Bradley building on a dream for Edinburgh
THE ability of a relatively unknown Irishman to strike an historic first for Scottish rugby has become one of the big puzzles of the season in Caledonia.
Bradley was on a hiding to nothing when he pitched up at Edinburgh last summer. The capital side had finished fourth and then second in the old Magners League under Andy Robinson before the Englishman moved onto the top job with the national team in summer 2009, and one of the most popular of Scottish coaches, Rob Moffat, took charge.
Moffat set out to rebuild an Edinburgh squad that played some great rugby on their day, but endured more rainy days than sunny ones. Edinburgh slipped to fifth in the league, missing the play-offs by four points, and despite Moffat insisting that he was succeeding with his priority of bringing through fresh Scottish talent, just six months into his second season he was given the chop, with Robinson acting alongside SRU chief executive Gordon McKie in calling time on a man who coached at every level, and every pro team, in the Scottish game.
McKie stated that he wanted someone with a bigger and better reputation than Moffat, and he took four months before unveiling Bradley.
The coach of Connacht ? Perennial basement battlers? Bigger and better reputation?
The fact that he has not taken to the rugby media — he is polite and communicative, but his face at press conferences suggests he’d be more comfortable lying on a bed of nails — means he has failed to form any real profile in the Scottish rugby community. Supporters were impressed by his pre-match chat at a business function before Edinburgh snatched victory in a stunning 48-47 Heineken Cup victory over Racing Metro, and in that one game his standing grew immeasurably.
In that competition his first year success now hinges. The historic nature of Murrayfield welcoming over 30,000 fans for the visit of Toulouse tomorrow — the team struggles to top 5,000 for a big league match, and averages 3,000 — will ensure that whatever happens, he comes out on the positive. With Edinburgh second bottom in the Pro12, the European campaign has been a huge bonus for Bradley.
Still, there is the dichotomy, the great European form in six games and rubbish league form in many more. So what had the Irishman brought? Bradley finds it interminably difficult to talk about himself, this boy of Cork who grew up as a keen footballer and only made the decision to take rugby seriously at the age of 16 when things heated up at Presentation Brothers College.
By 17 he was touring Australia with an Ireland U17/U18 select and he would go on to win 40 caps for Ireland, winning a Triple Crown in his first season. Bradley recalls being advised as a keen young coach to cut his teeth in the youth game, and believes it was wise counsel as he was able to develop players who listened and improved, rather than senior players “who listen, take 50 minutes to debate it and probably never do what you say anyway”.
The young coach impressed and was given roles with Ireland U21s and the Ireland A side, and then named head coach at Connacht.
He left the Connacht for an IRB post with Georgia where he met former Scotland coach Richie Dixon. Dixon pointed him to the vacant Edinburgh role and Bradley admits he was attracted to the challenge of taking on a team taken seriously in its own country. He says: “Edinburgh Rugby now as a brand is very strong. My view is that Edinburgh has underachieved and so I would like to get the team to a stage where it is achieving its potential.”
There are problems at Edinburgh though. The squad is essentially split between a quality outfit at full-strength gaining in confidence and, without them, one of struggling journeymen and potential internationalists taking their first pro steps.
Player budgets were cut from 2009-11, but under new SRU chief Mark Dodson they have been increased to £4.2m (€5m), equivalent to Aviva Premiership figures, for next season, and once the European run ends Bradley expects to announce as many as six or seven new faces and more than that heading out. He is striving to create a much-needed culture at the club, exhorting the players to take real pride in wearing the Edinburgh jersey and ‘doing it for your family, friends and supporters’.
Scottish rugby is used to brief moments of delight — remember Croke Park, 2010? — amid brain-numbing inconsistency so Bradley’s ability to make a difference will not be determined this weekend.
* David Ferguson is chief rugby writer with The Scotsman
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