Ireland’s rugby jigsaw falling into place

Joe Schmidt’s elevation to the post of Ireland head coach was lost a little in the inevitable hype that surrounds the announcement of a Lions squad last week.

The selection of nine Irish Lions underlines the relative strength of the game in this country and only serves to highlight that our lowly finish in this season’s Six Nations championship was due as much to the unprecedented injury travails that followed the squad throughout the tournament as any shortcomings in ability.

The universal approval that has accompanied Schmidt’s appointment is not only a vote of confidence in his ability to deliver but also an indication of the excitement his specific coaching skills can bring to the table. The one constant to follow Schmidt throughout his coaching career is that all the sides playing under his direction — be it Bay of Plenty, Auckland Blues, Clermont-Auvergne or Leinster — have all been great teams to watch. The structure and invention he has brought to the attacking side of those culturally different outfits has created a buzz about the potential for Ireland.