Andy Farrell’s faith in his players’ talent is paying off

Whatever people think of the audacity of Ciarán Frawley’s final drop-kick in the second Test, which Ireland won the match, Andy Farrell’s indulgent approach was at the forefront. All credit to the substitute outside halfback who made both attempts under great pressure and in front of a hostile crowd. But what about Frawley’s confidence and audacity to attempt two drop-goals after he missed the last kick of the match against Toulouse in the Champions Cup final?

Farrell has given his players licence and trusted them and their talents to play what is in front of them. If that means doing something that failed last time, then do it and face the consequences. It is not a free hand on the field to do whatever they want, it is a reassuring hand on the shoulder that says, “You can do this.”

Irish coaches are making waves abroad

As well as the on-field action at Kings Park, there were two other former Ireland players behind the scenes for the Springboks and England over the weekend. Former Munster and Ireland hooker Jerry Flannery is currently the Springboks’ defence coach. Having worked with Rassie Erasmus and Jacques Nienaber at Munster in the years before and coaching at Premiership side Harlequins, Flannery followed Felix Jones into the South Africa set-up after Jones moved to England under head coach Steve Borthwick, along with two World Cup medals.

Jones, who ended his playing career in Ireland due to injury in 2015, is also a defensive coach. The local coaching talent at international level, including Ronan O’Gara, Leo Cullen and Richie Murphy, is strong and also has a presence at top clubs.

Veteran Conor Murray may have played his last game against the Springboks

Conor Murray played for the 10th time in his career against South Africa in Durban. The first-half, who had a superb game and completed the first half with his second try of the series, was the most experienced player on the field in terms of both teams’ history. The Springboks’ Eben Etzebeth had played nine times against Ireland before Saturday’s second Test match.

Murray’s selection was partly a fluke. After RG Snyman’s tackle on Craig Casey in the first leg in Pretoria, he was unavailable for selection, allowing Murray (replaced by Caolin Blade in the 58th minute) to step in. This could be the 35-year-old’s last opportunity to play against them. The November series later this year will not feature South Africa, with the Lions and next summer’s tour to Georgia and Romania dominating the scene.

Ireland scrum against South Africa

To avoid dwelling on the negatives of an otherwise joyous weekend for the Irish team, the elephant in the room from here on out is the Irish scrum. South Africa won no less than four scrum penalties in set-piece time in the second Test. It was a big issue that would have been the focus of attention had Frawley not sent Ireland over the finish line with a drop-kick.

Deadly from the tee, Springbok outside back Handre Pollard has kicked eight from eight and three of his penalties have come directly from the scrum. Pollard brought it down in the 19th minute, in the 35th minute and again in the 65th minute, each time Ireland were penalised by English referee Karl Richardson. In a positive outcome for Andy Farrell and the Irish team, the collapsing and spinning scrum looks set to be one of the long-term problems that will carry over into the Autumn Series later this year.

Ireland’s squad shows great strength in depth

One of the pleasing aspects of Saturday’s win was how Ireland continued with intensity and purpose even in the absence of many key players in the team. Man of the match series winner Scrumhalf Jamison Gibson-Park, Craig Casey, winger Mack Hansen, centre Bundee Aki, hook Dan Sheehan, back-rower Jack Conan and full-back Hugo Keenan were all unavailable for Andy Farrell, who played in last year’s World Cup in France.

Farrell dug deep into the scrumhalf’s box in Durban, playing Conor Murray and Caolin Blade, and the sky did not fall on Ireland. There were some concerns before the game that so many rugby minds missing could hinder Ireland’s chances of winning. Jamie Osborne, Ronan Kelleher and the others showed one key asset of this team, and that was depth.