There is a lot of interest in JJ Hanrahan at the moment and it is no surprise as he is an incredible talent
I know he has had issues with injuries and how much he can train but I would still like to see him getting more time in big games for Munster. He has been linked to Northampton Saints for next season and this is what can happen when young players are not getting the time on the pitch they feel their form merits.
Young guys want to play. It doesn’t really come down to money at the end of the day. Munster need to do everything they can to hold onto him. I would hate to see him leave. If they could give him some sort of commitment on game time, I’m sure he would stay.
Anthony Foley seems to have looked at his squad as an American Football coach would with a depth chart. He has told Ian Keatley he is his number one. Out-half is a pivotal position and you need stability there. Chopping and changing leads to confusion. Foley has said ‘You’re my guy’ and has stuck with him.
I think Hanrahan would also make a fantastic outside centre. He has superb agility and a low centre of gravity that reminds me of Brian O’Driscoll in that respect. He is also very similar in that he can make something out of nothing.
Rugby is steering towards an Australian style of having play-making 12’s and that is where Hanrahan has featured a bit this season. I would love to see him one more out, at outside centre, for a run of games. With a bit more space to operate in, he could do some real damage.
Performance anxiety
The issue of drugs and supplement use in rugby has come to the fore in the past week. Some players have spoken about drug testers coming to their house. They had my address and I had to provide them with details of where I would be on holidays, or away, on my four weeks off.
Donncha O’Callaghan had a tester call at his house before. He answered the door and there was yer man with a clipboard. Donncha brought him in and showed him to the ESB meter. Knowing him, you don’t know whether he thought he was there to read the meter or messing around.
I was tested plenty of times but it was always when I was in Munster and Ireland camp or after a match. It was always quite intrusive. There is a guy standing behind you and he has experience of all sorts of trickery so is taking nothing for granted. You are followed around the dressing room and into the showers to watch for tampering.
When it’s time to give your urine sample, you’re standing there with your sleeves rolled up and pants down, like a toddler, and a guy standing over your shoulder waiting for you to go. Add to that the worry of missing a plane, if you’re away, and it is hardly conducive to an easy flow.
Taking cortisone injections into injured joints, to aid with recovery, is common practice in sport, and every walk of life. I would have had a few injections – having received certs from doctors – and taken supplements like creatine and protein, as well as anti-inflammatories. You always checked with the team doctor to make sure everything was okay. I remember being asked what I had taken in the past week and, as I listed the items off, it dawned on me how much extra supplementation you need to take to play professional sport.
As I have asthma, I would have used ventolin and seretide inhalers but you always had to make sure you had all your paperwork – TUE (Therapeutic Use Exemption) form – in order before each season. At certain times we would have been warned not to take Lemsips as they might not be allowed. At other times, drinking too much coffee would show up in your results. The testing was all part and parcel of the game during my time. It was very welcome, in my opinion, to ensure we have a clean sport.
I believe that supplement use should not be allowed in schools. Any usage of players between 18 and 21 should be closely monitored and come hand-in-hand with proper education. At that age, and even in the professional ranks, there should never be an onus on taking supplements. It should be a voluntary thing. I don’t have a problem with professional sportspeople using it to refuel but, again, that monitoring and education needs to be there.
Walking wounded
Clermont had focused on the Munster game at Thomond Park as soon as the Champions Cup draw was made, and it showed. Munster were a bit off in the physicality stakes, in their 16-9 loss to Clermont, stood off them, let them play and offload. Fritz Lee was incredible; not only in his try but the offload for Wesley Fofana’s try, work-rate and the way he buzzed around the pitch. He typified Clermont’s attitude. They set out not to give an inch and they smothered Munster all night.
They set out to turn Munster over from the first minute to the last. The tactic was encapsulated in their turnover at the restart and Damien Chouly getting a vital hand on line-out ball aimed for Paul O’Connell. They seemed to know that call was coming. It came down to those fine margins and still, Munster were a score away from getting a draw.
Clermont have a clean bill of health whereas, for all of their upbeat messages, Munster look to be without Dave Kilcoyne and James Cronin. John Ryan will have a lot weighing on his shoulders on Sunday. They may Andrew Smith back in midfield while Andrew Conway, Johne Murphy or Ronan O’Mahony can come in for Gerhard van den Heever.
Munster need to use that pain they having been feeling all week and channel it into a big performance on Sunday. It will be a massive challenge as Clermont are a serious team and ones that must feel they have a formula to beat Munster. I would never write them off, however. If there is one team that can go to Clermont and win, it’s Munster. Like I said last time, they need a good start. If they can do to Clermont like Clermont did
As for the other two Irish provinces in Champions Cup action, Ulster are looking back in form following the return of Ruan Pienaar – he is the world’s best scrum-half and possibly the best out-half too. Harlequins will really miss Chris Robshaw but even if he was playing I would still be predicting a home win for Leinster.
