFadden might miss out? I consider 12 his best position and think him unlucky not to have gotten a better run there. In some ways his competent versatility across the backline has done him a disservice, as he’s failed to nail down a definitive position to start from. Is there now a possiblity he’ll be squeezed out should the old pro be replaced by the young pretender? Given I don’t think he’s an international standard wing and, as we’ll see shortly, that’s a crowded field, this could become a serious issue for him.
This year we’ve also continued with the impossible – replacing the irreplaceable and looking for an Irish 13 that’s not Brian O’Driscoll. Public perception has come to realise that attempting to copy a one-off is not going to happen, so we’ve become more open to a 13 with a different skill-set and playing style. Given this time last year I was biting my nails over the possibility of Keith Earls playing at 13 I’d like to take this opportunity to eat humble pie. He’s grown hugely as a player and is looking more like a centre every time I see him there. Some people have decided he’s not up to the task. They’re entitled to their opinion but it seems to me the oft-cited defensive frailty he’s accused of is a touch one-eyed. He’s improved in leaps and bounds in that regard but has struggled to shake of the public perception that he can’t defend, rather than to actually improve his defensive play.
Talking of defensive 13s of course leads to talking about Darren Cave. For me, there’s two sides to that coin. He probably hasn’t got a fair crack in green but he hasn’t played himself into contention either. The return of his BODness in time for the 6 Nations puts the issue on the back-burner temporarily but it’s not going anywhere. Because, like it or not, he is.
To those bright sparks, the back three. It’s never nice to see a player stretchered off, especially one as universally liked as Tommy Bowe and we all wish him a speedy recovery. However from a squad point of view it’s less catastrophic than otherwise might be with the emergence of the biggest story of 2012, Craig Gilroy. With the return of Rob Kearney and Robbie Henshaw impressing, Zebo, who’s work at full back was a pleasant surprise, is more likely to be competing for a berth on the wing. Andrew Trimble is always good value and solid in defence but once again he’ll be scrapping for his spot.
Thus concludes our look back at the first half of the season in 2012. Obviously there was a lot more to say but we can’t dawdle, because it’s time to move forward into 2013.
(Follow HarpinOnRugby on Facebook, Twitter and Google+ for Part 2)
Kate McEvoy : Munster fan in a sea of Leinster blue. Raised on a strict diet of Bective Rangers. Earliest childhood memory is stud marks in the muck. Former hooker for a father & a mother with an eye for a forward pass bordering on freakish . Often to be found down Monkstown RFC/ A & E on account of the exploits of the better half. Best rugby memory, Toulouse main square, May 24th 2008. Epitaph will read “Knew a lot about rugby for a girl.” Can be found tweeting optimistically at @ImKateMc
