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BBC News
11 hours ago
- Sport
- BBC News
'He's got such an aura' - Farrell's rise to Lions top job
British and Irish Lions v ArgentinaVenue: Aviva Stadium, Dublin Date: Friday, 20 June Kick-off: 20:00 BSTCoverage: Live text commentary on the BBC Sport website and app For British and Irish Lions boss Andy Farrell, building connections has always been as crucial to fostering a winning environment as tactics and systems. When he speaks to the media, he regularly outlines his desire to see players become the "best versions of themselves". Not the best tacklers, or goal-kickers or scrummagers, but the best "versions". Ask the players about Farrell and they will gush. Johnny Sexton knows him better than most. He was Ireland captain under him and is now part of his British and Irish Lions backroom team."It's been amazing to see already," Sexton said of watching Farrell in Lions camp. "We're only in week one and the standard of training, the atmosphere, the environment that he's created already in terms of getting people to share ideas, whether you're a coach or player, making it really inclusive, everyone has a voice and a say."The last thing Andy wants is fast forward four or five weeks' time when you've won or lost the series, he doesn't want people saying 'we should have done this, we should have done that'. "He wants you to speak now. That's the greatest part about the environment, it's a pretty special place to be at the moment and I'm sure it'll get better over the next couple of months."Farrell's ability to give clarity and confidence to those who come into his orbit extended to the British and Irish Lions decision-makers, who unanimously backed him as the man to lead this summer's tour to he was announced as head coach in January 2024, it surprised no-one. Now, nearly 18 months on, the 50-year-old is finally ready to tackle one of rugby's most daunting coaching challenges when he leads the Lions into Friday's pre-tour game against Argentina in Dublin. It is the start of an important new chapter for the Englishman. But everything up to this point shows he never shirks a challenge, and he usually finds success. Farrell's leadership skills were evident from a young age - and in a different in rugby league, he made his debut for Wigan Warriors at just 16, became the youngest Challenge Cup winner a year later in 1993 and captained Great Britain when he was 21. It wasn't all good in the 13-man discipline. Twenty of his 34 Great Britain appearances ended in defeat and he was captain for the 1996 tour which yielded three Test losses to New Zealand. The goal-kicking loose forward dreamed of testing himself in Australia's National Rugby League, which he considered the pinnacle of the sport. But after a move down under failed to materialise, he opted for arguably an even greater challenge: a switch to rugby union with Saracens in 2005. Injuries hampered his bid to become a cross-code phenomenon. He won eight caps for England, and while his 2007 World Cup was cut short by a calf problem, his enthusiasm to become a coaching powerhouse remained undimmed. His first opportunity came at Saracens - initially as Mark McCall's assistant - before he joined Stuart Lancaster's England ticket as defence coach in time for the 2012 Six Nations. "You could tell he was a leader as a player and as a head coach, you need a strong second voice in the changing room, that person who can take the weight off your shoulders a bit. Andy fulfilled that role for me," Lancaster told the BBC's Rugby Union Weekly podcast last also described Farrell as a "great orator" and that much became clear in 2013 when he delivered his now-famous "hurt arena" speech to the British and Irish Lions squad before the deciding third Test against Lions emerged from Sydney with their first tour win in 16 years (it also remains their most recent), while Farrell's star continued to rise when he returned as one of Gatland's assistants in the drawn 2017 series against New Zealand. His burgeoning status prompted the Irish Rugby Football Union (IRFU) to swoop at the earliest possible opportunity, appointing him Ireland defence coach under Joe Schmidt within a month of his England exit, which came in the aftermath of the 2015 World Farrell served a three-year apprenticeship under Schmidt, it soon became clear after taking the top job in 2019 that his coaching style differed greatly from the New Zealander's. He emphasised the importance of marking landmarks like debuts or 50th or 100th caps with presentation ceremonies that often involved the players' families - an approach that would seem well-suited to a Lions environment where a lot of the players don't know each other."There's a different mentality