Ireland Team Talk XII: Farrell's First Fifteen

Unsure of the right thread, but Philip Browne, long term CEO of the IRFU, has died.

Very sad news, he was hugely successful in the role.

Ye, he was the brains and the driving force of IRFU for so long and always kept FAI/Delaney in check.

Very sad news at just 66. I think it's fair to say he is the foremost reason Irish rugby is where it is today.

In a world of John Delaneys and Pat Hickeys and officials in other codes who covered up sexual abuse and financial malfeasance and God knows what else, Philip Browne ran a prudent and responsible organisation, still finding its way in the era of professionalism.

Was everything the Union did under him perfect? No, but it was at least transparent and underscored by fastidious financial sustainability.

When you look at the FAI and over at the WRU, we can and should be grateful that the Union under Philip Browne got through the financial crash and Covid and yet was still able to maintain 4 professional teams and invest in stadium redevelopments across all four provinces as well as as being completely debt free for its part in the Aviva Stadium build.

It is perhaps the best tribute to Browne, that unlike the aforementioned scoundrels and many others unnamed, the general public probably have no idea who he was or what he did, because he never made it about himself.

RIP Philip, and thanks.

Lowe gone to Tokyo to replace Cheslin Kolbe according to 42

Madness from the IRFU, best of luck to him. Would love to know what Farrell thinks of this.

I can't think of one positive change David Humphreys has made since getting his job.

Governance by who shouts the loudest on twitter. Whaaa central contracts, whaaaa Farrell is biased, etc etc etc. We'll feel the consequences down the line.

Yeah, Lowe is a massive loss and he showed again on Saturday that he can do things that very few other wingers can do.

But he's 34 next month and rapidly decreasing contract value for aging players, even current test players, has always been a feature of IRFU negotiations. This didn't start with Lowe and it didn't start with the new central contract arrangements; I remember Gordon D'Arcy talking about this happening while he was still undisputed first-choice for Leinster and Ireland.

Whether he stays or goes, this is realistically his last contract so he has to maximise his payday. IRFU have to count the beans. Obviously there was a gap there. It's a shame but it is what it is.

There's no way he's going to make that kind of money - that would have him on similar money to Malcolm Marx, Beauden Barrett & Pieter-Steph du Toit.

I'm sure he's on very good money, but it is going to be a long way back from the level you're talking about here.

The IRFU have pretty much been pretty ruthless with players coming onto their last contract or so for a long time.

They leverage the fact that guys in their mid thirties likely are very well settled, possibly have kids in school etc, and won't necessarily want to go uprooting themselves at that point in their lives. That's probably less of a factor for someone like James Lowe who already doesn't have family living near him here etc.

Equally, I suspect, they've figured his desire to play in the RWC was worth a discount on the offer, and he's pushed back on that.

There is something in the fact though that quite a few players now (Conor Murray, Peter O'Mahony, James Lowe) all seemed to finish up on very bad terms with the IRFU, after giving many years of great service. It is surely something that resonates with the wider squad.

Yeah I made a point similar to this when the news first broke. This seems indicative of a new forward looking IRFU negotiation strategy - an attempt to ensure that unlike the likes of Murray, Henderson, Earls, Furlong, etc, players aren't on big money deals long after their prime.