Brian O’Driscoll is still a bit raw after Sunday, Conor O’Shea won’t be following in Declan Kidney’s footsteps anytime soon and there was some bad news for Paddy Wallace today.
Drico not pulling any punches (video)
Yesterday, we elaborated upon the brutal honesty of both Donncha O’Callaghan and Rob Kearney in the wake of the Scottish defeat and that theme was continued by Brian O’Driscoll in an interview with RTE Sport earlier today.
O’Driscoll’s frustration at what happened is there for all to see as he laments the concession of ‘stupid penalties you wouldn’t see given away at schoolboy level’ and an inability to convert opportunities, while the issue of Declan Kidney’s future is evaded with the skill he has evaded many, many tackles over the years.
For a snippet of what O’Driscoll had to say, check out the video below and to see the interview in full, click here.
Conor O’Shea won’t be in line for the Irish job anytime soon
Enter into a discussion about the candidates to succeed Declan Kidney whenever he does leave the Irish post and Conor O’Shea’s name won’t be far from the top of the list. It’s not hard to see why either.
He’s worked wonders with Harlequins, he seems to command respect amongst rugby people on both sides of the water and he comes across as a very impressive individual anytime he’s in the RTE studio, even if he does benefit from the fact that anyone would look sensible alongside George Hook.
Unfortunately for those hoping he might take up the reins of the national side, it doesn’t appear as if that will be happening anytime in the near future.
“I’m contracted to Harlequins until the end of the 2013-14 season. I will be honouring that commitment and hopefully continuing beyond it,” O’Shea said today and given his desire to stay where he is for the time being and his success with ‘Quins to date, it seems likely that he will remain at The Stoop for some time yet.
The possibility of O’Shea becoming Ireland coach in the future shouldn’t be ruled out, but it seems as if there will be at least one new man given the role in the post-Kidney era before the RTE pundit.
More injury woe for Wallace
Paddy Wallace mightn’t be the most popular player amongst Irish rugby followers – he was the victim of criticism that was often unfair over the years – but he’s played a crucial role in an Ulster side that have conquered pretty much all before them so far this season and he’s keeping Luke Marshall out of the first team so he must be doing something right.
The centre will play no further part for Mark Anscombe’s side in this campaign, however, after it was confirmed that he ruptured his anterior cruciate ligament in the Rabo 12 defeat to Glasgow on Friday night.
Wallace faces several months on the sidelines as a result and it will be next season before we see him back in the Ulster colours.
While we wish Paddy all the best with his recovery, we’re also hoping that he refrains from posting similar pictures the ones he put up on his Twitter page following thumb surgery in late 2011 (if you have the stomach for it, you can check out those pictures here).
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