Nov 27,2024
Paul O'Connell has backed Joe Schmidt to make Australian rugby a force once again, and says the ex-Ireland coach’s fingerprints are still all over this current Irish side.
Schmidt, who won three Six Nations titles as Ireland coach between 2013 and 2019, took charge of the Wallabies in 2024 following their disastrous Rugby World Cup campaign, having worked as an assistant coach at the All Blacks in 2023.
The New Zealander is only contracted with the Wallabies until the end of the British and Irish Lions series next summer, and has been coy on whether or not he will remain.
O’Connell served as captain of Ireland when Schmidt was in charge, and says elements of his former coach’s work remain in place, even five years after his departure.
"We would still do bits and pieces of what he had in place back in the day," the Ireland forwards coach said.
"Everyone is probably doing some kind of version of the same thing at the breakdown anyway, but we still have bits and pieces of the language that he used to use. That was a big part of how he coached.
"He was the first ever coach really that I experienced that was very consistent in how he spoke about various parts of the game and because of that you had real clarity in what was expected in different parts of the game, and the ruck was no different."
The former Ireland second row has also credited Schmidt with bringing a colder approach to the game, moving away from the old Irish attitude towards motivation.
"He was very clear in how he coached," he said.
"I think coaching had moved on a lot but we were still relying a little bit on emotion at times whereas he was technically very good.
"Everyone talks about his detail. He has very good teaching principles. He wouldn't just tell you what he wanted you to do, through the sessions he would actually give you a pathway of how to change the habit or getting better at something. That was a really enjoyable aspect for me."
O’Connell says he still works off those principles to this day.
"I think the emotion is probably the icing on the cake now, whereas maybe back in my day it was the whole cake, we weren't too worried about the icing," he said.
"And listen, I think they're playing for Ireland, their families are in the crowd, they're playing with their mates, they're doing something they dreamed of, so the emotion is always there for them. They probably don't need the likes of myself adding to it in any way.
"So, I think it's something they've been really good at in recent years, managing that so it adds to their performance rather than maybe dulls their decision making or dulls their ability to handle a big moment or dulls their ability to handle a mistake. I think they've gotten really good at that in recent years."
While Schmidt has stabilised the Wallabies in 2024, they remain an inconsistent side. Their wins against England and Wales have been real highs, but there has also been a record defeat to Argentina, as well as Sunday’s loss away to Scotland where their performance petered out in the second half.
However, O’Connell says they are showing clear signs of progress.
"I am a forwards coach but Wales did really well in their maul defence against South Africa at the weekend and they would be a really good mauling side," said the former Munster lock.
"So for Australia to score two and nearly three mauling tries against them is pretty impressive.
"You will always have a set-piece threat whenever you have a team coached by Joe so that is always a challenge.
"They reload their backline very well and they always have a lot of x-factor in Australia, a lot of great athletes where you can prepare all you want but its how you deal with it in the moment. That’s where we have been focusing a lot of our preparation.
"He is very good at putting the right people in the right places to make it work so there has always been big respect for us with every team, and southern hemisphere teams in particular.
"You look at the talent they have, the physical size, the coaching staff, you know they are going to be organized and they will get better and better.
"You cannot not work hard in a Joe Schmidt team. You'll have a plan and you'll know inside out how to deliver that plan. When you have a team of good, talented players that is half the battle.
"For us it is a big challenge and part of that is knowing what they bring because Joe has coached us before. We know how clear he can be and that clarity allows players to play with a lot of intent and a lot of physicality so it is a big challenge."