around the place - a different relationship between players and coaches and a different relationship between players and players, going over stuff together," Ireland lock Iain Henderson said during the early stages of Farrell's reign."Before, the guys might have been a wee bit tentative about who they went and asked questions to. For fear of people thinking they don't know their detail, didn't know stuff."Five years on, Sexton's comments echo Henderson's words. It shows that creating a collaborative space in training and giving the players the confidence to express themselves has been the bedrock of Farrell's success with Ireland. Of course, he found the going tough initially, with mixed results during his first two years in charge leading Sexton to jump to his though, Farrell presided over one of the greatest periods in Irish rugby history, with talk of him as a future Lions boss intensifying after he led Ireland to a historic series success in New Zealand in 2022. And even though the All Blacks ended his side's World Cup campaign at the quarter-final stage in 2023, Farrell's 2022-23 run, that included a Six Nations Grand Slam and a 17-match unbeaten streak, effectively sealed his Lions appointment. 'When he speaks, you tune in' Since officially starting his Lions duties, Farrell has stuck to what he knows, plucking four coaches - Sexton, Simon Easterby, Andrew Goodman and John Fogarty - from the IRFU and flooding his squad with 16 Ireland players, several of whom will be absent on also took the squad on a pre-tour training camp in Quinta do Lago in Portugal, which has served as Ireland's warm-weather base before the Six Nations and World Cup in recent is still early days, but Farrell has clearly made an impression on those coming into contact with him for the first time. "He's got such an aura around the place," said Welsh scrum-half Tomos Williams, "Everyone turns their head when he speaks. He's been class, the level of detail and clarity he gives you is class."I think anyone would if you've got two caps or 100 caps. A person of his calibre, when he speaks, you just instantly tune in."
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Sexton told Ireland fly-halves to 'delete social media'
Johnny Sexton told Ireland fly-halves Sam Prendergast and Jack Crowley to "delete social media" in order to guard themselves from online commentary during the early stages of their careers. Following Sexton's retirement, there has been an intense debate over whether Leinster fly-half Prendergast or Munster's Crowley should become his long-term successor. Advertisement Sexton says both players have "the world at their feet", but the 39-year-old is dismayed by how their competitive rivalry has highlighted the "split" between Leinster and Munster fans. The former Ireland and Leinster captain experienced something similar at the start of his Test career when he battled Munster great Ronan O'Gara for the shirt. "One thing I disagree with is the narrative around it in terms of there's obviously a split in the country in terms of Munster and Leinster," said Sexton, who has worked with Prendergast and Crowley since November in his role as Ireland kicking coach. "I've been there before, I've been in that situation. With social getting bigger and bigger, it's tough on them at times. We should be supporting whoever is picked and getting fully behind them." Advertisement Sexton, who admitted his rivalry with O'Gara during the formative stages of his Test career was "tough", said he is not sure if Prendergast or Crowley have been affected by the online discourse. "Sometimes you can get a sense, but I'm not sure. All you can do is try to advise in terms of what worked for me," added the five-time Six Nations winner. "I was exposed to it a little bit at the very start and it's tough because as a kid, all you want to do is play for Ireland and then you do it and suddenly you're getting criticised, not all the time, but sometimes and you're like, 'wow, this is tougher than I thought it'd be', but it builds a resilience. "You find out who are your mates, who you can trust and those you can lean on. Going forward, they'll be stronger for it." Advertisement While Sexton feels Prendergast and Crowley deserve time to prove their worth, he believes they are already ahead of where he was at the same stage of his career. "The work ethic they have, they're humble guys," added Sexton, who will continue to work with Ireland's fly-halves in a full-time capacity after he completes his British and Irish Lions coaching duties this summer. "They want to learn and practice hard and that's the thing you look at the most as a coach; the attitude and how humble they are because ultimately that's what will stand to them going forward."
