Ireland Team Talk XII: Farrell's First Fifteen

Yeah I think he's already qualified with a passport through Andy's irish family. He's 15 now so he'll have been through the u20s before Andy's contract is finished.

He's only 15 though so I wouldn't put too much faith in the stories about how good he is.

Yeah, I'm looking forward to seeing his battle with Doak next season. They seem two very different players though.

Can't wait to get my photo with that no.1 trophy. The homecoming was class though.

He done nothing that wasn't expected and has practically the same record as the manager before him hense baseline. His has he brought the team on since the manager before him ?

Let me guess he won some games in the ever more pointless and repetitive Autumn internationals.

I have had such an aversion to this thread and now I understand why

Yeah, and we might be throwing our toys out of the pram around here if things go donwhill in Australia. But from an IRFU perspective it's probably better to live with your decisions and have a long term strategy of the coaching team then react to results. Overall his results with Ireland have been extremely good so hanging onto him makes sense. Honestly meeting Argentina in a 1/4 is welcome for me. We have a good team and I daresay it might be quite a bit better come next Summer.

☝️💯. Anything else on this topic is irrelevant. 🛑

Ah yeah, selecting school boys at ten for Ireland might not be the answer. I'm just making the point that Farrell has reason beyond rugby to stay in Ireland for the next few years.

That is such a well intended post. But I can assure you that in time this forum will tear it apart. It's just very innocent. At the same time it's correct. At least 17 out of the 23 should be from Leinster. There should be no mention of other players as it's just a problem integrating them into the national team. I would prefer maybe 1 representative from each of the other 3 provinces. I think that would be satisfactory

Last years war you're fighting, lol. Both Ulster and Connacht will provide more players for Ireland over the next year or two and I can see players like Izzy, Balacoune, Postletwaite and Doak establishing themselves along with Stu, O Toole, Stockade and Timony. It's easy to imagine a 23 with 5 or 6 Ulster players named. From Connacht Prendergast seems close to being in the mix. Murray and Bohan may join the other Connacht regulars in rotation (including Frawley), and thats saying nothing about Munster. I think the makeup of the Irish team will change a lot over the next while, the period of Leinster's total dominance is likely over.

It's a pity that the IRFU couldn't prevent Farrell from coaching the Lions again. I know Farrell would never sign up to such an arrangement. But his sojourn with the Lions cost Irish rugby about 12months last time out. We were pants from Feb 2025 to Feb 2026 as a result.

'But for example, Ringrose's form has dropped and there isn't anyone at Ireland level to challenge him.'

Thats a typical response and mindset at team Ireland. I totally agree that Ringrose's performances have fallen off the planet recently but because he is not injured he is not replaced. You have the likes of Hume at Ulster, Farrell at Munster and West at Connacht who will not be considered until Ringrose is injured. And therein lies the rub with Irish rugby. Once your in your in but if your not in you are not in. Rinse and repeat for any position

And then folks wonder with why Irish rugby is not progressing. Hilarious really but sad also

I agree and I think there's more to it. I think Irish rugby is very well structured. That's brilliant in a way. Everyone knows their job and knows the plan and i belive then plans are well laid out. It's a solid way to coach a team.

But that system relies on core competencies. The more experienced players play their role very well. As they age, they become better and better at their core role, but lose the pace that makes spontaneity possible. So we're trading core role competency for spontaneity.

A few years ago Ringrose could do both very well. Now he's just very good at the core role of a 13 and not spontaneous at all. But the system needs him to be good at the core role so they don't try a Hume or Postlethwaite because they could be brilliantly spontaneous, but not as good at the core role of a 13.

After the world cup, a load of those guys will retire and Ireland will be forced to reinvent itself. There will be some pain but Farrell has an excellent track record of developing a game plan.

You don’t think the defence coach should receive criticism for said defence conceding 7 tries and 46 points?

He isn't. He doesn't have the family links to Ireland. He will never be able to play for Ireland.