Andrew Conway: Joe Schmidt the ideal choice to take over as Australia head coach

Former Ireland boss Schmidt will succeed Eddie Jones as Australia boss up to at least the 2025 British & Irish Lions tour Down Under.

GO JOE: Virgin Media Park ambassador Andrew Conway. Photo by Brendan Moran/Sportsfile

Andrew Conway believes Joe Schmidt is the ideal choice to turn Australia’s fortunes around following his appointment as Wallabies head coach.

Former Ireland boss Schmidt, who was named World Rugby coach of the year in 2018 after delivering a Six Nations Grand Slam for his third championship title in six years with the IRFU, will succeed Eddie Jones as Australia boss up to at least the 2025 British & Irish Lions tour Down Under.

That sets up an intriguing head-to-head with his former Ireland defence coach Andy Farrell, his successor as Irish boss and newly appointed Lions head coach for 2025.

Former Munster wing Conway, who was forced to retire earlier this season at the age of 32 due to a persistent knee injury, earned the first of 30 Ireland caps under Schmidt and was a try scorer in the 2018 series victory over the Wallabies.

Speaking as a Virgin Media ambassador, Conway said: “It’s interesting. Joe is an incredible coach. He is someone who I learned a whole lot from, about the standards I expect from myself, the standards you expect of those around you.

“I think if you look back on Joe’s time with Ireland it was unbelievably successful. The fact it ended on a bad note with a poor World Cup, it kind of changes the narrative when you got to look at the whole picture. The World Cup is the pinnacle but I think it’s unfair to hone in on that as much as we all do.

“I have no doubt going into an Australian team, who are in a bad place to say the least, and I’m sure the players and management would be the first to say that, I don’t think you could get anyone better to go in and really find out what's going on there, start building over the next few years, and probably targeting the World Cup in 2027, the Lions tour will come around pretty quickly too.

“Rugby can change in half a season. We have seen it with Rassie (Erasmus) going back to South Africa, how he did in the 2019 World Cup. So when you have the right leader who understands how to put the right people in positions to excel, they have talented players down there, no doubt about it.

“They were just in a bit of a rut and probably made some poor decisions. So I’ll be very excited to watch on and see how he does.

“I think Joe is a great character to have in rugby, it's great to have him back. He will be front and centre. It’s brilliant for someone like me watching on, guys who I have been lucky enough to have been coached by, with Faz, Joe, Rassie, Jacques Nienaber, Felix (Jones) now in England.

“There are some amazing coaches out there I have been blessed to work with, it’s going to be brilliant to see them go up against each other over the next few years.”