As Ireland cruised through another round of Six Nations action against Italy in Dublin, it was hard to look past the enormity of the job that Andy Farrell has done with this squad.
When asked, Farrell will deflect and heap praise on the job that Joe Schmidt did to bring them to the next level, and it would be ignorant to dismiss the professionalism and systems that Schmidt put in place.
Farrell has brought a different dynamic to the squad now, maybe learning from his time under Schmidt, but he also had a role to play in that era.
Another quarter-final loss will go down in the history books, you can’t deny the black and white of Ireland failing to progress. It will fill column inches for some time yet. However, this was different and there is unquestionable progress under Farrell.
Farrell is an intriguing person, never mind coach. His emotional intelligence is evident when you hear how the players speak about him in the media. He captures the mind of his players too, I know that first hand from his brief spell as a consultant coach to Anthony Foley in Munster. That was almost eight years ago, and there is no doubt he’s even better now.
His management is one of his best attributes. How he manages to be successful while captivating the whole group is the biggest mystery. He keeps high standards without losing openness and honesty.
There are examples all around the squad showing just how difficult a task it could be to keep a handle on this Ireland team, but it comes across as an easy management task for Farrell and his team.
To keep James Ryan and Iain Henderson motivated and feeling valued in their leadership roles, while invigorating the energy that Joe McCarthy is contributing on the pitch, it’s a monumental task. Having enough sensitivity to encourage during the undulating nature of Ryan’s last number of months while allowing McCarthy to flourish is a really difficult task.
Being able to throw the gauntlet down to Stuart McCloskey and Robbie Henshaw, inspiring a reaction, while putting the arm around Calvin Nash to invoke the right reaction for Nash to score twice in his first two Six Nations games takes characteristics that some coaches will never possess.
He’s had to manage the transition from Johnny Sexton to Jack Crowley and co, so far without a blemish, although the task will get more difficult in the coming weeks.
They’re coming off the back of another disappointing World Cup tournament and staring into the abyss of the next few years, waiting to right some wrongs. He’s been able to navigate that narrative while also managing his own successful career, facing into new territory as the head coach of the British and Irish Lions.
All of that takes talent, self-belief and a crazy work ethic, yet he never seems under pressure. He has good people around him, which must be the answer to how he keeps delivering. He’s got buy-in from expert coaches and the tools at his disposal from both players and management that allow him to keep building this reputation.
There’s little doubt that the highly rated Gary Keegan is helping to steer the ship, although the word is that Farrell is still the spiritual leader within the group and where he goes, others follow.
Tactically, Farrell and his team have shown strategic intelligence in all of the big games. Beating South Africa at the World Cup with a faltering lineout was up there with one of his great feats. To boil his success down to a lost quarter-final would be naive, they were a grounded ball away from breaking new ground. I know many will argue that it’s still a failure but that outcome can’t destroy everything that was built in the process.
There were mistakes, there’s no doubt about that. Nobody is without their errors. Farrell must be aware of his limitations, most leaders are.
He’s a league convert, although he’s an international in both codes, but there must be some knowledge deficit in the rugby union set-piece compared to other top level coaches, considering Farrell spent most of his career playing without lineouts or eight-man scrums.
If he has upskilled so much that he’s an expert in those fields too then fair play to him, however I would suspect that his ability to lean on the likes of Paul O’Connell, John Fogarty and Simon Easterby is some of the reason why he is a success.
O’Connell and the Irish team may have gone through a tough time at the last World Cup, yet they have rebounded well with 26/26 so far in the lineout in this Six Nations.
Easterby, the one that gets the least mention and credit, has primed this defence to average just one try concession per game in their last 12 Six Nations games.
Ireland have picked up where they left off in last season’s Six Nations. You won’t need to remind Farrell that the loss to New Zealand in France was the one that got away, I’m sure he’s more than aware of that himself. He seems to be aware of everything that goes on and how best to deal with that.
Ireland have scorched out of the blocks in this season’s Six Nations. France was supposed to be the most challenging fixture but you’d feel that England away will provide the litmus test for just how far beyond that World Cup disappointment this group is.
Another Grand Slam could be on the cards. Back-to-back Grand Slams has not been achieved yet in the Six Nations era, showing just how difficult it is, so expect a few hiccups in Ireland’s path yet. Home advantage may prove to be the difference for England, however, Ireland look to be streets ahead of the other nations at this current moment.
Success like that after a tough finish to 2023 would be perfect for Farrell and Ireland.
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