IF IRELAND ARE to succeed at this year’s Rugby World Cup, and last week David Nucifora made it clear what success will look like, then the team, coaches and fans might find that a little of the past has dropped off them somewhere along the way.

Like or loath it, Ireland’s World Cup history is an unshakeable part of the nation. A thick glass ceiling that has so far proven impenetrable with men like Stephen Ferris, Paul O’Connell, Brian O’Driscoll or Simon Geoghegan unable to crack it open.

Every World Cup cycle brings fresh blood, but consistent improvements made by Ireland through the professional era means that the later generations come in with less and less pre-loaded knowledge of the bad days.

Take Jacob Stockdale, not the youngest member of the 44-man World Cup training squad named yesterday but not far off.

When Christy Moore was pencilled in for a pre-Grand Slam sing-song / meet-and-greet with Joe Schmidt’s squad, Stockdale admits that his initial unfamiliarity with the folk legend led to an awkward reunion with a former heartbeat of Ireland team rooms.

As a relative newcomer to the senior ranks, Stockdale has not shared camp with one-time mainstays like Jamie Heaslip, Tommy Bowe, Andrew Trimble or the redoubtable Paddy ‘Rala’ O’Reilly.

Rala poses with the World Cup in 2003. Source: Billy Stickland/INPHO

“I actually didn’t know who Christy Moore was, he’s not a particularly big name in the North. Also, I’d never met Rala – the former kitman,” Stockdale regales.

“We were sitting in Carton House and everyone’s talking about this Christy Moore lad coming in.

“And Rala looks at me like: ‘who does he think I am?’

So in essence, he and the influential group of players of the same vintage have not known a time when Ireland have not topped their World Cup pool. He has scored in victories over New Zealand and South Africa, so why be sheepish about the thought of breaking the final four, or beyond?

“It is pressure but I think we put that on ourselves. We think exactly the same as David Nucifora,” said the wing as a Maxol brand ambassador.

“We want to go into the World Cup expecting to at least get to a semi-final, if not win it.

“If you go expecting to only hope for a quarter, you’re only going to get to a quarter or fall short of that.”

Stockdale manages to emit confidence in a natural, easy fashion. He’s not brash, just ambitious. Not arrogant, just intent.

It’s not a blend that Irish athletes have traditionally been able to happen upon. But traditions needn’t hold firm through generations.  Stockdale’s great grandfather worked as a riveter on the Titanic, his father is a Presbyterian minister and the professional rugby star is unabashedly ready to make giant strides. History be-damned.

“Maybe that’s just me, maybe I’m overconfident. But I’ve always found that the more I tell myself that I’m going to do something, the more I end up doing it.

“I think it’s incredibly important to have a positive mindset. Above all else, I’m just really excited to get to go over and play in a World Cup, if we don’t win it, we don’t but there’s no point in going over and hoping to do well.”

PADDY JACKSON WAITED a long, long time for his second Test match start of the 2015/16 season, but it won’t be easily forgotten. By anyone.

Ulster’s out-half has put down his finest season at provincial level, reining in more and more responsibility for his province while driving them into the (admittedly ill-fated) Pro12 play-offs.

At international level though, after playing 80 minutes in the very first World Cup warm-up all of 10 months ago, he had to dutifully bide his time for the rest of the season as he was asked to play only 40 more minutes for Ireland – just 22 of them in the World Cup.

It took an injury to Jonathan Sexton and a French contract with Ian Madigan’s name on it to earn his belated promotion to the matchday squad for this month’s tough tour in South Africa. Yet in an arena that was supposed to push him beyond his limits, Jackson looked made to measure.

The 24-year-old showed all the experience gained in his years since being thrown in the deep end by Ulster and Ireland. He was a remarkably cool head in a situation that was downright crazy.

Never was his assurance better displayed than in the minutes before half-time. Ireland could have crumbled after the Springboks clawed their way into the lead with Lwazi Mvovo’s try and the yellow card for Robbie Henshaw that reduced Ireland to 13 men.

