Bernard Jackman believes Connacht should do everything they can to bring Joey Carbery back to Irish rugby, and has called on the IRFU to support the move financially.
The out-half, who turns 30 this week, is in his second season at French side Bordeaux-Begles, with whom he won a Champions Cup title in his debut campaign.
Josh Ioane is currently first choice in the 10 jersey for Connacht under Stuart Lancaster, with the New Zealander under contract until the summer of 2027, while Jack Carty and Sean Naughton are also on the out-half depth chart at Dexcom Stadium.
Ioane has impressed as an attacker since joining the province in the summer of 2024, but his limitations as a kicker, both from the tee and from hand, have stung the province.
On Saturday, kicking duties from the tee were left to Cathal Forde and Naughton, who combined to miss all three conversions as Connacht lost 17-15 to Munster at Thomond Park.
Another New Zealander, Sam Gilbert, is due to join this month from the Highlanders, and while the 26-year-old is predominantly a full-back and centre, he is an established goal-kicker.
However, speaking on this week’s RTÉ Rugby podcast, Jackman believes out-half depth is still an area of concern for the province, and believes they should be looking to Bordeaux for their solution.
"Medium-term solution for Connacht is to sign Joey Carbery for next year," Jackman said, citing next year’s World Cup as a reason for the IRFU to assist the province in bringing him home.
"The medium term solution for Connacht is to sign Joey Carbery for next year..." - @bernardjackman
— RTÉ Sport (@RTEsport) October 28, 2025
Could the IRFU help Connacht bring Joey Carbery back to Irish rugby? ☘️
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"Honestly, I think Lancaster is going to have to be given support from the IRFU and the Connacht branch to be able to bring players that suit the way he wants to play.
"There's two parts to this. I think one, it gives Connacht a top-end playmaker who's very experienced, who has quality, who can play obviously 10 or 15 or even centre if you're in an emergency.
"But he's a good goal-kicker and he would then become eligible for Ireland for the World Cup in Australia.
"I think it's good for the group, particularly because the group has been so settled under Andy Farrell, having that different point of view coming into camp, I think could be good.
"Regardless of that, I think for Connacht, the IRFU could make a really good move by bringing him back, giving Connacht a hand, but also strengthening our depth chart at 10 for Ireland for the World Cup."
And if bringing Carbery back to Irish rugby isn’t an option, Jackman believes Lancaster could use his considerable influence among the Leinster squad to strengthen the Connacht deck.
"I'd be shocked if Lancaster doesn't go after a number of Leinster players because of his relationship with them. [Ciarán] Frawley is another obvious candidate, his career is stalling.
"Rumour has it he's had opportunities to leave in the past and he's decided to stay, but he just doesn't seem to be getting any consistent game time at 10. And that's definitely affected him."
Saturday’s defeat to Munster was Connacht’s third in a row, and the province head into the November break with just one win from their four games under Lancaster.
It leaves the province 12th in the URC table, although they have a game in hand on several of their rivals after their Round 2 meeting with Scarlets was postponed.
Despite their poor start, Jackman insists the current Connacht side are better than the 2024/25 version.
"Without a doubt [they are better]. I thought they were exceptionally good first game up against Benetton because it was their first game and they played with much more maturity.
"The second week was obviously postponed, third week [against Cardiff] really disappointing. That's the one that probably frustrated me the most with them.
"And then against the Bulls, they were quite erratic but they showed good character at the end.
"I thought in Thomond the other night, they were right there at a decent level, and also way harder to break down defensively. One of the tries was the intercept, so that's not a defensive system error really.
"Everything else, they looked reasonably comfortable against a Munster attack that wasn't firing on all cylinders but is quite developed.
"So I think Connacht look like their better side [than last year], for sure."
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