Why Lowe hopes South Africa can defy the odds

James Lowe is not yet eligible to play for Ireland, but his thoughts on the World Cup final suggest he’ll fit right in.

“I don’t like the English, you know,” Lowe said, with that trademark twinkle in his eye.

“Since coming over here it seems to be a common theme among many Irish people... I hope South Africa do win, I’m a little bit biased obviously, but it’s going to be some ask.”

The New Zealand born Leinster flyer could be forgiven for being a bit ticked off after watching England beat the All Blacks last weekend, but that would not be completely accurate.

While the Kiwis back home were watching a possible third World Cup title go down the pipes, Lowe was out shopping in Dublin. Yes, shopping.

“I’m not a big rugby watcher,” Lowe said, “if you do it 24/7...yeah it’s interesting and I was intrigued by the result, I watched a lot of highlights, but I was buying a washing machine at the time of the game and watched the second half in an electrical store.”

Lowe was obviously more interested in spin cycles than World Cup cycles but the 27-year-old could become more interested later this year if and when he’s called into Andy Farrell’s Ireland squad.

A former Maori All Black, Lowe came close to making a full All Blacks debut in 2015 only for a shoulder injury to interfere, influencing his eventual decision to move to Ireland less than two years later.

He will become eligible for selection in 2020, and will be paying close attention to what Farrell and company do in the aftermath of Joe Schmidt’s departure.

“That’s the question, isn’t it, we’re all trying to figure it out,” Lowe said.

“The core of that team will stay together, there’s a lot of talk about who will be the next captain etc... I don’t know, we’ll have to wait and see how the new coaching team assembles it.

They played so well against Scotland, it’s such a shame how they bowed out, obviously for Rory [Best], Joe, Greg Feek – men who’ve given so much to Irish rugby, but on the day, they just got spanked by a very good New Zealand side.

“That’s how they all felt as well [Leinster’s Ireland players] – when they came back, it was just ‘on the day, everything stuck for them, and we couldn’t catch a cold’.

“It’s just what happens, it’s rugby.”

Lowe fits Leinster’s playing style like a glove, and one wonders how easily he’d have fit into Schmidt’s Ireland. But that’s moot now, and the winger hopes there’s room for a maverick like him in Farrell’s set-up.

“I was coming here to fit into this team, not to try and shake things up and make them play how I want them to play, I do that, it’s just me,” he said.

“I’m going to work off my wing, do some weird stuff every now and then and hope it comes off. But you need that, to be able to adapt on the run.

"That’s literally it, you can be big, strong, fast, but if you’re out there making the wrong decisions you’re not going to get picked in the big games. I still think there’s room for that free spirit.”

Simon Zebo might disagree, but the decisions are now Farrell’s to make and the coming months will tell a lot about Ireland’s plans for the next World Cup.

Lowe will be 31 by the time the 2023 edition comes around, and he’s excited to see how the national team will evolve over the next four years.

“The game’s ever evolving, teams are always trying out different things to see what works,” he said. “New Zealand picked Ireland apart, they knew what was coming because nothing had changed.

“Ireland played so well when everything stuck in the Aviva in November, but New Zealand saw that.

They kicked them apart early with a couple of crossfield kicks and then all of a sudden as a winger you’re thinking ‘shite, am I going to sprint up here and try and smack someone, or will they put it over my head?’

“That puts doubts in Rob’s (Kearney) mind, and then all of a sudden, they throw a skip ball, Garry (Ringrose) shoots up and they just play it out the back and pick them apart that way – that’s footy, that’s what you try to do. New Zealand managed to do that very well.

“A shake up...who knows what’s going to happen? It’ll be interesting to see.”

One things for sure, Lowe won’t be watching it in an electrical store.