'Playing international is the dream': Nankivell keen to extend Munster stay and opens door to Ireland call

Alex Nankivell is just two more seasons away from qualifying for Ireland via the World Rugby five-year residency rule.

Alex Nankivell in full flow during Munster training. Pic: INPHO/Ben Brady

Munster’s season had wrapped a good month when Alex Nankivell turned out for the Barbarians against South Africa at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in June.

The Springboks cantered away to an 80-31 win, scoring 12 tries in the process, and Nankivell still winces at the memories of what the world champions’ pack was able to do to a side so hastily assembled.

The same goes for the Baa Baas’ defence.

It was, despite that, a memorable experience for the centre: a chance to turn out for a representative side of huge renown, and to make connections with players that have lasted much longer than the one week they spent together.

“Like, I still talk to a lot of them even now,” he said before Friday’s pre-season friendly against Leicester Tigers in Cork. “I was just messaging one of the other boys who plays at Castres, the Uruguayan scrum-half, Santiago [Arata]. So that's pretty special in itself.” 

He already knew Lachlan Bosher, now of Panasonic Knights in Japan, but a man he had played with at the Chiefs. And he’d faced Harry Plummer, now of Clermont Auvergne, plenty of times during their days in Super Rugby.

Cultural backgrounds helped him click with some of the Aussies on board: Andrew Kellaway, Izack Rodda, Lukhan Salakaia-Loto. Faf de Klerk he describes as simply “a legend”, and then there was Virimi Vakatawa.

Nankivell’s interest in rugby is total. 

He watches it incessantly on weekends and around games. French, URC, Super Rugby, all of it. 

Vakatawa was a man he had watched closely growing up. Playing on the same side was a “pinch me” moment.

“They were all great lads. I could name another 10 probably.” 

Nankivell’s representative days had, until then, been limited to five appearances with the All Blacks and a handful of goes with the All Blacks XVs side. 

Falling short of Test honours was one of the spurs for upping sticks and making for Europe.

The irony now is that he is just two more seasons away from qualifying for Ireland via the World Rugby five-year residency rule. For that to happen, he would need to stay on with Munster, or another province, beyond the end of a deal that ends next summer.

Ireland’s current crop of centres is mostly on the wrong side of 30 but he would be 31 going on 32 himself were he to qualify in 2027. Not ideal, but stranger things have happened. For now, though, his focus has to be more local.

“My dreams could come true effectively and play international rugby. So yeah, that'd be amazing. Obviously, there's the business side of it too, coming off contract and Munster, where they see me and what have you, but so far, it's been pretty positive.

“So, I would love to stay here at Munster, and that's the ultimate. Obviously then the international stuff is the cherry on top because staying at Munster means I’ll qualify to play for Ireland, and playing international is the dream. So it kind of works in tandem, really.” 

Nankivell had a brilliant first season with Munster, ending it on the URC Elite XV. His second was interrupted by injury but he rates last term as one of the best he has put in yet as a professional and he puts that down to a mental shift.

He’s the first to admit that he was a tad grumpy in-game, quick to feel frustrated with a teammate at times, but he committed to a deep dive on “why am I such a p***k” on the pitch and totally different off it. 

He decided to be more of a calming voice.

Munster have a lot of young players in the squad and they will be leaning heavily on some of those this season. Among them will be the young 10s, Tom Wood and Charlie O’Shea, the latter starting at out-half against the Tigers.

“The two guys I'm a little bit in awe of because I wish at that age I was as confident as them to come into a team, maybe one or two years out of school, and be as confident as they are to actually drive the team around the park. So I'm very impressed that way.

“They're confident, they back themselves, which is great, and they're both really talented players at just playing rugby, playing what's in front, using their skills, using their strengths within our game.” That suits where he is at himself.

Nankivell looked at the stats last season and saw he might have kicked the ball three times. He played ten when he was younger and wants to be more of a triple threat in the midfield and lean into what he thinks will be a Munster shift to a “freer” style of attack.

Clayton McMillan has said as much already and Nankivell has already noticed how his former Chiefs boss is beginning to layer on more of his own stamp after taking stock of everything over the course of his first year in charge.

“You'll probably see in the way we play this year, there'll be a few differences, particularly in the attack. So you can definitely see his influence coming out, but then also having those other guys like Mossy [Lawler] and Jared [Payne as attack coaches] “They're having their own roles and driving their stuff as well. It's all kind of on the same page, and it's really exciting. We've had a good preseason. I guess everyone says that, but it's refreshing as well to be playing a little bit differently to how we have in the past.”