Forlorn Foley’s All Black dream is shattered

ANTHONY FOLEY must have cut a forlorn figure as he made his way down the N7 and on to Killaloe last night.

He had just been omitted from the Irish team to tackle New Zealand at Lansdowne Road on Saturday next and deprived of the opportunity of following in the footsteps of his father Brendan in forming the first father and son combination to put one over on the All Blacks.

Brendan, of course, did it for Munster in 1978; the chances now are that Anthony won’t have the chance again.

Why Foley has been overlooked isn’t all that easy to understand. He has performing with his customary honesty, commitment and skill for Munster and looked a sound bet to lead Ireland out on Saturday.

Instead, that honour has gone to Simon Easterby, who will line out at number six, with Denis Leamy taking over the number eight jersey. There is no doubting the fact that Easterby and Leamy merit their place in the side and coach Eddie O’Sullivan is right when he says they are both playing outstanding rugby at present.

However, much the same can be said of Foley who will take little solace from O’Sullivan’s comment that he would have been both number eight AND captain had Easterby failed to come through yesterday’s final fitness session at Clongowes Wood College.

Having been also omitted from the summer tour of Japan, the great hearted Shannonman must now wonder whether, at the age of 32, his days as an Irish regular are no more. Leamy’s selection at number eight is fascinating given that since his halcyon days at Rockwell College, he has almost always worn the numbers six and seven jerseys for Munster and Ireland. But he is, of course, no stranger to the number eight berth and is easily remembered for his many towering displays there in his school days when he led Rockwell to glory in the Munster Senior and Junior Cups.

The team is also interesting for several other reasons, not least the inclusion of six Ulstermen in the seven-strong replacements panel. The coach obviously believes that the days of the northern province being out in the cold where Irish team representation is concerned are numbered. And you can’t help suspecting that if Ireland lose yet again on Saturday to what is essentially a second string New Zealand side, then a number will be promoted for the clash with Australia seven days later.

For now, Ulster must settle for just one player, right wing Tommy Bowe, in the starting line-up. A native of Emyvale and the first Monaghan man to play for Ireland in more than 80 years, he has looked the part for Ulster over the past couple of years. He is fast and competitive with plenty of footballing skills but he is lacking in experience, something that cannot be said about the other winger, Anthony Horgan, who has been rewarded for recent excellent form. His strong, direct running and sturdy defence could be vital to the Irish cause on a day their rearguard faces a severe test.

The preference for Geordan Murphy over Girvan Dempsey at full-back could mean the end of the road for the Terenure man who has surprised many by bringing his tally of caps to 60 but who ironically has lost out now at a time when he is playing some of his best rugby.

Shane Byrne has struggled to hold down the number two jersey at Saracens since he made his surprise cross channel move at the age of 34. Given his shortage of playing time, O’Sullivan admitted that Byrne will probably be replaced by Rory Best at some stage of the second half, thus handing the Belfast Harlequin his first cap.

Likewise, it is unlikely that John Hayes will be asked to play the full 80 minutes, all the more so because he has been troubled by a knee injury. The fact that his replacement is Simon Best says a lot about the present lack of outstanding prop forwards in the country.

And yet another Ulsterman, Matt McCullough, will in all probability take over from Malcolm O’Kelly in the second-row after about 60 minutes on Saturday.