ANDY FARRELL’S DECISION not to include Gavin Coombes in Ireland’s 35-man-squad for the upcoming South Africa series was discussed on today’s subscriber exclusive Rugby Weekly podcast.

“Clearly he still has a point to prove to Andy Farrell and Paul O’Connell who is the forward coach and would have a big say in these kind of selections. No doubt its very tough for him but you’ve got to acknowledge that Nick Timoney has earned a return to the mix,” Murray Kinsella said.

“I’ve watched every game all season and Timoney, even in a losing Ulster side at times, has been consistently excellent. He’s so dynamic, at the breakdown he’s excellent, really good change up in terms of his ball carries, great acceleration, unbelievable kick chase, loads of things that Ireland want from their back-rows.

“You’re right to flag that Paul O’Connell is the forward coach,” Rugby Weekly Extra host Gavan Casey commented.

“For Munster fans with Coombes it almost feels like a sensitive topic because he’s so regularly overlooked despite nearly always playing very well. If Paul O’Connell badly wanted Gavin Coombes in the squad, then he’d be in the squad. People kind of mistake the selection as just Andy Farrell writing down names on a list. This is a collaborative effort.” 

Having been a regular starter and key player in Munster’s URC title victory last season, Coombes’ chances of being included by Farrell have potentially been diminished by his new role as impact player in Munster’s 6/2 bench split.

“I don’t think the end of the season really helped him because I think things did tail off a little,” Ciaran Kennedy said.

“As good as his season was, he was being used as an impact player off the bench. While that worked at times for Munster, in an ideal world the best version of Gavin Coombes is giving Munster 60-80 minutes every week.

“Once you are not starting for your province, if you’re not already an important part of that Ireland squad, it becomes increasingly difficult to play your way back into that picture.”

Up until Munster’s URC semi-final defeat vs Glasgow, they had won every game since tweaking things in South Africa and employing Coombes as a regular impact sub.

“I think the frustration is magnified for Munster fans because maybe more than any of the other provinces, there’s a couple of guys that they can point to and say they’re unlucky not to get in,“ Kennedy said. 

“I thought Jeremy Loughman had an excellent end to the season. You look at someone like Shane Daly playing every game of the season for Munster. John Hodnett is maybe another one who has had an excellent season. There’s a couple that they can look at and say ‘he’s really good for us all season and he’s not there’.

“Coombes is maybe the most obvious example of that.”

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