Mick Kearney, the squad manager, and seasoned players Johnny Sexton and Keith Earls have already said adieu to Ireland. In the days and weeks to come, there might be more exits.
While most rugby fans will be glued to the World Cup final this weekend, others in Ireland are reacquainting themselves with the United Rugby Championship and making predictions about who will join and leave the Test squad.
Andy Farrell has a contract with the IRFU that expires in August 2025. During that time, he may also serve as the head coach of the British & Irish Lions, but he may continue until the Australian World Cup in 2027. According to a story in The Sunday Times, Mike Catt might resign from his position as Ireland’s offensive coach.
The former England international has been with Ireland for almost four years and has come in for a lot of praise, in the past two years, as the team’s attacking side evolved. The report states that Catt may well stay on until after the 2024 Six Nations, giving Farrell and the IRFU time to find the new attack coach and bed them in.
‘There’s not much HR in professional sport!” – Mike Ross on Johnny Sexton
Recent reports regarding Mike Catt’s potential exit from the Ireland coaching staff have raised the possibility of Johnny Sexton taking over as backs coach.
Mike Prendergast (Munster) and Andrew Goodman (Leinster) would come up in conversation when discussing the provinces; former Ulster and Ireland back Jared Payne, as well as Ireland U20 coach Richie Murphy, have made seamless transitions into coaching. Payne became an attack coach for the Scarlets in the summer.
Many of Sexton’s old teammates think he will eventually follow his career as an on-field coach for Leinster and Ireland, where he has long been recognized.
In an interview with The Irish Times, earlier this year, Sexton said that while coaching may be in his future, he does not see an immediate bridge to it. He commented:
“I would never say never, you never know what life is going to throw at you. It wouldn’t be my plan straight away, if an offer came in, it wouldn’t be right for me to coach with guys I played with the last number of years.”
A former teammate of Sexton’s from Leinster and Ireland shared his thoughts on Sexton’s transition into life beyond rugby during a recent House of Rugby event.
“I don’t think he’ll go straight into coaching. Maybe he’ll give the corporate world a go, first, and see how he gets on in that.
“He may have to watch out for HR [Human Resources] in corporate. There’s not much HR in professional sport. You can’t be telling someone what you really think of them!”
Sexton’s next move is expected to be accepting a sustainability position with the packaging manufacturer Ardagh Group. Following Ireland’s quarterfinal defeat by New Zealand, Johnny Sexton predicted that Andy Farrell and his team would accomplish great things in the years to come.
“This group will recover,” he predicted. “The man standing next to me is leading this amazing group. Without a doubt the greatest group I have ever been a member of. These individuals are going to do amazing things, and like you guys, I’ll be sitting in the stand sipping a pint.”