Instead, Jackson took a reassuring grip on his team and the game, refusing the easy option to continue an attacking phase that was only about to get slower and instead hoisting the pressure onto his own shoulders and bisected the posts with a perfectly struck drop-goal.

His day wasn’t perfect. The 10′s swagger clearly wobbled after he gifted Pieter Steph du Toit a try with a careless flat pass towards Jack McGrath. But despite what people may have read from his outward youthful features, Jackson has always held a steely confidence underneath that worried expression.

An intercept pass, a second half drop-goal off target, but his veins soon froze over again when he got the chance to set the ball on the kicking tee. That’s the measure of the baby-faced assassin.

Source: Billy Stickland/INPHO

Even before the game was turned upside down Jackson looked perfectly comfortable at Test level, and we had to wonder how Ireland might have fared with him at the helm when Jonathan Sexton repeatedly limped out of World Cup and Six Nations matches.

Aided by Conor Murray’s imperious presence, Jackson was giving Ireland an exciting, vibrant and varied threat in attack, leaving the ‘Boks to rack up five penalties in the first 10 minutes in response — including one for a reckless high hit on the out-half himself. Jackson dusted himself after after taking Damian De Allende’s best shot, drilled his penalty from that deceptively tricky, right-of-the-posts on the 22 metre line angle and never looked back.

Source: Billy Stickland/INPHO

It’s not entirely down to Jackson that the script we all thought so predictable was ripped to shreds, doused with petrol and reduced to flakes of ash. There were immense performances from Devin Toner, Jordi Murphy, Luke Marshall and the unleashed fullback version of Jared Payne. But the storyline that most expected to follow a CJ Stander red card would have featured Jackson’s name as an excuse.

It would have been easy for his team-mates to lie down and let thoughts like: ‘Johnny Sexton’s not here’ nag away at the dark corner of their minds, but Jackson moved so smoothly, so purposefully and defended with such venom around the park that the notion simply never occurred.

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ALL BLACK SECOND row Brodie Retallick has agreed to stay with the All Blacks until the 2023 World Cup, but only after a stint playing Japanese club rugby, New Zealand Rugby announced overnight.

Retallick, 28, was a key target for the NZR, who want to retain a core of top talent after a number of senior players depart following this year’s World Cup in Japan.

“Brodie is one of the best locks to ever play the game, if not the best,” All Blacks coach Steve Hansen said of the 75-Test forward, who was a World Cup winner in 2015 and world player of the year in 2014.

Retallick’s deal will see him take a break from New Zealand rugby, including commitments to the All Blacks and Waikato Chiefs, after this year’s World Cup campaign.

He will play two seasons with an unspecified team in Japan’s Top League before returning to New Zealand in May 2021, when he is contracted to resume his international and Super Rugby career until the end of 2023.

Retallick, who will play his first Super Rugby match for two months this weekend after being sidelined with a wrist injury, said he needed a rest from the intensity of rugby in New Zealand.

“I’ve been playing high-octane rugby with the Chiefs and All Blacks since 2012 and… I’ve decided to give my body a break from the New Zealand game so that ultimately I can extend my career here,” Retallick said.

In recent years, NZR has been forced to let elite players top up their bank accounts with stints playing overseas in order to prevent them being tempted offshore permanently by lucrative offers.

Retallick in action against Ireland last year. Source: Oisin Keniry/INPHO

Retallick’s deal will not involve the All Blacks bending their selection rules to pick him while he is in Japan, unlike the contract recently signed by fellow forward Sam Whitelock, who will remain an international while playing Top League in 2020.

The exodus of All Blacks players after this year’s World Cup includes captain Kieran Read, Ben Smith, Ryan Crotty, Waisake Naholo, Owen Franks, Liam Squire and Nehe Milner-Skudder.

Hansen and long-time NZR chief executive Steve Tew are also departing, while there are question marks over the future of code-hopping star Sonny Bill Williams.

