David Nucifora’s tenure as the IRFU high-performance manager definitely coincided with a hugely profitable era for the Irish rugby team. The more centralised focus under his watch emulated his time in Australia and, as the national team is the cash cow of Irish rugby, Nucifora was very much adhering to the IRFU’s policies.
There was also unprecedented growth for the Ireland Sevens teams and, despite the lack of a strong working relationship, Leinster remained a force, but there’s also no doubt that by the time Nucifora moved on the other three provinces had never been so far adrift.
A year since he assumed Nucifora’s remit, the current high-performance manager David Humphreys isn’t shy about stating this remains the biggest threat to Irish rugby’s future wellbeing.
Hence, Humphreys and the union have decided to cull the men’s Sevens programme and recalibrate their provincial contracting system, thereby freeing up sums of €1.2 million and €700,000 to be redistributed among Connacht, Munster and Ulster as well as the women’s game.
To that end, Humphreys has also sought to work in greater collaboration with all four provinces, for his stated aim is to upgrade the other three rather than downgrade Leinster.
“I said it 12 months ago that the biggest challenge we’ve got is that we have one province that is incredibly good at nearly everything. That’s a huge credit to Shane [Nolan, CEO], Leo [Cullen] and Guy [Easterby] for the work they’ve done but also how they interact with the IRFU. Certainly, over the time I’ve been here, they have been great to deal with. They’ve got a brilliant set-up.
“When I first came in, there was a lot of talk around ‘Leinster are too strong.’ In a high-performance system, a team can never be too strong. Ultimately, the goal is to be the very, very best. They are very close to being in that position.
“But the challenge that I believe we in the IRFU have, and in my role, is to make the other three more competitive,” said Humphreys, following a URC campaign when Munster, Connacht and Ulster finished an alarming 25, 37 and 38 points respectively adrift of Leinster.
Unforeseen and disruptive coaching reshuffles at Munster and Connacht, along with an injury crisis at Ulster, were contributory factors. “It’s felt like a lot of things that could go wrong have gone wrong,” said Humphreys.
However, with Clayton MacMillan and Stuart Lancaster aboard in Munster and Connacht, he added: “I have no doubt that next year will be much stronger and much better, across the provinces.”
Even so, speaking to the media this week, Humphreys admitted that the challenge remains how to close the gap. Flexible recruitment by the provinces can be “a short-term solution”, but longer-term answers are more important.
“I fundamentally believe, based on my experience, what we’ve seen working through the Irish system is that if we can support players below what is traditionally considered the pathway, going into the schools system and putting directors of rugby in there or supporting schools in a way they feel is necessary to improve their rugby programme, we can get a longer-term fix which will ultimately improve the provinces and support Ireland.”
Culling the men’s Sevens programme was, he said, “a performance-based” rather than simply a financial decision.
“The budgets are not being cut,” stressed Humphreys. “The money we’re going to save from finishing the men’s Sevens programme is going entirely into investing in the three provincial pathways and the women’s game.”
Humphreys admits to regrets over how the union’s decision to cease the men’s Sevens programme was “rushed”. Although the remaining five months of the players’ contracts were paid up, and their medical health insurance was extended, while some players have been placed on trial in the provinces, Humphreys admitted: “Ultimately to be rushed the way it was, was uncomfortable for us all and probably didn’t help the wider reaction, than if it had been done in a much more controlled manner.”
After a golden era for the Ireland under-20s, Humphreys said the recent Six Nations wooden spoon was in part the product of a “a perfect storm”, primarily injuries, and is not necessarily an indicator of future professionals coming through that pathway.
But this must also be a bigger concern for Humphreys than he is letting on, and Nathan Doak’s role as the under-20s head coach will remain under scrutiny in advance of their opening game against Georgia in the Under-20 World Championships in Calvisano on Sunday and ensuing pool games against Italy and New Zealand.
A year ago, Humphreys generated headlines when decreeing that the provinces would not be permitted to sign front-rowers. But, on foot of sanctioning Rabah Slimani’s contract extension at Leinster, and Wallabies’ prop Angus Bell joining Ulster on a short-term deal, he appears to have had a volte face.
But Humphreys argued, not unreasonably, that his initial decree was part of “a very deliberate strategy” designed to “encourage conversations with the provinces”, which has contributed to more game time for Jack Boyle and Thomas Clarkson, as well as Michael Milne and Lee Barron moving from Leinster to Munster.
“I also think part of working in high performance is there has to be flexibility,” said Humphreys, while admitting he is now less concerned about Ireland’s depth chart at prop.
The delicate management of game minutes by the union and the provinces will continue to apply to both non-Irish and Irish-qualified players and hence will be affected by the depth in some positions.
“I actually think that’s a good compromise to ensure competitiveness of the provincial teams but also ensuring the long-term development of Irish players.”
In all of this, Humphreys stressed that the union will never move a player against their will. “A sports career is a short career. I genuinely want our players to love their time as professional rugby players.”
Previously, the IRFU have publicly declared some KPIs (key performance indicators) that can, admittedly, seem highly aspirational. But, while KPIs are part of their strategic plan, Humphreys is not inclined to make them public, perhaps for fear of him and the union being hoist by their own petard.
Instead, he talks about the need to “create winning teams” and to “take small steps” and maintains that this season was “a blip” after Connacht and Ulster failed to qualify for the URC play-offs and next season’s Champions Cup, while Munster only did so on the last weekend.
Yet when the draw is made for the 2025-26 Champions Cup next Tuesday, Ireland will only have two teams in the competition for the first time, and Humphreys’s concern is palpable.
“Ultimately, if Leinster keep pushing the boundaries and the other provinces keep working towards closing it, we’re going to have a stronger national team and stronger provinces.
“The timeline is almost irrelevant. The challenge is to make sure we are closing the gap, and from an IRFU perspective, that we’re making the decisions which are right, to ensure that yes, the challenge is on the provinces to do what they need to do, but the challenge is on us as the governing body to make sure that we’re supporting them to close that gap.”
