David Corkery
Graham Rowntree: scapegoat or victim of a system that’s not fit for purpose?
You decide, but those in Irish rugby who call the shots are walking on a fragment of very thin ice right now. They’ll pat themselves on the back when things are going well but where is the public ownership when they don’t?
If all was fair in love and war, but it isn’t, many of the Munster players should be looking for new clubs, not Rowntree. He isn’t the one who is out there missing tackles or making silly, unforced handling errors.
I dropped many a ball in my time, it is always the coach that seems to be hung out to dry.
‘If you always do what you’ve always done, you will always get what you’ve always got…’
In Munster’s case, this slogan needs to be plastered all over the walls of their boardroom and drilled into the heads of those who make the decisions. Or should I say are put forward to the IRFU decision-makers.
Many coaches have their hands tied behind their backs when it comes to running the team the way they want it to be run and it was the same in Rowntree’s situation. Just imagine taking over a company with your only job being to make it successful but you are not allowed control the purse strings, employ who you want and helplessly watch on as your key employees are transferred to your biggest rivals…
I still cringe at the RG Snyman situation.
Of the many names that are being bandied about to replace Rowntree, I can’t see many of them even being remotely interested in the job. Unless they can negotiate a contract that allows them the full freedom of player signings, why would they?
What Munster need is someone who will be happy to live or die by the sword they wield, not content to tow the party line.
For those looking at Irish rugby through lens of Irish and Leinster success, the current system isn’t fit for purpose. Yes, the Irish sit on top of the world rankings, but it has come at a cost.
DIVIDE
Irish rugby now exists only in two realms.
The first of these realms is represented by our national side who create 90% of the revenue. It pays the players, coaches, physios, doctors, nutritionists and so on
The second domain is the one that is fuelling the first. That is of course Leinster, who in all fairness have a well-oiled conveyor belt that is spitting out top-level international players quicker than Munster can leak scores in the opening minutes of games.
Apart from these two entities everyone else who strives to make Irish rugby a better place is struggling.
I think all those who truly follow Munster rugby, not those who just jump on the bandwagon when they are doing well, will just have to suffer in the trenches for some time to come.
Until the national side start to stumble or the Leinster production line breaks down, the IRFU will be very slow to change anything. And I guess they would be foolish to do so.
Welcome to the cold-blooded and all too often spineless world of professional sport.