Kidney happy to be out in the cold again

IRELAND NEWS: THIS WEEK in Limerick has been about introspection for an extended Ireland rugby squad, an acclimatisation process centring on implementation of new ideas and the development of playing parameters that will take the national squad through three November Tests, against Canada, New Zealand and Argentina.

For the new coaching team under the baton of Declan Kidney it represented an opportunity to appraise the players on patterns of play, introducing new systems and call structures. The emphasis was very much inward looking with only a rudimentary acknowledgement of tomorrow week's match against Canada at Thomond Park.

The specifics of preparing for the Canucks will be attended to starting next Monday and will no doubt include footage of the Canadians game against Portugal that takes place tomorrow. Kidney has enjoyed the opportunity to trade the abstract of planning for the concrete environment of the training ground.

He admitted: "It's only really when you get to do the sessions that you learn more and more about each other and get new ideas from guys coming in who are very experienced. Even though it's the same thing that we're all trying to achieve, it's just someone coming at it from a different angle. It has been a good learning experience. It's been different to the last few weeks, I've been to a lot of meetings and it's good to be out in the cold again. It's been a very enjoyable week from that point of view."

The only distraction has been the stance taken by the PRL, the umbrella body of the English Premiership clubs, who refused to release four Irish players - Geordan Murphy, Bob Casey, Mike Ross and Roger Wilson - for this week's training camp.

Ireland team manager Paul McNaughton pointed out that those players would be released - under regulation nine of the IRB laws - for the New Zealand and Argentina games and that the issue regarding player releases for international duty was due to be addressed at an IRB meeting in Dublin on November 25th.

Kidney was adamant the players in question wouldn't be used as a debating point in any potential dispute with the PRL.

"I think it has been unfortunate for the lads who are involved. When you're not at training sessions you're always at a bit of a disadvantage, not knowing what goes on and it puts you behind a small bit.

"We're not going to use the players in that game. We'll see who the best group is to bring in next week. But it's not a help to anybody, to those players involved and to ourselves. Like every other challenge in life you have to work your way around it, rather than complain about it."

Approximately 30 players will be named in a pared down Ireland squad after training this morning from which the match squad for the Canada game will be announced. Brian O'Driscoll, who has largely recovered from a knee injury, conceded the new coaching set-up guaranteed that nothing was taken for granted. "Now that we have had a chance to settle in, I think there's good excitement within the squad.

"Obviously from a back-line point of view there's huge competition. In terms of the forwards, that's always been there, but maybe a little bit less so in the backs. But now with the likes of Keith Earls playing great stuff, Rob Kearney, Lukey (Luke Fitzgerald), we have guys who can play in a number of different positions so I don't think anyone's properly safe which is a great place to be at: you really have to be on the top of your game to retain your 1 to 15 jersey."

He also addressed the issue of captaincy. "It's always been a huge honour for me. With the new coach coming in, that brings something new as well. Declan had to choose among a huge number of great leaders. I was delighted to be asked to remain on as captain for the November series and play it by ear after that. It's something I've really enjoyed and to have been able to do it 48 times has been fantastic. Hopefully, I can lead Ireland to something special."

Kidney finally gets a chance to prepare Ireland for the first time since accepting the position. He admitted: "It's daunting and it's challenging, you can get frightened and you can get exhilarated, you have all those feelings. It's a huge challenge.

"There's an onus to get the preparation right and to get players to play to the best of their ability. The team is built on the strength of the provinces, because of the good work that's going on in all four provinces.

"The Leinster and Munster results have been excellent obviously but the improvements in performances from the other teams has been beneficial for the less experienced players, so there's huge credit due there too. My job is to focus on how the teams are playing and if they're improving along the lines and then cherry pick from those players to represent us all.

"We are just trying to add a small bit to that to see if we can move it on. We're just holding it for the time being. What went on before was exceptional. To get three Triple Crowns in the last six years was a great achievement.

"Our job now is to try and add on to that. There'll be some new players coming into it over the coming years that will change the shape of the team and as a result the way (the team) plays. But those new players will change the way we play as much as anything we will bring into it."