That's a real shame.

Hope his replacement is good.

I would have wondered whether he wanted to go over to Ireland given O'Sullivan's departure, but he's done us proud and hopefully his replacement will too.

Special times ahead says Conor O’Shea

Conor O’Shea believes that there are exciting times ahead for English rugby.

The former Ireland international currently in charge of developing England’s future internationals was yesterday named as the English Institute of Sport’s new national Director.

But O’Shea, the RFU’s Director of the National Academy, told today’s Gillette Rugby Podcast that he was sad to be leaving the sport.

“I remember watching England in 2000/01 and you almost didn’t want the whistle to go because it was so exciting. I think we’re moving back towards those days again.

“If you look behind what’s happening, I think most people can see that there’s something pretty special about to happen and evolve over the next 12-18 months.

“There’s no doubt that the excitement within the general rugby loving public over the sort of kids coming though is well founded.

“The proof of the pudding will be over the years to come but I don’t think it will be long before an English team will be playing a very, very exciting brand of rugby that people will love to watch.”

With the rise to prominence of the first generation of the RFU’s National Academy players, O’Shea paid tribute to the many people that make the system work.

“The academies have produced a welter of outstanding young talent, we’re finally seeing the first intake of the academy in 2001/02. Massive credit must go to the guys on the ground in the clubs and their Academies who’ve known about the likes of Shane Geraghty, Toby Flood, Mathew Tait, Dylan Hartley, James Haskell, Danny Cipriani and Tom Croft for years.

“When you look at the team on the pitch against Ireland, although not all of them are young, I think the six, seven, eight, nine, 10 and 12 averaged about three caps between them.

“The job now is to make sure there is another generation coming up underneath them.”

With England’s U20s recording a Grand Slam this year and the Saxons undefeated in almost 18 months, the future is already looking bright in that department.

“Through my new role with the EIS, I will continue to work with rugby, along with a host of other sports,” continued O’Shea. “It’s an honour and a privilege to be given this new opportunity.

“When you are a sportsperson, every day is about learning and continually improving. It’s going to be a massive challenge for me but it’s an opportunity I just couldn’t turn down.”

Sharing in the success this year are England’s women. Led by Gary Street, the team secured a record third successive Grand Slam title. “Some of the rugby we’ve played has been unstoppable this year,” said Gary. “We’re just seeing things click and that’s partly due to the programmes that have been in place for some years now starting to come to fruition.”

A very fruitful career is still being enjoyed by 80-year-old Don ‘Dippy’ Jones. Explaining why he’s still blowing a whistle after 41 years, the Stourbridge referee says it’s all down to enjoyment. “I did a few games when I retired at 39 and found that I was so interested I joined the North Mids referees society straight away.

“I should think I’ve done around 40 games a season so that’s 1,600 games and I enjoy it all the time. What people should have a go – they’re missing out if they leave the game altogether.”

At the other end of the spectrum, Callum Mackinnon-Snell from Dorking has a lifetime of officiating ahead of him. The 12-year-old has just qualified for his RFU Refereeing Mini and Midi Rugby Award and is hoping to follow in the footsteps of elite referee Wayne Barnes.


“I wasn’t that good when I was playing as an under nine so my dad and I came up with a plan to try refereeing,” explained Callum. “I know Wayne’s also a lawyer and that’s what I want to be. I’m hoping that my refereeing can support me though university because I’d really love to be an international referee and a lawyer.”

You can hear the full interviews by listening to the official Gillette Rugby Podcast at www.rfu.com/podcast
[www.rfu.com]

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Launched just over a year ago, the weekly Gillette Rugby Podcast takes a topical look at the world of rugby, addressing issues from the elite game right through to the grass roots.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2008:03:20:13:03:47 by Kath..