Well I didn't use the world bleak. At the moment we seem to have a system that seems to naturally be producing a lot of backrows, especially hybrid 6/7/8s. Due to concerns about front row development we've seen huge changes and improvement. I worry though about whether 2nd row has fallen behind. A lot of the young ones coming through are short ones who seem to effectively be auxiliary backrows. There are a couple of exceptions, like Toner, where an unusually tall athlete has been identified (and he's not without his critics), but then we start to draw a bit of a blank. There are guys like Caldwell who have gone backwards, but other than Toner, Caldwell and Donnacha Ryan we seem to think that young locks shouldn't be taller than 6ft 6.Sea_point wrote: I'm not so sure the future is bleak, we have talent but we're verrry slow in bringing it through.It isn't just at Ireland level that we are guilty of conservatism in selection, it's rife with the provinces too.
The IRFU has set down pretty stringent targets to ensure in terms of success on the pitch to ensure that there is enough money coming into the pipeline for rugby, but the inherant message sent to the provinces is play your Internationals in imprtant games, so they are. There still not enough opportunties for our brightest young players (especially young forwards) to play in fixtures that are care making brad the odd exception (like Cian Healy).
I would say that I'm impressed with Joe Schmidt attitude this season towards the younger players, Ulster have almost led the way by default in bringing younger players into their matchday squads but Schmidt is under far less pressure to do so but is being rewarded thus far for his positive attidude in this respect...
But overall in Ireland there is much more to do in terms of brigning through the next generation Ireland team, and preparing the one after that...
Look at the Leinster academy, Flanagan is 6ft 6 (as is the recently graduated Sheriff) while Ruddock and Marshall are 6ft 4 and really just tall backrows who've been playing at lock because of competition in the backrow. Connacht have a good record of producing powerful locks, and sometimes you wonder what they'd be doing with fast-track development.
All successful teams have it and it was something we lacked in the years of under achievement. It's what allows your flair players to do their thing. Hines' was excellent at it and we'll miss him. I hope we don't draw Clermont again next year! The only candidate I can think of who'd be an adequate and potentially available- if possibly unaffordable is Thorne. Someone said Bakkies Botha was signed up - but he'd be another, that would do the job - defo! I say get the checkbook out and snag Thorne now.
