RUGBY
Schmidt’s departure will leave big shoes for Farrell to fill
By Daire Walsh
FOLLOWING a weekend of managerial upheaval in the hallways of Irish soccer, the IRFU produced their own succession plan for the men’s national team yesterday morning.
Less than 24 hours after Mick McCarthy and Stephen Kenny were unveiled as the next two occupants of the Republic of Ireland hot seat, Joe Schmidt signalled his intention to step down as Ireland rugby head coach at the end of next year’s Rugby World Cup in Japan.
There had been weeks of speculation surrounding Schmidt’s position within the Irish set-up, but the rugby union have nipped it in the bud by additionally announcing defence coach Andy Farrell as his eventual successor.
Whatever happens at the 2019 global tournament, Schmidt’s impact on these shores has already been substantial. During his three-year stint as Leinster head coach (2010-2013), he claimed back-to-back European Cup titles (2011, 2012) as well as securing a PRO12 and Challenge Cup double in his final campaign.
This made him the ideal candidate to replace Declan Kidney as Ireland supremo and further success ensued for the Kawakawa native in the form of consecutive Six Nations crowns. Ireland’s quarter-final exit to Argentina at the 2015 World Cup was the first real disappointment of his tenure and the following spring’s Six Nations also proved to be a mixed bag.
However, over the course of the past two years, Schmidt has scaled even greater heights with Ireland. Less than five months after a groundbreaking away Test triumph over South Africa, Ireland defeated New Zealand for the first time in their history – a November 2016 win at Soldier’s, Field, Chicago.
This eventually acted as a catalyst for this year’s magnificent clean sweep of the Six Nations – where they topped the table with a whopping 11 points to spare.
A tour triumph over Australia and an unbeaten Guinness Series campaign has followed – placing Ireland on the verge of top spot in the world rankings. Sunday night’s World Rugby awards capped an extraordinary 2018 for Ireland, with the Team of the Year crown complimenting the Coach and Player of the Year honours for Schmidt and Jonathan Sexton.
The former Clermont assistant has also overseen a dramatic overhaul of his squad since the World Cup three years ago, with just 14 of the squad for that tournament being selected for the recent Autumn internationals.
How Schmidt’s decision to leave affects the squad for the forthcoming World Cup remains to be seen, but there is no denying he will be leaving Irish rugby in rude health.
Replacing a coach who has a 74% winning ratio to date will certainly be a daunting one and this is where the aforementioned Farrell comes into play. A dual-code international as a player, the Wigan man’s reputation took a nose dive as a result of England’s disastrous World Cup on home soil in 2015.
Yet, much like his former coaching partner Stuart Lancaster, a move to Ireland has given him a new lease of life. At Leinster (Lancaster) and Ireland respectively, they reminded people of the qualities they had brought in the early stages of their time with the English national side.
When you factor in his time with England, the 2017 British & Irish Lions and Ireland, Farrell has been involved in four victories over the All Blacks – including last Saturday week’s stunning success in Lansdowne Road.
It will be interesting to see what team Farrell puts in place for 2020 and onwards, as this will be the first head coach role of his career. Schmidt’s true legacy may well lie in how Ireland perform after he is gone and it will be left for Farrell to maintain it in his absence.