Rory Keane reports from Port Elizabeth

WHETHER HE’S deployed at lock or flanker this weekend, Iain Henderson will be crucial to Ireland’s cause as they chase a historic 2-1 series victory on Springbok soil.

Along with Jack McGrath, Rory Best, Devin Toner, Jamie Heaslip, Conor Murray, Paddy Jackson, Andrew Trimble and Jared Payne, the 24-year-old started the first two Tests at Newlands and Ellis Park. All nine, if fit and firing, are highly-likely to be called into action for one more seismic Test this season.

Henderson, who missed a large chunk of this season due to hamstring tear sustained in December, produced a superb display alongside Toner in the second row in the 26-20 victory in Cape Town before moving to blindside to cover the suspended CJ Stander for the Johannesburg rematch.

Both positions require different skillsets, but the Ulster man is not overly-concerned about the number on his back, he just wants to make an impact in this Port Elizabeth decider.

“Four and five aren’t hugely different,” said Henderson. “Metres covered by a back row are generally higher but then that can come down to the amount… if you have 10 scrums in a game, that extra 10, 15 or 20 metres that you get off that, there’s acceleration, because they don’t only look at metres, they look at high speed metres and intensity of running and collisions as well.

“They’re slightly different but I try and get them to match up as much as possible so that I’m not differing my game too much and I can look at when I’m playing in the second row bringing what I bring in the back row. I’d like to think when I’m playing in the second row that we have four back rows on the pitch. If I was a coach I can understand why I’d want to have an extra back row on the pitch.”

Line speed has been a major talking point among this squad this week. It is imperative that they get off the line quick and shut down the Springboks’ array of power runners; the likes of Damian de Allende, Pieter-Steph du Toit and Willie le Roux simply cannot be afforded the same time and space that they got in the final 20 minutes of Ellis Park last time out.

Source: Billy Stickland/INPHO

If Ireland deliver the same passive defensive display during that ill-fated quarter, it could be a long day on Saturday.

SUPER RUGBY ORGANISERS defended their tournament’s finals format today after complaints that in-form New Zealand sides were receiving a raw deal.

Based purely on results going into the final round, New Zealand teams occupy four of the five top spots on the ladder and three of them would expect to host quarter-finals.

However, the now 18-strong competition runs on a system guaranteeing each of the four conference winners a home finals berth, meaning only one Kiwi team will play host in the last eight.

The other three will have to travel overseas and concede home advantage to sides which they have outperformed during the season.

Sanzaar chief executive Andy Marinos rejected any criticism, saying New Zealand teams were receiving “due reward” for their exceptional form by receiving four of the eight play-off berths, regardless of venue.

“Sanzaar stands by the existing qualification process,” he said in a statement.

“A tournament’s qualification criteria cannot be determined on one year’s results in isolation.”

Even New Zealand Rugby boss Steve Tew, who signed off on the format for an expanded 18-team competition this year, has branded the system “unfair”.

Tew admitted the system was not ideal but said it was driven by the need to have finals in the sprawling competition’s main television markets — South Africa, Australia and New Zealand.

Four continents

“At the end of the day, it’s not as complicated as it sounds but frankly it’s just not fair, that’s the problem we’ve got,” he told Radio Sport on Sunday.

“But there needed to be a final in every TV market or else the value we would have got for our content was seriously reduced.”

Super Rugby introduced teams from Argentina and Japan this year, making it an 18-team competition that straddles 16 time zones and four continents. But critics have complained of the lacklustre standard of games, lopsided contests, exhausting travel schedules and a fragmented conference system watched by smaller crowds.

This weekend’s final round of regular season fixtures see the New Zealand conference-leading Chiefs take on the Highlanders who are just three points behind. Second place Crusaders host the Hurricanes who are level on points with the men from Otago.