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Sexton told Ireland fly-halves to 'delete social media'
Johnny Sexton told Ireland fly-halves Sam Prendergast and Jack Crowley to "delete social media" in order to guard themselves from online commentary during the early stages of their careers. Following Sexton's retirement, there has been an intense debate over whether Leinster fly-half Prendergast or Munster's Crowley should become his long-term successor. Advertisement Sexton says both players have "the world at their feet", but the 39-year-old is dismayed by how their competitive rivalry has highlighted the "split" between Leinster and Munster fans. The former Ireland and Leinster captain experienced something similar at the start of his Test career when he battled Munster great Ronan O'Gara for the shirt. "One thing I disagree with is the narrative around it in terms of there's obviously a split in the country in terms of Munster and Leinster," said Sexton, who has worked with Prendergast and Crowley since November in his role as Ireland kicking coach. "I've been there before, I've been in that situation. With social getting bigger and bigger, it's tough on them at times. We should be supporting whoever is picked and getting fully behind them." Advertisement Sexton, who admitted his rivalry with O'Gara during the formative stages of his Test career was "tough", said he is not sure if Prendergast or Crowley have been affected by the online discourse. "Sometimes you can get a sense, but I'm not sure. All you can do is try to advise in terms of what worked for me," added the five-time Six Nations winner. "I was exposed to it a little bit at the very start and it's tough because as a kid, all you want to do is play for Ireland and then you do it and suddenly you're getting criticised, not all the time, but sometimes and you're like, 'wow, this is tougher than I thought it'd be', but it builds a resilience. "You find out who are your mates, who you can trust and those you can lean on. Going forward, they'll be stronger for it." Advertisement While Sexton feels Prendergast and Crowley deserve time to prove their worth, he believes they are already ahead of where he was at the same stage of his career. "The work ethic they have, they're humble guys," added Sexton, who will continue to work with Ireland's fly-halves in a full-time capacity after he completes his British and Irish Lions coaching duties this summer. "They want to learn and practice hard and that's the thing you look at the most as a coach; the attitude and how humble they are because ultimately that's what will stand to them going forward."
BBC News
3 days ago
- Sport
- BBC News
Sexton told Ireland fly-halves to 'delete social media'
Johnny Sexton told Ireland fly-halves Sam Prendergast and Jack Crowley to "delete social media" in order to guard themselves from online commentary during the early stages of their Sexton's retirement, there has been an intense debate over whether Leinster fly-half Prendergast or Munster's Crowley should become his long-term successor. Sexton says both players have "the world at their feet", but the 39-year-old is dismayed by how their competitive rivalry has highlighted the "split" between Leinster and Munster fans. The former Ireland and Leinster captain experienced something similar at the start of his Test career when he battled Munster great Ronan O'Gara for the shirt."One thing I disagree with is the narrative around it in terms of there's obviously a split in the country in terms of Munster and Leinster," said Sexton, who has worked with Prendergast and Crowley since November in his role as Ireland kicking coach. "I've been there before, I've been in that situation. With social getting bigger and bigger, it's tough on them at times. We should be supporting whoever is picked and getting fully behind them."Sexton, who admitted his rivalry with O'Gara during the formative stages of his Test career was "tough", said he is not sure if Prendergast or Crowley have been affected by the online discourse."Sometimes you can get a sense, but I'm not sure. All you can do is try to advise in terms of what worked for me," added the five-time Six Nations winner."I was exposed to it a little bit at the very start and it's tough because as a kid, all you want to do is play for Ireland and then you do it and suddenly you're getting criticised, not all the time, but sometimes and you're like, 'wow, this is tougher than I thought it'd be', but it builds a resilience. "You find out who are your mates, who you can trust and those you can lean on. Going forward, they'll be stronger for it."While Sexton feels Prendergast and Crowley deserve time to prove their worth, he believes they are already ahead of where he was at the same stage of his career."The work ethic they have, they're humble guys," added Sexton, who will continue to work with Ireland's fly-halves in a full-time capacity after he completes his British and Irish Lions coaching duties this summer."They want to learn and practice hard and that's the thing you look at the most as a coach; the attitude and how humble they are because ultimately that's what will stand to them going forward."
