Kidney must put positive spin on Herculean task
Comparisons with 1992 are inevitable, so we won't bother trying to escape them.
Back then, as the senior tour to New Zealand left these shores against a backdrop of outrage about Bishop Casey and his extra-curricular activities -- innocent times -- Declan Kidney was still teaching in Cork, preparing students for state exams.
As a rugby fan, though, he would have had one eye on the Ireland squad and how they were shaping up. And as a coach he would have felt for Ciaran Fitzgerald, who had the unenviable task of leading a hopelessly under-strength group Down Under.
Two months later Kidney would make the same trip with his Irish schools side, but in different circumstances. He didn't have to press-gang the kids onto the plane. Fitzgerald had to travel minus 17 players, who for one reason or another, were doing something else when the call came through to pack their bags. What unfolded for the group was a harrowing experience, albeit a fascinating one to witness up close.
By the time they were pulling down the shutters in Thomond Park last Friday night, we were recalling '92, and seeing if it fitted the footprint of 2010. Mercifully it hasn't been as bad this time around, but still, between those who were unavailable in the first place, and those who had pulled out, and those who are still dodgy, Kidney has a list with 14 names on it.
There are two issues here: the first is the immediate impact it makes on selection and performance simply because so many are not on board -- for example, six of the 22 on duty against South Africa in November are at home; and the second is the mental effect of suffering so many casualties before the serious stuff starts. In that scenario it is impossible not to look to Brisbane in three weeks and wonder who will be standing by then.
The upside for Kidney is that to achieve the goal of winning a game down there, in these circumstances, would be fantastic. At the other end of the scale is the fear that it could all come off the rails with long-term damage done, for this trip is about familiarising ourselves with World Cup venues, making a statement, and creating good memories for the return there in 2011. So, you reckon this is an important trip?
Clearly it is for Tony Buckley. It's a measure of where we are with our props these days that Kidney pointed to the tighthead getting 80 minutes on the field as one of the positives from the defeat by the Barbarians. It's not ideal having him in John Hayes' shadow in Munster, but at least he's in one piece despite having carried a knee injury over the last four weeks.
"It's a long season," he says. "Guys are off the Lions. A lot of us were over on the Churchill Cup and the senior tour [to North America], which was six weeks away from home at the end of last season. So when we came home, we got two and half weeks holidays, then back into it again.
"It's one thing doing all the physical training but it's also tough mentally, like. I think a lot of the lads have had a long season and the bodies are showing the signs of it. I think we've all had injuries this season. I tore my calf in October but luckily only missed three weeks. I played through the [recent] knee and only missed one match. I'm so lucky compared to the likes of Paulie and Earlsy -- terrible."
Buckley spent seven months in Auckland as a schoolboy on an exchange deal when he was in Newbridge College. Seven months with rugby for breakfast, dinner and tea. And now, at last, he gets to go back as part of an international squad. At 29, this is his big chance.
"It's up to me to take the opportunity when I'm given it," he says. "Hopefully I'll get another start out of the three games, which would be great for me. If I do get a start, it's up to me to stake my claim." There are a few in the same boat. Gavin Duffy wasn't supposed to be part of this but did well on Friday. John Muldoon slipped in when Stephen Ferris was ruled out before the original squad was picked and had a huge game against the Barbarians.
Unlike the Northampton set -- Neil Best, Roger Wilson and James Downey -- who seem not to be on Kidney's radar, the Connacht boys will be good to have on this trip. Damien Varley too will add to the grunt.
But for all concerned, the scale of the climb is something you don't appreciate until you get down there and look up. Making this a positive experience will be the biggest challenge of Declan Kidney's career.
- BRENDAN FANNING
Originally published in
