Steady hand on the tiller

Declan Colley talks to coach Graham Steadman, who is confident of smart play by Munster tonight.

MUNSTER’S defensive coach Graham Steadman, ‘Steady’ to fellow coaches and players, is in the throes of experiencing exactly what it is like to leap from the frying pan into the fire.

Last week he was an integral part of the Great Britain team which so disappointingly lost form and confidence in the final of Rugby League’s Tri-Nations tournament on the back of a heart-rending 44-4 defeat to Australia at Elland Road.

Tonight, as the defensive coach to Munster, he is part of the backroom team at the seething cauldron of the Stade Pierre Antoine trying to fashion a victory, which will be key to their qualifying from Pool 4 for the knock-out stages of the Heineken Cup.

But despite his ‘time out’ from Munster to be with the GB team, the former Castleford Tigers star player and coach has been keeping an eye on his charges and their performances in the Celtic League. He has been impressed not only with what they have achieved in that competition, but with practically everything he has seen since he came to Munster at the start of the season, on the recommendation of former League colleague and Irish defensive coach, Mike Ford.

“They’ve been very receptive to the work I’ve put in and while you can tell them things ‘til you’re blue in the face, it’s only once they cross the white line and actually go and do it that you know it is working,” Steadman says.

And recently, he feels, things have been looking even better.

“As a defensive unit I’ve been very impressed with what they’ve been doing and in recent weeks in particular their scramble defence has been very impressive. To nail any team on a wide expansive field, as was the case against Edinburgh at Murrayfield last week, is testament to the work they’ve been putting in,” he says.

“And long may it continue because this is a massive game for everyone concerned against a quality French side down in Castres. We know that defence will be the platform for our success and we’ve got to be on top of our game and take it to another level.

“I don’t want to sound disrespectful to the Celtic League, but you look at the French league and you can see that their level of intensity on a weekly basis is far greater than we are performing at in the Celtic League. But, we have a bonus in that our internationals are coming back from three big successes against South Africa, America and Argentina, and their confidence is sky-high. We know we are going to have to be at our best to get a result.”

Steadman watched their recent games against Biarritz and Toulouse (both victories) and reckons Castres are dynamic up front with their front three, while their back row is also very mobile. He was also very impressed with their scrum-half (Alexander Albouy) who he says has great vision and is capable of “great deception.”

The bottom line, therefore, is that Munster are going to be asked a lot of questions. The answer to these questions is simple, Steadman feels.

“What we’ve got to do is work together as a unit and not get over-excited, or not get drawn into any intimidating tactics they may present.

“We’ve got to play smart, controlled defensive rugby and off the back of that we have quality defensive players in our ranks and we can ask questions of them as a result. We’ve isolated certain aspects of their defence we think we can break down.

“I feel the game is going to be won and lost upfront - as it is week in, week out - but if we can dominate their tight six, because they do play a lot of ball around ruck and maul situations, we can do damage.

“If they penetrate though, they will cause us problems, so all we can do is get up there and negate any threat.

“If we do not, then their nine and 10, who are quality footballers, will make us pay. On top of that their right wing Brad Fleming is very pacy and an outstanding full back in Ugo Mola.

“But having said that, having done our homework, there is every reason we can be quietly confident - not only physically, but mentally.”

Getting back to his recent rugby league experiences, where he was an assistant coach to Brian Noble, Steadman said for four weeks their progress in Tri-Nations was looking promising - until they got to the final.

“Yes,” he muses, “we came down to earth with a tremendous bang against a quality Australian side as a result of an inept performance and really it was not what we expected on the day.”

One of the heroes of the GB team throughout the series - and by common consent one of the few to come out of the final with reputation intact - is Irishman Brian Carney from Valleymount in Co Wicklow, and Steadman, understandably, is a big fan.

He thinks Carney has the potential to make the switch to rugby union and to be a big star for Ireland.

“Brian is a quality footballer, but whether he plays union or league is up to him. At present he’s playing league with Wigan and Great Britain and I believe that himself and Martin Gleeson were the stars of the Tri-Nations series as the centre-wing combination on the right side of our attack.

“But to get Brian Carney into union will involve a massive effort from everyone involved over here.”

Asked if he was involved in the IRFU decision-making process, would he recommend they chase Carney, Steadman is unequivocal. “Without question,” is the unhesitating answer. “He is a quality footballer and I don’t think they have that much depth when it comes to wingers.”

Coming back to Munster and his renewed involvement this week after six weeks “on GB duty” Steadman says he has not actually been away at all.

“I’ve been in contact with Alan and Brian on a regular basis and I’ve got tapes of every game, so I’ve been able to pick out the individuals who’ve needed my assistance in defensive work. But I’ve not really been away because I’ve had general feedback on a week-by-week basis, so there has been continuity there for me and I know who’s been playing well and I know who needs a pat on the back and who needs to be sat down on a one-on-one basis with a view to improving his game.”

So, going into a white heat of a Heineken Cup game in France, what are his tactical priorities? “Quite simply we cannot afford any minor hiccups because if we allow them through our front-line defence, they will penetrate and they will hurt us. But there is no reason why we cannot come away from Castres with what a lot of people believe will be a surprise result.”

Obviously the ‘bear-bating’ antics of Castres and Argentina hooker Mario Ledesma after the Pumas defeat in Dublin last week has heightened fears of an unduly physical encounter tonight, but Steadman has carefully chosen words of caution for his charges.

“I think our players have to look to their self-discipline and keep their emotions under check and not to get involved in anything which will be detrimental to the team, Whatever intimidatory factors they put up to us, we have got to be smart enough to absorb that, play controlled football and hurt them where it hurts most - on the scoreboard.”

Playing smart is part and parcel of any good team and Graham Steadman has been involved in enough of them - across both codes - to know the benefits of smart play.

He may not have got it from the GB side last weekend, but he is confident he will from Munster tonight.