Alan Quinlan: 'Jack Crowley is a player I would loved to have played with as a 10'
In attendance at Virgin Media Park in Cork ahead of VMTV’s coverage of the 2024 Six Nations, is Alan Quinlan.
Stay loose, enjoy the game and do not over-reach. That is the advice of Alan Quinlan for the Ireland call-ups looking to impress in this weekend’s final round of Champions Cup pool matches.
Andy Farrell may have picked a settled squad for Ireland’s Guinness Six Nations title defence, which gets underway in 13 days against France in Marseille, but two major vacancies will need filling for the trip to the Velodrome with fly-half Johnny Sexton retired and influential right wing Mack Hansen injured.
Munster have genuine candidates for both roles with one-cap Ireland wing Calvin Nash and more-established fly-half Jack Crowley set to start against Northampton Saints at Thomond Park tonight and former Heineken Cup winner Quinlan warned them of the potential pitfalls of trying too hard to make an impact for the national team coaches ahead of next week’s training camp in Portugal.
“It’s difficult. It’s a tricky position because if you go out and force stuff and try and come up with something special, mistakes can happen,” Quinlan said as he looked forward to Virgin Media’s Six Nations coverage.
“I don’t think Calvin Nash is that kind of a player anyway. He’s one of these people that goes 100 per cent every time when he runs, carries, tackles. His game has improved dramatically and I don’t mean that before Mike Prendergast came on board that Calvin Nash was a poor player, I think the current coaching regime have got so much more out of Calvin Nash, and Shane Daly.
“We saw the impact of both of them last year, coming in off their wings, being ball players, popping up and getting the ball in their hands and I think Calvin Nash, rightly so, is in an Irish squad. Even if there wasn’t the injuries there would be an argument that he would have been very close anyway.” Quinlan pointed to one major potential spanner in the works for Nash.
“The problem he has is Jordan Larmour. He’s a special player as well and when he came on the scene a number of years ago people were mesmerised by his ability. He hasn’t lost that ability, he’s had a couple of injuries and maybe needs a little bit of confidence, who knows, but he’s still a very special player and he showed at the weekend that footwork, that evasive ability he has.
“Maybe some issues under the high ball in the last couple of years, you know, he’s played full-back a number of times struggled a little bit there but he’s an out and out finisher, he’s incredible speed, strength, power.
“So they are two very dynamic players in the sense that they’re non-stop, they’re all go and if I was coaching either of them or if I was involved with either team if I was a team-mate I’d be saying to them ‘just relax, enjoy it, do the basics really well’.
“Sometimes the basics are, you know, in games like this you can be remembered for a brilliant break or try or something, what’s a worse situation for a player like this is if you make a big mistake, like miss a tackle you should have made or throw a stupid pass. So that comes down to just doing the basics really well and enjoying it.
“Maybe the pressure is off a little bit. Calvin Nash and Jordan Larmour are in the squad, they’ll still get a chance to impress in training in the camp next week when they go to Portugal. Hopefully it will have a positive effect on both players and they can get their mojo back playing for Ireland, particularly for Jordan Larmour to play for Ireland but for Calvin Nash this is a wonderful opportunity as well.” So too Crowley, whose man of the match performance at Toulon on his 24th birthday last Saturday has put the Corkman in pole position to succeed Sexton at number 10 for Ireland, Quinlan feels.
“I love his drive and his desire and he’s a player I would have loved to have played with as a 10. There’s a couple of mistakes in there, there’s certain things he needs to iron out, some of the tactical kicking and maybe decision-making at times but he’s still a very young player.
“I think he’s been handed the keys now to go through the door. He’s the frontrunner to start for Ireland and I’d be amazed if he doesn’t start that first game but Ciaran Frawley is someone that’s a really good option as well. Harry Byrne, we haven’t seen a lot of him, we know he’s undoubtedly talented but I think Jack Crowley is someone who’s going to start in Marseille.”
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