Ronan O’Gara: Players, coaches will like the idea of being big in Japan. Me? Not so much

I love Japan as a country, but I think I will be in La Rochelle for the foreseeable future

Fri, 22 Jan, 2021 - 06:00

As Michael Corleone told us: “It’s not personal Sonny, it’s strictly business.”

There was plenty of salty messages from Munster red bloods after last week’s column. Like I was tearing at the fabric of Munster rugby by expressing an interest in signing a potent young talent in Jack Crowley.

Professional sport doesn’t quite work like that. There’s a bright prospect I am aware of who’s not playing regularly at his club through no fault of his own, who I thought we could develop under the radar into a starting 10 for La Rochelle within two years. What’s not to like?

The fact is there’s a big of a logjam at out-half in Munster, and clubs can see that. In terms of the depth of options at out-half, so much depends on Joey Carbery and his readiness to return in the short to medium term.

Most clubs have their business — such as it is with the financial straitjacket of Covid — done for next season. Carbery’s wellbeing will probably have a material influence on the future in the province of JJ Hanrahan, for instance. It’s one of several subplots to tomorrow’s game against Leinster at Thomond Park.

With the cancellation of the last two rounds of the Champions Cup and the knockout phase reduced to one game instead of over two-legs, the big-stage platforms to make a case for a contract renewal are limited outside the Six Nations.

Hanrahan put the conversation back in the melting pot with his Champions Cup performance in Clermont. If he backs that up with another commanding performance against Leinster, is Munster management thinking ‘this lad is a late bloomer, he’s maturing well and it would be counter-productive to get rid of him’. (This all presumes he starts, of course).

If Carbery can’t prove his durability, Munster aren’t going into a new campaign with Ben Healy and Crowley as their 10s, no matter how promising they are. Was Clermont a one-off for JJ? Now is his time to prove it one way or the other. It’s not personal, it’s strictly business.

There was plenty of curious chatter in the professional sphere this week on the announcement of interesting new rugby structures in Japan. Twenty-five teams will compete in a new three-division league format from next year that has the look down the road of a World League about it. There’s a bit of a shift going on towards that side of the world, and it’s more accessible from New Zealand. One would imagine there will be a nice bit of sushi on offer, so it might not be a bad option for some players and coaches.

Me? I love Japan as a country, but I think I will be in La Rochelle for the foreseeable future. The reason for that should never be underestimated when you are making rugby decisions — everyone else in this house loves it here. That’s six against one.

The lockdowns give you pause, a moment to stop and smell the air around you. Maybe it’s an age thing too with a greater accent on mindfulness. In Christchurch, we savoured the walks in the hills, the outdoor activity, the vast areas of mountainous terrain to get lost in. Think the Old Head of Kinsale or parts of West Cork.

We live in the gorgeous island community of Ile de Ré off La Rochelle, and I am getting better at appreciating, savouring that. I read about the Brid Stack injury in Adelaide, I see my own youngest in hospital after a fall in the school yard, and you quickly learn that you can’t just compartmentalise the professional and the personal sides of your life. One complements the other.

The Japan thing would be a very interesting proposal but my future is closer to home. When so much else right now is uncertain, having that morsel of certainty is not bad thing.

La Rochelle entertain Bayonne tonight. Where once coaches had to contend with return-to-play protocols, now it’s Covid restrictions. I am nearly as unsure of our starters as I am of Leinster’s! We only had nine backs on the pitch for training this week, so the likelihood is that we will have to go with a forward-dominated bench tonight.

It was never said, but I believe Covid was a factor under-acknowledged in Racing’s European Cup final defeat to Exeter. A lot of the Racing players had recovered from the virus, but struggled badly in the last 20. The data supports that. Covid hits the system quite hard.

Asymptomatic players feel fine until they resume a first bit of exercise after isolation. They are devoid of energy, nowhere near their regular times.

Plan B

We don’t have a Plan B at the moment because it (the Academy )is shut down completely. We are also a bit sore that Will Skelton copped a four-match ban as opposed to a four-week ban for being sent off in December against Montpellier. It means almost a month later, he still has three games to serve.

On the basis that Munster and Leinster have the majority of their squad available — there will always be absentees in rugby — any proper examination indicates that Leinster can be decreed as the better rugby team with any certainty. Their reservoir of confidence may well see them expect to win tomorrow in Limerick, but Munster voices are a little bolder than they’ve been for a while. With good reason. Munster sniff an opportunity. Ever since September’s Champions Cup quarter-final defeat to Saracens, it’s ‘hmm, there’s opportunities against this side’.

It’s over two years since Munster actually defeated Leo Cullen’s men. There’s no changing of the guard with a home win tomorrow, but Munster have to be putting Leinster into reverse sooner rather than later, surely?

I love watching Caelan Doris play. I know Gavin Coombes is simmering nicely in the Munster back row but 22-year-old Doris looks exceptional for his age with that gift of seemingly having time on the ball even when he is in crowned spaces. A real star in the making for Ireland with a view to 2023.

In terms of meaningful trials, tomorrow is as genuine as it will get for Andy Farrell, Mike Catt, and Paul O’Connell. The latter will have Tadhg Beirne in his eyeline. The second-row competition should be of the highest quality. Remember RG Snyman could be back in late March, early April.

In this strangest of seasons, that might just be perfect timing.