Warren Gatland's thoughts on Ireland in 2019

Richie_Rich89

Interesting to hear a top coach from outside the system's take on it.

https://extra.ie/2019/11/14/sport/rugby/warren-gatlands-scathing-review-of-joe-schmidts-final-year-with-ireland

Full text of article:

Warren Gatland was a great man for butting heads with his opposite number in the build up to game, he even clashed Eddie Jones before the World Cup final he had no part in.

The former Ireland coach has looked back on Joe Schmidt’s final year in charge, with both men departing their coaching roles, and hasn’t been too kind to his fellow Kiwi.

Gatland points to three big issues for the Irish team: egos, players past their peek (sic) and his ability to get under Joe Schmidt’s skin.

Speaking to Off the ball, Gatland said ‘Joe Schmidt seems to get more wound up the week Ireland are playing Wales, because if I say anything it absolutely drives him crazy.

‘It does bother Joe. He might deny that, but people within the Irish camp are telling me: ‘Please don’t say anything this week, because Joe will go mental about any comments you make’.’

Gatland also believes Schmidt should have given some new players more of a chance in the World Cup when it mattered.

‘I’m not on the inside, but looking from the outside in and the only question I would ask is had two or three of those players, who had been brilliant over the years, gone a little bit past it?

‘Was there one or two younger players who, if they’d been given the opportunity, could have been stars?’

And the one time coach of the green army said that Ireland’s egos got in their way when it came to executing their game plan over the last 12 months.

‘It was hard to play against (Ireland and their tactics), hard to stop. They played very direct, a lot of stuff off 9. When we played Ireland the biggest thing we spoke about was keeping discipline, try not to give away penalties because they kick for the corner, they had the ability to keep the ball in your ’22 for phase after phase, it was difficult to get off.

‘That’s hard to stop and sometimes what happened, and it could have been me or Eddie Jones, you could talk Ireland out of playing that way.

‘Egos would get the better of Ireland, they’d try and play a different way and be more expansive. They sometimes did (change) to their detriment. Look at England, (defence coach) John Mitchell came out and said before the first game of the Six Nations and said ‘We can’t let Ireland bore us to death’.

‘I think Ireland tried a few things and realised ‘we know what works for us’. But the thing with Ireland, when we had our success against Ireland, we went in thinking discipline was really important, stopping that go-forward from No 9, and then if you did that what do they have to go to?’

Podge_irl

Richie_Rich89 wrote: »

He might deny that, but people within the Irish camp are telling me: ‘Please don’t say anything this week, because Joe will go mental about any comments you make’.’

Yeah, I don't believe this for a second. It doesn't hold up to even the mildest element of scrutiny. He expects us to believe that people in the Irish camp were telling him "please don't do this thing that will impact the coach and make us more likely to lose".

Vinnie222

Podge_irl wrote: »

Yeah, I don't believe this for a second. It doesn't hold up to even the mildest element of scrutiny. He expects us to believe that people in the Irish camp were telling him "please don't do this thing that will impact the coach and make us more likely to lose".

I say it was a Tongue in cheek comment

Clegg

Gatland also name checked Ryan, Ringrose, Larmour and Conway as Irish players he's really impressed by. Expect these lads to be in the Lions if they continue their good form.

He's a very straightforward coach in that if he thinks you're up for it he'll select you. That sounds pretty obvious, but with Lions tours there's politics at play as well. He doesn't go in for that at all it seems. He didn't think there were many Scottish players that we're better, or even as good as their contemporaries in Ireland, England or Wales. So he selected accordingly. Git a lot of abuse for it too. But he wasn't wrong.

DelBoy Trotter

Clegg wrote: »

Gatland also name checked Ryan, Ringrose, Larmour and Conway as Irish players he's really impressed by. Expect these lads to be in the Lions if they continue their good form.

It wasn't Conway he name checked, it was Carbery

whatawaster

DelBoy Trotter wrote: »

It wasn't Conway he name checked, it was Carbery

He mentioned both

It was a very good interview, Gatland came across very well

DelBoy Trotter

whatawaster wrote: »

He mentioned both

It was a very good interview, Gatland came across very well

I didn't hear him name Conway at all, maybe I missed it

Podge_irl

Vinnie222 wrote: »

I say it was a Tongue in cheek comment

I'd say it was a lie, to give it its proper name.

He makes some interesting points actually, particularly with his view on Ireland's playing style going massively against the overriding opinion here. He really can't help himself with the odd unnecessary dig comment though.

Buer

Podge_irl wrote: »

Yeah, I don't believe this for a second. It doesn't hold up to even the mildest element of scrutiny. He expects us to believe that people in the Irish camp were telling him "please don't do this thing that will impact the coach and make us more likely to lose".

The comments in writing don't come across the way he intended. It was an excellent interview and that comment was somewhat having a chuckle although I do think there was also an element of honesty i.e. stuff from Irish camp does reach his ears. I just don't think it goes directly to him.

It was a very good interview though. Incredibly honest and forthcoming. He's actually very likable depsite how he's perceived here and he clearly does have a real affection for his time in Ireland having had some life changing moments here. He was openly in pain talking about the loss of his daughter whilst playing for Galwegians regardless of the time having passed.

His comments on the end of his tenure here were interesting. Still absolutely no love lost between him and EOS. He's adamant that EOS was bitter when Ireland won in Paris and Donal Lenihan completely stands over his memory when he claims EOS said "That's 2 more years of Gatland" when we won. Whatever about the Lions/BOD thing (and he talks about it despite it being done to death), there's definitely a sense that he was utterly shafted by the IRFU and he was deeply hurt by it.

A standout admission from him was how hard he finds the media stuff and the abuse. Everyone knows how much he disliked the NZ tour with the Lions but it was interesting to hear that after the 2013 third test, he sat in the dressing room on his own whilst the players were still out on the field, drank a beer and cried.

Richie_Rich89

Buer wrote: »

The comments in writing don't come across the way he intended. It was an excellent interview and that comment was somewhat having a chuckle although I do think there was also an element of honesty i.e. stuff from Irish camp does reach his ears. I just don't think it goes directly to him.

It was a very good interview though. Incredibly honest and forthcoming. He's actually very likable depsite how he's perceived here and he clearly does have a real affection for his time in Ireland having had some life changing moments here. He was openly in pain talking about the loss of his daughter whilst playing for Galwegians regardless of the time having passed.

His comments on the end of his tenure here were interesting. Still absolutely no love lost between him and EOS. He's adamant that EOS was bitter when Ireland won in Paris and Donal Lenihan completely stands over his memory when he claims EOS said "That's 2 more years of Gatland" when we won. Whatever about the Lions/BOD thing (and he talks about it despite it being done to death), there's definitely a sense that he was utterly shafted by the IRFU and he was deeply hurt by it.

A standout admission from him was how hard he finds the media stuff and the abuse. Everyone knows how much he disliked the NZ tour with the Lions but it was interesting to hear that after the 2013 third test, he sat in the dressing room on his own whilst the players were still out on the field, drank a beer and cried.

The abuse he got for calling up the 'geography six' was stupid and unfair.

Give a guy an impossible schedule and then slate him when he comes up with solution.