BRENDAN O’BRIEN: Wait may be over but Madigan not laughing yet
Headlines such as ‘Madigan awaits Ireland’s call’ were begging to be written but little could anyone know just how fitting the pictures would actually prove to be just hours later when news emerged that the out-half had been offered a belated squad role at Carton House.
All’s well that ends well? Maybe not. Madigan will surely play a good deal of rugby for his country at some point but the fact that it took Dave McSharry’s niggling groin for the 23-year-old to be summoned in a week when Jonathan Sexton is unavailable remains an apposite point.
Madigan had his supporters in the race to understudy Sexton with Ireland as he has done at Leinster long before the senior man did his hamstring against England last Sunday week and his place behind Ronan O’Gara and Ulster’s Paddy Jackson in the queue remains a bone of contention for many.
Whatever about the debate as to whether trust should be placed in O’Gara‘s experience or youth given its head, Madigan’s supporters have been keen to point to their man’s credentials when it comes to comparing the next generation of 10s on the cusp of the senior scene.
Madigan, after all, has played more senior games for his province than Jackson, or Ian Keatley with Munster. He has featured in more Heineken Cup games (though less as a starter) than the 21-year old Ulsterman and he has scored five times more tries — 15 to his colleague’s three — to date.
Where his claims fall down somewhat is in his status behind Sexton as number two out-half at Leinster whereas Jackson has been afforded the lead role at 10 for the northern province ever since usurping Ian Humphreys late last season — even if Ruan Pienaar is very much the senior partner.
“Obviously he has sat in behind Jonny on occasion but he’s started at out-half in Heineken Cup games,” said Leinster’s assistant coach Richie Murphy, who was speaking to the media at the team’s UCD base right about the time the player was checking his mobile yards away.
“He’s come on in big games and taken over as well. Last year, he came on in the Munster game with about 25-30 minutes to go and saw us through down there. He’s started in the Heineken Cup last season when Jonny took a few knocks. He has been our number two and maybe that’s something that is holding him back.”
With Sexton moving on to France, it may be that Madigan is afforded greater opportunity to test himself as a starting out-half in the bigger Pro12 and European encounters. Murphy was keen to point out that he won’t be the only 10 on the books post-summer although he was effusive in his praise for a player who has made considerable strides.
“It’s about consistency for Ian. From his point of view, it’s a case of more of the same and keep putting pressure on the guys in front of him. We’re very happy with him. Ian knows there’s parts of his game that he needs to improve. He’s definitely going in the right direction.
“We try to push all our players towards that Ireland set-up,” Murphy added subsequently. “You guys have been writing about it, people are a little surprised he isn’t in the panel. For Ian, he needs to get his head back down and do the job that he’s doing for us. If he does that, he’ll keep pushing and knocking on that door. And one day it will open.”
Murphy was reluctant to break coach-player confidence when asked which specific aspects of Madigan’s game needed to improve but he did point out that his place-kicking had shown signs of improvement.
The Blackrock graduate has nailed 14 of his last 15 shots on goal for Leinster and expanded his education with a stint at full-back but, if anything, yesterday’s call-up only reinforced the fact that the patience he has shown in biding his time at provincial level will be required once again whilst on national duty.
