O'Sullivan blueprint still a work in progress
Eddie O’Sullivan refuses to view Ireland’s encouraging performance in the RBS 6 Nations as vindication of his judgment and is eager to begin the next phase of development.
A disappointing 2005 championship and poor November series saw Ireland’s head coach come under increasing pressure with his tactical nous and team selections in the firing line.
O’Sullivan’s popularity had dipped so far that in the build-up to this year’s Six Nations opener against Italy he was even forced to deny claims he had become a “despot“.
A second Triple Crown in three years and runners-up spot in the table, losing out to France on points difference alone, could be viewed as a satisfying response to the critics.
But O’Sullivan would rather focus on the steely edge developed by his side during an arduous campaign.
“I knew at the start it would be a difficult season for us,” he said.
“The November series was hard for us because we were playing Australia and New Zealand without Brian O’Driscoll and Paul O’Connell.
“We battled through the autumn and then knew the Six Nations would be full of tight games. We ended up going to Twickenham with a shot at the title.
“It wasn’t easy but when faced with adverse situations and when things aren’t working out for you, you can become stronger or weaker.
“We have dug deep and taken the rough with the smooth and come through a better team than six months ago.
“It’s not about vindication, it’s always been about trying to develop a better rugby team. I said at the start we’re going through a transitional phase.
“The team that played against England is almost half the team which finished in Cardiff last season. That’s transition and we’re not done yet.”
O’Sullivan initiated a more ambitious gameplan in time for the autumn series but the players struggled to implement it amid a sea of errors and poor decision making.
But the Irish boss insists there are signs his blueprint is being realised on the pitch and knows the true test of progress will come during the summer tour to New Zealand and Australia.
“Part of the transition is knowing what you want to do with the football. It’s also about having confidence in the team to execute,” he said.
“When we started out in the autumn it didn’t go so well. We made mistakes and were punished harshly by New Zealand and Australia.
“But we were going in the right direction and are playing better rugby now. It’s always work in progress and we are very happy with the Six Nations.
“We’ve taken a step forward. There are another three Tests at the end of the season and hopefully we’ll become a better team during those.”
There was little champagne rugby on show in what has been widely viewed as a desperately poor Six Nations but O’Sullivan relished the hard-fought wars of attrition.
“You can look at it two ways in saying the standard has been poor for seven weeks or that the competition was so tight no one could pull away,” he said.
“Our game against England was a cracking affair, whatever your thoughts on the Six Nations. If we hadn’t won that game I would have been disappointed but couldn’t have complained too much because both teams played very well.
“The tournament is very important in terms of the northern hemisphere preparing for the World Cup. The tougher the Six Nations is, the more we benefit for the World Cup.
“People have been disappointed that it wasn’t an end-to-end flowing Six Nations, but I thought it was a tough, hard tournament. Most of the teams are in transition and working hard on their squad.
“The value for everybody will be seen in a year when we get to the World Cup.”
