Schmidt to pursue world’s best

Joe Schmidt will be given carte blanche to appoint his own backroom staff and, like Declan Kidney before him, the new Ireland coach will be told to scour the world for the best and brightest rugby minds to assist him over the next three years.

Kidney’s ability to attract South African Gert Smal and Australian Les Kiss into his brains trust back in 2008 was considered a major coup at the time and played a key part in Ireland claiming the Grand Slam in the ticket’s first season.

The contracts of those men who worked alongside Kidney this year — Kiss, Smal, Anthony Foley and Mark Tainton — will expire at the end of June and IRFU chief executive Philip Browne said Schmidt would be working off a “blank sheet of paper” in building his backroom team.

The Kiwi was either unwilling or unable to say who would make up his support staff yesterday afternoon as he addressed the media at the Aviva Stadium for the first time since being confirmed in the role of Ireland team coach through to the end of the 2015/16 Six Nations.

In truth, the outgoing Leinster coach gave nothing away as to any future plans although it has been suggested that Kiss — who Schmidt attempted to recruit on Leinster’s behalf three years ago — will be asked to stay on as defensive coach.

Kiss will take charge of the two-Test summer tour to the USA and Canada in June despite yesterday’s announcement, but it remains to be seen how much input the new boss will have on that trip given existing commitments to Leinster and others besides.

“I’d love to get along,” he said. “I do have a commitment at the end of the season to present some sessions at the Six Nations conference in Rome and that’s a long-standing commitment that I will honour.

“Apart from that I have a commitment to my kids that I will spend a couple of weeks with them. So if I delay that by a couple of weeks I don’t think they’ll complain. I don’t know if they’re that keen to spend a couple of weeks with me anyway!”

Schmidt indicated that many of his initial decisions will be made in the next four-to-six weeks, including the identity of his captain, but he spoke yesterday of lieutenants more than generals which ties in with the leadership group culture fostered at Leinster.

Yesterday was, in truth, one of celebration rather than interrogation.

The latter will come sooner or later regardless of the consensus that the right man has been appointed to the right position at the right time — it always does in this business — but Schmidt will be happy for now to get back to doing what he does best, which is coaching. The very sight of him in a suit and shirt for this unveiling was unusual. This is a man for whom tracksuits and shorts are everyday attire and it will be interesting to see how he adapts to a role that offers far less in the way of paddock time with players than he has been used to.

He recognised the altering dynamics ahead when he wraps up a third season with Leinster that may yet deliver a RaboDirect PRO12 and Amlin Challenge Cup double but it is difficult to imagine this workaholic and rugby addict adopting anything other than the hands-on role which has fostered such success at club level.

“I just want to get on the field,” he replied at the end of this half-hour briefing when asked what aspect of his new brief excited him most. “It’s what I was doing (with Leinster) this afternoon before I came here. It’s what I enjoy doing.

“I really do enjoy the aspect of hands-on coaching, working with a group of players who are looking to play they want to play. It’s one of the things about coaching, you’re a facilitator of what the players really want to achieve. That’s probably what I’d look forward to most. I do know that whatever does or doesn’t happen it won’t be for want of having rolled my sleeves up and tried to get the best people in the best places and tried to get the best out of them.”

And so it begins.