BBC News
4 days ago
- Sport
- BBC News
'Everyone has their opinion. It's the beauty of sport'
Johnny Sexton says he was not surprised to see a record number of Ireland players selected in the British and Irish Lions squad, but accepts "everyone has their own opinion". Lions head coach Andy Farrell, who has also been Ireland boss since 2019, picked 15 in his initial 38-man squad for the Australia tour and last week called up Connacht prop Finlay Bealham following Zander Fagerson's injury. When asked about the strong Ireland contingent - 12 Leinster players, three from Connacht and one from Munster - Sexton pointed to the national team's form in recent years. "Well, Ireland have done pretty well over the last few years, having won the [Six Nations] championship last year, the Grand Slam the year before, so you're probably looking over the last three years," said the former Ireland captain, who is a kicking coach in Farrell's Lions backroom team."With some players, coaches would look at form over eight, nine years. It's not just if you've played well in a couple of games in the Six Nations, you can't force your way in, but sometimes you take a bigger picture look with players."They know the way Andy coaches, they know the system. It didn't surprise me because historically, let's say when there was a Welsh coach and the Welsh team did well, there were the majority of the Welsh team. "I think the teams that performed the best in the Six Nations got selected." When asked if he could understand why people would question the number of Ireland players in the squad, Sexton said "everyone has their own opinion", which is the "beauty of sport"."You can go through the players and think 'well who are you talking about that you wouldn't have picked?' because for me in terms of the last three or four years they have performed well," added the two-time Lions tourist."Sometimes you can be swayed by how the Six Nations finished. The first game, Ireland against England, it was a great performance and that comes into consideration. "With Andy, I've never seen such a thorough process with all the combinations and the amount of players that were considered and talked about. "Andy did all those players justice in terms of doing enough research and work, asked relevant people and he's picked the squad he thinks give him the best chance to win the tour." 'I'll try to make the most of it' Having retired after the 2023 Rugby World Cup, Sexton took a job in the commercial sector before returning to the Ireland set-up as a part-time coach for last year's autumn internationals and this year's Six Nations. In April, he "jumped at" the chance to join Farrell's Lions backroom team and take a full-time role with the Irish Rugby Football Union after the tour to Australia. Now, after a year outside of rugby, he feels he is "where I should be".And while some Irish coaches have opted to cut their teeth abroad - Ronan O'Gara in France, for example - Sexton said working abroad has never appealed to him. "I want to be in Ireland, but I've got to concentrate on the here and now," he said."That's ultimately how I made the decision. I have to make myself happy in the here and now and not worry about the future. If it [the IRFU role] is only for two years, it's only for two years."We'll see what happens. It's just enjoy the moment and try to make the most of it." As part of his Lions role, Sexton - who was a key member of the successful 2013 tour to Australia - will work closely with fly-halves Finn Russell, Marcus Smith and Fin Smith."There's a little bit of everything really. It depends on what person you're working with, what form they're in, if they need help or if they're in a good place."The first week's been getting to know Marcus and Fin Smith. I don't think I played against Fin but I played against Marcus a couple of times. "They're remarkable, talented, great characters, great people, I've got to know that over the first week. I'm looking forward to working with them."The Lions face Argentina at Aviva Stadium in Dublin on Friday (20:00 BST) in their pre-tour send-off fixture. The 15-strong cohort of Bath, Leicester and Leinster players who were involved in Saturday's Premiership and United Rugby Championship finals linked up with the squad for Monday's training at University College full-back Blair Kinghorn is the only absent player as he is in Top 14 semi-final action with Toulouse on Friday, while Jamie George and Asher Opoku-Fordjour will be released back to England camp after Lions training on Monday.
