CORK CONSTITUTION WILL compete in this weekend’s All-Ireland League final, a remarkable fourth straight year on Irish domestic rugby’s marquee day.
It’s no accident, nor is it a default position for the 137-year-old Temple Hill institution. That age, the wealth of history and depth of characters plays an enormous part.
There’s Lion and a Grand Slam-winner Donnacha O’Callaghan jogging around training… there’s long-time Munster stalwart Duncan Williams talking up the skill levels and pitching in wherever coaches need a hand.
And they are merely the younger servants giving back to the club who produced them. Yet, as coach Paul Barr explains, there is also a growing willingness to grow and change.
With three final appearances behind them entering this season, there were ample reasons to stick with a direct forward-focused style of play in-keeping with Munster teams of old, but Barr ripped up the playbook and encouraged the players to, well, play.
“We kind of took a bit of a gamble to be honest,” says Barr as the Aviva Stadium pitch is being carefully manicured by groundsmen behind him.
“We kind of took away all their calls a little bit at the very start of the season, and we tried to peel it back – almost to like a mini rugby player first running down the steps – and said: ‘what would you do on the pitch if you got the ball?’ And let’s build it back from there a little bit.’”
The old style is innate, there was little danger of losing the direct power with many consistent pack members remaining in situ. Winning one final out of three appearances evidently didn’t feel like success enough for Barr and director of rugby Brian Hickey.
“With direct comes a little bit of predictability for defences. It was working (against) a lot of the teams, especially maybe against some of younger profile teams, the university teams. You might be able to subdue them with that, but when you got to the likes of Lansdowne and Clontarf and these kind of teams they were able to cope with that physically.”
“One of the things that I picked up on the tapes over the years: if you have a three-phase sequence call, or a complex sequence of calls, often a player will be running from A to B without actually looking in front of him because the call says: ‘I go from A to B’.
“We asked ‘what happens when a defender falls over? Do you even see it? Would you notice that space emerging in front of you?’
I think we forced teams to look at Con across the pitch, and that has opened up the internal spaces that were walls beforehand, and maybe are little gaps internally.”
The more expansive approach is reflected not just in Con’s move from finishing the last two regular seasons third and fourth to taking the summit this term. It has also pushed their try-scoring bonus points to 12 from 18 matches this term. That’s more than the combined total of their previous two seasons, and also more than any table-topping side has managed since Division 1A expanded to 10 teams in 2011/12.
“We decided to use the strengths we had, which were really good, but teams were able to prepare for them. By asking different questions across the width of the pitch, it meant that the internal channels were less defended, because they couldn’t prepare for us to be there, with nine possessions out of ten kind of thing.”
“That’s really it. It’s nothing more than that really. It’s encouraging them to use the full width of the pitch. There’s a lot of talent there that maybe was only getting the ball within a certain pattern of play format.”
That sort of sea-change takes no small amount of confidence in the underlying base of a team and a club and second row Brian Hayes readily admits that the innate confidence, so often consistent throughout Rebel county teams, is indeed present in this Con group.
“We place a higher importance on ourselves than we should. We think of ourselves very highly as a group – of players, not the club,” says Hayes, “we’d have an innate confidence in ourselves. We wouldn’t see ourselves as much inferior to some of the standard of professionals.”
To that end, Barr adds with a little gratitude that the club, at this level, are not trying to engage in the high-wire act of a professional outfit. If this experiment was not successful it was not going to signal a disastrous crumble.
“I think sometimes we’re very fortunate where we are, in that the conservatism that is imposed on (professionals) through a fear factor, a livelihood factor, in their approach – that’s removed from us.
“Like, we can have a real cut at it without the same financial Sword of Damacles hanging over our heads that they would experience.”
The relationship to the professional game obviously has its hurdles for the club scene, but around Con they speak of a strong relationship with the players they generate for Munster and it is certainly reciprocated as pros return in a variety of forms to lend their support knowledge or weight to the cause.
Hayes is one of many players around the AIL to taste the professional scene, but returning from a spell in Pro D2 with Aurillac he was thrilled to be embraced by a club with tireless devotees helping continue a proud tradition and keep a senior side playing at a high level.
