Bernard Jackman: Jack Crowley deserves start against All Blacks after ‘coming of age’ performance
Munster fly-half Jack Crowley and Leinster's Sam Prendergast.
Former Ireland hooker Bernard Jackman believes that Jack Crowley has done enough to warrant a start against the All Blacks in Chicago.
Andy Farrell and his charges have convened following this weekend’s United Rugby Championship action as they ramp up preparations for the upcoming Autumn Nations Series, with New Zealand first up next week.
It is the first time that Farrell takes charge of the side in almost a year after stepping aside during the Six Nations to prepare for the British and Irish Lions Series.
While he is set to name a largely predictable team to face the All Blacks, the major debate is who should start in the number 10 jersey for Ireland: Sam Prendergast or Crowley.
At Croke Park, it was the Munsterman who shone, producing a man of the match performance to defeat Leinster 31-14. Crowley played a pivotal role in the win, converting all three of his conversion attempts and adding a penalty while also setting up Tom Farrell’s try with a perfectly weighted chip kick.
The 25-year-old was also brave defensively, racking up 18 tackles and kicked well out of hand too.
Masterful performance
Former Dragons and Grenoble boss, Jackman, believes that his outing in the derby has earned him the number 10 shirt over Prendergast for the crunch fixture against the All Blacks in Chicago.
He also pinpointed the improvements in specific areas of the game, which led Farrell and his coaching staff to test Prendergast in the role last November.
“It was a masterful performance and not without errors, but you don’t try and do as much as he does and have a perfect game,” Jackman remarked as he reviewed Crowley’s performance on The42.ie rugby podcast.
“He was outstanding and, more importantly, he just showed character. I don’t think anyone’s ever questioned that, his physical bravery and his ability to step people – we saw examples of that when Sam Prendergast kicked to him early in the game, and he beats the first two tacklers and when he potentially gets trapped behind his own goal line.
“He’s always had that from under 20s, the question marks around him was his ability to stick to the game plan, and as fans, we don’t know what level he has stuck to it or not stuck to it. But that’s certainly some of the soundings or reasons why they were having a really good look at Sam last year, was that potentially he was able to stick on task better.”
Jackman adds that Crowley wasn’t only sharp against Leinster but Cardiff and Scarlets too.
“I think what’s really impressive is he played a half against Scarlets, a full match against Cardiff; very, very good against Cardiff, probably the reason Munster won a week off, and that’s the match [v Leinster] where he has to just show he’s the best,” he said.
“It was a head-to-head really, and he performed at a level which is up there to being as good as he’s put in a long and in a pressurised environment with a team who were under the pump a lot of the time.
“He defended, encouraged, relieved pressure and kicked up three points that was massive.”
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Very harsh call looms
In the 48th minute of the game, Crowley lined up a long-range penalty with Munster leading 21-7, which he duly converted. This is another area of his game that the respected pundit sees real improvement.
He adds that it was a crucial moment in the fixture as it pushed Munster’s lead beyond two converted tries.
“The other question mark around him was goal-kicking percentage,” he continued.
“That kick wasn’t an easy kick; that kick effectively meant if Munster conceded quickly, it was still going to be very hard for Leinster to catch them. So all in all, it was a masterful performance and a coming of age, really and under pressure with a young nine inside him, he hasn’t played a lot with Dan Kelly and Tom Farrell as a combination, and I think everything he did showed that he has big match temperament, and I would be shocked if he’s not starting against New Zealand.
“It would be a very, very harsh call if he doesn’t start against New Zealand based on form.”
