Ronan O'Gara: Suddenly, Jack Crowley is Ireland’s north star again
STAIRWAY TO HEAVEN: Ireland's Jack Crowley Tadhg Furlong at Dublin Airport prior to their departure to London for the Six Nations match against England. Pic: Brendan Moran/Sportsfile
CRITIQUES are harsher, not by nature, by reality. I watched that Italy test match back and there were aching signs of a young lad all at sea.
There are minimum test standards. I know what it’s like to be out there, stripped of belief and self-worth. I lost my confidence after 100 caps, but I had a pretty long career for ballast at a bad time. Sam Prendergast doesn’t have that sub-floor. He’s lost his bearings early and Ireland management has done him and his future a long-term favour by removing Sam from the cauldron of test rugby. Management hands are all over this. They need to be. There are discussions: what’s the best course to right this ship, intervention or brazen it out? When even the simple decision are complicated, extraction is the only remedy.
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