The Blues are the only Kiwi side not in contention for the conference, but with the Waratahs in Auckland, they can scupper the Sydney side’s chance of topping the Australian conference ahead of the Brumbies.

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HAVING READ JAMES Kerr’s excellent book Legacy during this year’s Six Nations, Jamie Heaslip was intrigued when he heard Graham Henry would be flying in for a short-term stint with Leinster.

Henry is with Leinster for today’s friendly against Ulster. Source: Gary Carr/INPHO

Henry’s CV alone is enough to pique any player’s interest, of course, but Heaslip immediately looked forward to finding out how some of the ideas Henry shared in Kerr’s book would translate into Leinster’s environment.

“So far, so good,” is Heaslip’s verdict of Henry’s impact.

The 70-year-old began working with Leinster’s staff months before arriving in Ireland and it’s anticipated that he will continue to do so after leaving. Tomorrow is scheduled to be his last day with the province, allowing him to be involved in a review of today’s pre-season friendly against Ulster.

For the past few weeks, the former All Blacks head coach has been part of the furniture at Leinster’s UCD headquarters. Henry has had his own desk on the management floor of the facility, while his wife Raewyn arrived in Ireland last weekend and met a number of the province’s players.

Heaslip is highly positive about Leinster having had a resource like Henry in the set-up.

“He’s coming from one of the most successful teams ever, so it’s silly not to talk to him about it,” says the number eight. “I had just happened to have read Legacy. It’s interesting to have read that and then hear him talk, because obviously he was involved when that book was done.

“It’s knitting a lot of those things together, which is cool and also interesting from all sorts of angles – culture, leadership, how you approach playing, how you coach, how you teach, how you pass things onto players and empower them.

“It’s always good to hear from outside sources, be it in rugby or not.”

Three high school American Football games will be played in Donnybrook Stadium next month, with proceeds going to Special Olympics Ireland. Source: Paul Mohan/SPORTSFILE

Leinster’s announcement of the Graham signing included quotes from head coach Leo Cullen indicating that he had initiated the process. Cullen pointed to a desire to challenge himself and his inexperienced coaching team of Girvan Dempsey, John Fogarty and Kurt McQuilkin.

With new Bath head coach Tabai Matson having recently indicated that he spoke to Leinster about a possible move to Ireland, it would be easy for Cullen and co. to feel somewhat edgy in their positions.

However, Heaslip believes that Cullen’s acceptance of a learning opportunity such that offered by Henry’s visit is a sign of strength.

“I think it’s brave, I think it’s brave,” says Heaslip. “They’re a young coaching staff. I slag Kurt and say he probably brings up the age up a little bit, but they’re a young staff.

“When you walk up to where the backroom staff are [in UCD], right across the academy and through to Leo, in coaching terms they are young.

“They have way more experience across the board in terms of playing at the top levels and it looks like Leo is approaching it as he did when he was a player. ‘How do we get better? How do we improve ourselves?’ I think it was a very brave thing to do, from Leo and the coaching staff. I think they’re benefiting from it from now.”

Last week, Henry spoke to the media and touched on Leinster’s attacking mindset and ability to identify try-scoring opportunities. There was a focus on the catch-pass in Henry’s verdict on the province too.

The words are likely to have been music to many Leinster fans’ ears, after the disappointing attacking performances of recent seasons.

Henry is lending his expertise to Cullen. Source: Gary Carr/INPHO

Heaslip doesn’t quite agree with the suggestion that the skill level of the squad has dropped, but he is experienced enough to understand that the basics of rugby are the foundation for everything.

“We have a talented group of players,” says Heaslip. “We have a talented group of coaches and we’re in a pretty special organisation as far as clubs around the world go. Maybe it is just the fine margins that need to be tweaked.

“I don’t think the skill level has dropped but maybe sometimes you need someone from the outside to jolt you back in. Last year was a tough year for everyone involved, in terms of half the squad being gone until October [for the World Cup].