“To get to come back to a club like Con, where you have the core club that has been there since I joined – the likes of Noel Walsh, Stan Waldron, Doug O’Riordan – the fellas that are always there. Always putting the club forward. It makes a big difference.
“It’s something to enjoy. It’s a cliche, but you play with your friends and we’ve the same team for the last four years… it’s enjoyable to play with them. They put in the work, it’s not that they’re only playing on the Saturday; it’s a Monday to Saturday thing.”
The names of behind-the-scenes stalwarts who deserve untold credit keep rolling, Barr glows about groundsman Michael Boland, who tends to the field as if it were a child of his own, before stopping himself in his tracks to trumpet the efforts of Kenny Murphy, an Ireland international as was his father Noel.
“Kenny is Mr Con, but what I like about Kenny is that he works with the person and the player is secondary to the person. He has the best interest of the person at heart, and I think that grows that really strong sense of community, when the person has a loyalty to the club, and the player reflects that.
“So I think that’s probably what they (the club) have, that makes them contend for a long number of years.”
Barr adds: “I’m only a bit-part player in the history of that, but if I was asked to identify it to somebody coming in from the outside into Con, I think there is a really strong sense of community in the club, within it, and it starts off with guys like Duncan (Williams) at six years of age, and Alex McHenry at six years of age.
“They might leave to go to school or university, but with Con it’s like coming home.
“Like, Donncha O’Callaghan is jogging around the pitch every evening at training these evenings. He’s watching the training, he’s watching the matches. You hear Ronan O’Gara referencing the club…
“There’s something there, maybe in their childhoods growing up, and in their career as young players. It’s still their home club, no matter where they’ve been, and I think that comes from a sense of community, and people doing great work with youngsters from six years of age right up through the structure.”
It’s a work that is funnel towards days like tomorrow’s 3pm kick-off at the Aviva, but then again it’s about much more than that.
Gavan Casey and Murray Kinsella are joined by Andy Dunne to discuss all the week’s rugby news.:
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You’ve fired a guy for having an opinion. How’s that exactly inclusive?
@Nathan Mawhinney: He should have just said ‘sodomites’ instead and saved everyone the trouble.
toxic rating: 4.4/10
@Nathan Mawhinney: Nathan, you’ve commented on every single Israel Folau article the past week. Same rhetoric today and it’ll be the same tomorrow. We know how you feel. Move on.
@Mike: you are incorrect sir, commented on many but not all. Thankfully there isn’t a restriction.
@Nathan Mawhinney: nah they’ve fired him for posting his discriminatory opinions all over social media after multiple warnings. Genuine question Nathan, if an athlete came out and tweeted that black people are going to hell, would you be defending him then?
@Laura Walsh: to make it more applicable to myself and he was to say white men were going to hell I’d think he was crazy. Why get triggered especially if you don’t believe in hell? He’s never screamed these words at anyone, he posted them on social media.
@Nathan Mawhinney: he was sacked for a breach of conduct but you know that already. You just like playing this up as a freedom of speech/ snow flake issue, which you know it isn’t, to get your reaction.
He’s not been arrested. His tweet/ post are still up. His freedom to speak his mind has not been impeded.
He’s been sacked because his comments do not reflect the views of his employers and he had specifically agreed to follow their line in order to receive a new contract.
Then again you know all of that.
@Nathan Mawhinney: why is religion an acceptable excuse to publicly make a negative statement about an entire group of people based on their sexual orientation? This waffle some people are spouting about him trying to save people is missing the point, he is tarring homosexuality as a negative thing no matter what way you look at it. This helps forms the foundation of negativity towards gay people that we are working so hard to get rid of. We as a society decide what is acceptable as we have done/continue to do for sexism, racism etc. This is no different, hiding behind religion is only an excuse to stick your head in the sand and avoid addressing the real issue here. Discuss the point on its merits, not what book it was written in a long time ago.
