Rugby:As the likes of Conor Murray, Fergus McFadden and Donnacha Ryan celebrated their inclusion in Ireland's World Cup squad, Declan Kidney preferred to commiserate with those that missed out on selection.
In dropping Tomas O’Leary and Luke Fitzgerald, deemed good enough British and Irish Lions just two years ago but surplus to requirements by the Irish management team after suffering dips in form, Kidney proved he is not afraid to make the hard calls.
That is not to say it is a situation he enjoys, and the coach was quick to heap praise on each and every one of the players involved in the Irish training camps this summer.
“I don't think there is any good way to give out bad news,” Kidney said at today’s squad announcement. “I have absolutely no doubt that some of the lads not selected will do what I call a 'Tommy Bowe' on it. They're going to come back and they're going to burn everybody up over the next 12 to 18 to 24 months.
“I'll be delighted when I see them do that. They're all fantastic players in their own right. It's not like we've had to search around for a player or two to fill the panel, we've had to leave top-quality players out.
“When you're giving out bad news, there's no point trying to fill these guys with smoke or stuff like that. They take it as the men they are and they move on and get themselves ready for their next game. That's what good pros do - it's fairly cut-throat that way. I can't speak highly enough of them."
“There are some extraordinarily difficult decisions. The one you’ve alluded to (O’Leary), he’s just one, because there were many more. I can't speak highly enough of the men that have been training with us . . . they took it in the way of the men that they are."
O’Leary’s exclusion affords Conor Murray the opportunity to make a name for himself as a genuine bolter after his swift rise through the ranks, first with Munster and now with Ireland. “What he can do is probably a little bit unknown,” Kidney explained.
“He finished last season well, he's had a very good pre-season. He's had limited enough opportunity on the pitch, but he's taken it with both hands and so that's how we ended up with that decision.”
McFadden’s inclusion was not quite as surprising, the versatile Leinster man get the nod ahead of his provincial teammate Fitzgerald:
“As a coaching team we've been lucky enough to be working with Fergus over a period of time,” Kidney added. "He was in the Churchill Cup two years ago, which is not test level, but he had a good tournament there.
He got an opportunity at the start of the Six Nations this year. He took that well. He was unlucky to lose out then and he's kept fighting. There are always marginal decisions to be made. We feel Fergus deserves it and that's why he's got it."
