Grand Slam glory now a distant memory as coach falls foul of stats

Yesterday’s statement by the IRFU thanked Declan Kidney’s “unquestionable commitment, passion, professionalism and success he has delivered to Irish Rugby to date”.

That wording might seem odd, perhaps, given Kidney took charge of 53 test matches for Ireland, winning 27 — a 51% win rate.

But as the coals of the 2013 Six Nations are raked over it’s probably worth having a wander back through the record books to recall just how successful Kidney had been in his coaching career up until relatively recently.