@Nathan Mawhinney: Not exactly, almost a year ago to the day, he posted something very similar to the post he was recently fired for, on that occasion he was warned. He subsequently went on to sign a new contract just 2 months ago, you can be damn sure there were stipulations attached to the most recent deal in light of his previous comments. He was under no obligation whatsoever to sign that deal if he wasn’t comfortable doing so. He could have easily retired there and then and gone on to preach whatever he wants. Stop making him out to be some kind of victim here, he was well aware of what would happen, and did it anyway, his views are completely at odds with ARU policies and those of ARU sponsors too, they had no option but to fire him.
@George Can’t-Stand-Ya: I never labeled anyone a snowflake, completely understand where people are coming from especially if he signed a contract about this stuff. Just think the world now attacks people for the words they say, even if they aren’t harming anyone.
@Nathan Mawhinney: Any clown/troll can post racist comments online. But if you represent in sports a country where homosexuality is legally accepted, then you have a massive responsibility and duty to conduct yourself in a way that will never cause any pain or possibly even suicidal thoughts in members of the public. If he wants to make endless childish hateful neanderthal remarks then there are countries he can move that not too many people desire to live in where this type of carry-on is accepted.
@Nathan Mawhinney: give it up. Now you’re just willfully ignorant and that’s far worse than just being dumb.
@Nathan Mawhinney: how could the sport be inclusive if we allowed players to discriminate against people based on sexual orientation? By your logic it was wrong to ban South Africa during the apartheid era
@Sean Mannion: so he shouldn’t take up employment if his religious beliefs don’t correspond with those of the company he is looking to join? Hiw does that work for Muslim people working for western companies?
@Rudiger McMonihan: Folau is not and has not discriminated against anyone, he’s on record as saying he is not homophobic and went as far as to be on the cover of a magazine promoting a gay rugby tournament. What he did was re-state what is written in the scriptures of his religion in an effort to save the so called sinners. He has gay family members who he equally wants to save.
@Dino Baggio: he publicly admitted thst he and his god see gay people as lesser. He/his faith picks and chooses what they want to believe from the Bible even though they believe it’s without error.
@Dave O Keeffe: where did he say he and his god see gay people as “lesser” ? He said all sinners must repent or burn in hell which is pretty much how all religions see sinners. Unless these views are made illegal he should be allowed air then in public without fear of persecution.
I think politics and religion should be kept out fo sport… but if Israel falou can’t express his religious beliefs equally we shouldn’t be subjected to lectures on equality, diversity and political correctness.. including from the42!
@Padjo Mulk: agreed
@Padj
Lets jut get to the sacking of this employee of the Austrian RFU ::
Last year he signed a contract saying he will not do the same thing again but recently he broke that contract and he was fired .
SIMPLE
@Padjo Mulk: You’re completely missing the point Padjo. You have to abide by the laws of the country you live in even if your beliefs don’t agree with them. I suggest that if he wants to live in a country where people hate gays then he should move to Bangladesh or Pakistan.
@Padjo Mulk: but he can. Just as equally as his employers can show how they feel by not paying him anymore.
@Frantic Pigeon: I hope people who are similarly intolerant to people’s religious beliefs are subject to the same punishment…but I doubt it.
@Padjo Mulk: @Brysonpieters: He’s entitled to his chosen beliefs, that’s all they are, but he’s not entitled to dish out out hateful bullshit against minorities of people who have no control of an aspect of their being, such as their sexual orientation or skin colour. That kinda shite legitimises discrimination
We are constantly being told that Rugby is “inclusive”. Well it wasn’t when I was regularly mocked for being a Christian and was never selected again for my club U20s team after I spoke to the coach about him using the name of Jesus as a swear word. It isn’t inclusive when Stuart Barnes is happy to put these “inclusive” words in print: “Always loathed the way those Islanders formed a circle post-match their praises to what I regard as a fabrication.’” His article in The Times goes a lot further. So please, stop telling us rugby is inclusive. It isn’t.
@AndrewHeather Lytle: I’ll take “shit that never happened” for 400 please Alex.
@Frantic Pigeon: What do you have difficulty believing? You don’t think that a young Christian was given a hard time in a rugby team? You don’t think that a young Christian would care enough about the name of Jesus to ask his coach to stop using it as a swear word? You don’t think that a coach could hold a grudge against a player? Or perhaps you don’t believe that Stuart Barnes could come out with racist anti-Christian abuse. Simon and Garfunkel were right: A man hears what he wants to hear and disregards the rest.
