It’s become a game within a game, and a compelling one at that. When the 50/22 was first adopted from rugby league, spectators and even commentators took a little time to adapt, in immediately realising when they had been executed. Now there is a sense of anticipation when they are attempted, and huge roars greet them when executed.
Not alone are 50/22s forcing teams to keep players in the backfield and free up space in the front line, but failure to do so means they can be severely punished. The reward of an attacking lineout can almost seem more impactful than a penalty to touch, for a 50/22 can be transformative moments, a new skill with high rewards.
Typical of such a smart team, Ireland have quickly become masters of the art.
In the 56th minute of that titanic Ireland-France Six Nations game at the Aviva Stadium last February, with Ireland still protecting their 22-16 interval lead, moments after James Lowe had nearly completed a 50/22 along the left touchline with a trademark banana kick, Romain Ntamack cleared long from the ensuing French lineout.
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Lowe gathered, weighed up his options but instead of again kicking along that touchline, passed infield to Hugo Keenan on the Irish 10-metre line. Measuring his diagonal kick toward the opposite flank perfectly, with only Ntamack in the backfield, he carefully found grass inside the French 22, the ball bouncing twice over the touchline 10 metres out. From the resultant attack, Ross Byrne’s penalty made it a two-score game, and although a Thomas Ramos penalty would bring the score back to 25-19, Garry Ringrose’s try would seal the 32-19 win.
Cue the England-France game at Twickenham. With France leading 10-0 in the 26th minute, Antoine Dupont shifted on to his weaker left foot on his own 10-metre line from a French ruck and arrowed his kick into the right-hand side of the English 22, finding touch five metres out. Within 70 seconds, four phases off the ensuing lineout, Thibaud Flament was ploughing through Lewis Ludlam and Henry Slade to put France 17-0 ahead.
Entering the last 12 minutes of the Toulouse-Sharks Champions Cup quarter-final, with the home side leading an absorbing contest by 26-20, Curwin Bosch fly-hacked a loose Flament offload upfield. Ramos knew what was coming next before anyone else in the stadium. He had the presence of mind to step back into his own half, gather and immediately loft a right-footed kick to find touch within five metres of the Sharks line via two bounces.
Within 45 seconds Dupont had sniped off the Toulouse catch-and-drive, stepped and offloaded for Peato Mauvaka to score. Game over. Literally.
Next Saturday’s monumental Champions Cup semi-final between Leinster and Toulouse at the Aviva Stadium (kick-off 3pm) features all these aforementioned Irish and French players again, bar Lowe, and some are among the finest exponents of the 50/22.
Like any fullback especially, Keenan has to be constantly alert to both the potential rewards and punishments.
“It’s just an extra challenge, isn’t it, constantly being alive. You look at that Freddie Steward and Jack van Poortvliet clip where they were swapping in the back field and Dupont’s left foot into that corner,” he says, recalling that 50/22 at Twickenham.
“That’s the sort of talent you’re up against. But it’s the challenge you want to be facing, and a challenge to be getting excited about as well.”
“It’s exciting that 50/22s are in because I suppose it adds a bit more of an emphasis on the back field and getting it right. Fullbacks appreciate that I think. Even the crowd getting behind them every time and it’s something that they enjoy, and it brings a big lift to the stadiums as well.”
The heads-up awareness and talent of players such as Dupont, Ntamack and Ramos demand constant awareness. And another of the Toulouse threats is the way they transition or counterattack from their own half better than any team in Europe, while also bringing more of a tactical kicking game than was the case when Leinster beat them at the same stage and venue 12 months ago.
“They’ve got the most kick metres in the Champions Cup,” Keenan acknowledges. “They just choose their time to counterattack, choose their time to go from deep, but they’ll enter into those kick battles with Ntamack and Ramos back there and Dupont or whoever it is, they’ve got a lot of kicking options. They’re definitely doing it a bit more.”
For his sins, Keenan is a Chelsea fan and during the front liners’ week off after the quarter-final win over Leicester, along with Ciarán Frawley and Jimmy O’Brien, he was at the Bernabéu a fortnight ago when Real Madrid completed a routine Champions League second-leg win.
“A pity about the result but it’s a cool atmosphere, a cool stadium, there’s a good buzz around it. Todd Boehly [Chelsea’s co-owner] did come out and say we were going to get a 3-0 win, but I don’t think anyone was believing that.”
At least Boehly’s scattergun spending spree and malfunctioning club has to make Keenan appreciate being part of a well-run sporting organisation?
“Yeah, you’ve got to appreciate it, you know?” he admits, laughing. “No, it’s tough being in here with all the United, Liverpool and Arsenal fans. There’s not many Chelsea lads around, so I’m getting a good bit of stick.”
Keenan believes there’s not much correlation between the two sports, save for “scanning”.
“There’s that clip of Frank Lampard constantly looking over his shoulder – he did it 20 or 30 times before setting up a pass and ultimately setting up a goal. Stu [Lancaster] loves it. He’s shown it a few times now.
“We talk about it a lot, about seeing pictures and seeing what people are doing off the ball, what resources you have as well as what they have, in both attack and defence.”
Keenan readily admits Toulouse are much more of a danger this time than at the same point a year ago, for a myriad of reasons.
“They’re in a rich vein of form so they’ll be fancying their chances and they’ll be motivated after last year. But I suppose they’re the ones with five stars. They got there before us. That’s the way we’re looking at it. So, we’re not going to be shy of motivation either.”
By Keenan’s ever-polite, mild-mannered standards, this almost constitutes a rebuke. The point being that Toulouse don’t have a monopoly on motivation this Saturday.
