IRFU must do more to facilitate player migration
Joe Schmidt’s squad lead the way with 11 more points than Tony McGahan’s side which has now been relegated to fourth place. If the current rankings prevailed at the beginning of May, Munster would be travelling to the Aviva Stadium for an away semi-final, a prospect that hardly imbues even the most ardent member of the Red Army with any great deal of confidence.
Leinster may have got away with murder in beating Connacht at the Sportsground on Sunday but their talented youngsters learned more from the escape than had it been a one-sided victory. The fact Schmidt wheeled out virtual rookies for one of the most difficult assignments of the season — a holiday-time away visit to the Galway Sportsground — shows some faith. Munster attempted to pull off the same stunt against Ulster in Belfast and came badly unstuck.
It won’t be lost on the IRFU who issued their directive concerning overseas imports. Leinster have quite a few players in their ranks with little chance of making their Heineken Cup side but would be welcomed into the ranks of Munster and Ulster.
Winger/full-back Andrew Conway and centre Brendan Macken are realising their promise from school days at Blackrock and there is no doubting Rhys Ruddock and Dominic Ryan are terrific back-row forwards.
There are other similar examples of Leinster’s strength in depth. Eoin O’Malley, Fergus McFadden, Dave Kearney, Fionn Carr, Jamie Hagan, Jack McGrath, even Sean Cronin and Devin Toner, are close but by no means sure of a starting place.
You are left to wonder how long that situation will continue. If the IRFU are adamant about drastically reducing the number of foreign imports, they must encourage the movement of players within the provinces — and not all of it away from Connacht to the big three.
If Leinster were lucky in Galway, Munster never got close at Ravenhill leaving one to wonder if the strength in reserve is quite as healthy as the management had been claiming.
The forwards were so outplayed that scrum-half Duncan Williams’ job was made nigh on impossible and the reputations of several were severely damaged. Williams, who had looked the part in the first half, was afforded little or no protection in a one-sided second period and is much too talented to be judged on this game. However, with the exception of Luke O’Dea, who again shone on the right wing, many others had no such excuse.
As we head into the new year, there is no escaping the fact Leinster carry most of the aces whether it’s a case of their full-strength Heineken Cup side or when they are deprived their leading players for whatever reason in the Pro 12. Their entitlement as favourites to complete the Heineken-Rabo double come next May can hardly be questioned.
Meanwhile, it was a cinch for Declan Kidney to appoint Paul O’Connell as captain for the RBS Six Nations Championship. He already has a proud record with the Lions, Munster and Ireland and the added responsibility will not affect his performance.
Kidney’s relief at having a man of O’Connell’s stature was best reflected: “We have had a number of guys with strong leadership credentials who have always supported the captaincy. Paul has always been one of those leaders.”
That’s the easy part of Kidney’s job. From now on, it will be a different matter as he attempts to field the right team to perform on February 5 when Wales visit the Aviva for the first Six Nations encounter.
In the normal course of events, it would be a major test for Ireland but after the disappointment of the World Cup quarter-final, it means even more.
Between now and February, the battle for places in the 22-strong squad will be fierce with more than one appealing option available to Kidney in just about every position with the exception of tight and loose head prop. Not that he’ll be complaining.