@AndrewHeather Lytle: Christians are not a race.
@John Ezekiel W. Minnock: Indeed not. When I said “racist” I was referring to Barnes’ comment about the “islanders”.
It’s hilarious how many people are defending a man who was fired for braking a contract that he agreed to after multiple warnings.
He broke his own rules by lying when he agreed to that contract. He also claims to be against coveting money, yet negotiated the highest paid contract in Australia. Another thing he argues is that people must be humble, yet he has his own flippin name tattood on his chest, which is perhaps the most prideful and arrogant thing someone can do.
He’s simply a hypocrite that uses religion as an excuse to discriminate against gay people.
@Rudiger McMonihan: He isn’t being fired for practicing religion. There are plenty of very religious people playing the sport. He’s being fired for spreading hatred against a minority group, that are already discriminated against by others. Rugby fans can’t claim to tolerate different races, genders and sexualities and then allow our highest profile athletes to spread hatred against them. The ARU are just firing a bully who has been given numerous opportunities to stop.
@Rudiger McMonihan: Spot on in all regards.
@Rudiger McMonihan: Nail on the head. There are several examples of very religious men who have represented Ireland at rugby and possibly share Folau’s views but have not felt the need to pontificate about it in public. That’s the key difference.
@Rudiger McMonihan: he didn’t spread any hatred, he simply restated the beliefs of his religion in public in an effort to save sinners. It is an act of almost ultimate love, not quite laying down his life to save sinners but sacrificing his career.
@Dino Baggio: there is an obvious parallel between Folau and the god whose faith he follows
Properly sick and tired of this story now. Just fire him and be done with it. Jeez.
Moral of the story is that if you’re a gay man who has cheated in the past and enjoys a pint then the chances are you and Izzy won’t be besties. In a dressing room with 22 men this won’t win you friends and as someone who would both very well paid and a senior squad member he should have considered this before logging into his Instagram.
“And out come the wolves”
If we don’t agree with free speach for those we despise, we dont agree with it all
Mr C
Bullshit Gordan Darcy how does a player with religious beliefs fit in to a dressing room if he has to keep these beliefs lets say in the closet# inclusitivity my arse# sounds more like Communism
@Brysonpieters: so he should keep it himself. Can’t imagine a team on earth that would benefit from a guy telling everyone they are all going to hell. As for communist, I’m pretty sure Falou has more in common with Stalin being as he used to send homosexuals to the gulag. Communism’s answer to hell.
@Patrick W-Healy: Dont think you know what Communism is u clown
@Brysonpieters: this should be good lol. Explain how penalising people telling others they are going to hell is communist. I suppose rte should allow Isis to broadcast their recruitment videos after the news so as not to discriminate against their religious beliefs.
@Brysonpieters: sounds like communism if you have no clue what communism is.
@Brysonpieters: You clearly don’t know what communism or inclusivity are. He’s entitled to his chosen beliefs, that’s all they are, but he’s not entitled to dish out out hateful bullshit against minorities of people who have no control of an aspect of their being, such as their sexual orientation or skin colour
Darcy is a clown.
Let’s be inclusive but exclude those guys because I don’t agree with them.
Muppet.
If Rory McIlroy came out on twitter today saying he’s joined a new religion where they have sex with dead bodies and that everyone should do it as it’s really good fun then he’d be in big trouble…. Why? Because he would be recommending something that is illegal. In the same way promoting racial hatred is illegal in Ireland and Australia.
This has nothing to do with free speech people. This is breaking the law. Free speech is when you share an opinion on twitter that is not breaking the law such as ‘Donald Trump is such an annoying man-baby. I wish Clinton had won the election’
Go and live in countries where it’s legal to insult gay people if you feel a need to do this.
@Stanley Baggins: if he did something illegal why has he not been arrested and charged?
Ah Folau, what a lunatic, they even dregged up Auld Darcy on the first day of his new job guiding tours at the Aviva.
@thesaltyurchin:
A classic thesaltyurchin post !!!
Anyone see his Instagram post?