“Then they disappeared again for the Six Nations. Look, that’s a good thing because you want guys to go and bring that back, but it’s a tough period for the coaching staff and maybe they had to focus more on the bigger stuff.

“I think everyone is listening intently to Graham. Focusing on the detail of stuff is important. Be that the basic skill, knowing our shape, your basics around tackling, even how to lift properly in a lineout.

“Focusing on the little details and instilling really good habits as you go up that ladder is pretty important. Once the heat comes on, you go back to what you know and if you’ve instilled those habits, that’s what you’ll do.”

On a personal level, Heaslip feels refreshed after his summer break – 10 days off training is about as good as it gets these days – and says he is motivated by many of the ideas that Henry preaches.

The idea of leaving a legacy in Leinster is at the forefront of his mind.

Heaslip wants to leave a legacy at Leinster. Source: Gary Carr/INPHO

“Every team is obviously different in terms of their culture and rituals, like the book [Legacy] talks about. But any team that has history, like it’s hard not to say Leinster is steeped in history. I think the spine of that idea of a legacy, of trying to leave something in a better place than when you picked it up, that identity, is pretty important.

“Culture and leadership is not as tangible as coaching drills, say. But it’s just as powerful, if not more, in terms of continuing success.

“I play to win but at this stage of my career that’s not the only objective. I’m all about winning but at the same time I’m past setting yearly goals now. I’m past that.

“I’m more about ‘How do we create our legacy in this club? How do I make it that some kid who comes across rugby dreams of playing for Leinster? How do I leave the jersey in a better place than I picked it up in 2005?’

“That’s maybe a bit loftier and a bit more intangible, but it means you’re always chasing it.”

– This article was updated at 12.21 on 13 August to correctly identify James Kerr as the author of Legacy. The previous version incorrectly stated his name as Mark Kerr.

Jamie Heaslip is an Honourary Chairmen for the three high school American Football games that will be played in Donnybrook Stadium on Friday 2 September. The games will mark the opening of the Aer Lingus College Football Classic and will see all proceeds going to Special Olympics Ireland. For more information and tickets go to www.collegefootballireland.com.

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THE SHEER SCALE of the Top 14 can make others look weak in comparison.

Many rugby fans say they simply can’t warm to the playing style employed by some of the clubs in France’s top league, but no one can question the ambition the Ligue Nationale de Rugby [LNR] brings to everything related to the Top 14.

The Pro12’s Martin Anayi shakes John Muldoon’s hand after Connacht’s success last season. Source: Billy Stickland/INPHO

Last season’s final in the Nou Camp in Barcelona had an official attendance of 99,124, while global stars of the game continue to flock to French clubs.

Two weeks ago, the LNR released its strategic plan for 2016 to 2023 and it served as a clear statement of intent that this behemoth isn’t slowing down any time soon.

A third professional league by 2021, a new national 7s circuit, and women’s teams at every club. Clearly stated plans, within a timeframe and the finance to back it up. That finance comes partly in the form of the huge TV revenue the LNR earns for the Top 14 and Pro D2, with the figure rising to €97 million per season from 2019.

What of the Guinness Pro12, home to the four Irish provinces, two Scottish clubs, four Welsh regions and two Italian sides?

There are positive talks taking place about an expansion into the USA, as well as plans to shift to a conference system and reduce the number of league games each season. So far, however, there is no clear and publicised plan to back up the Pro12′s ideas.

“We’ve done a strategic review but we haven’t published it,” says Pro12 managing director Martin Anayi when asked if his organisation plans to share its strategy in a similar manner to the LNR. “It’s with our shareholders.”

Anayi stresses that there are clear strategic goals that the unions, broadcasters and sponsors of the Pro12 have shown support of, but we on the outside may not be provided with access for some time.

“The difference for us is that we’ve presented that to our shareholders, who agree with the plan,” continues Anayi. “Whether we want to share that with the public is probably another thing currently, because there are a lot of moving parts in that.”

The Pro12 season was launched last week in Dublin. Source: Billy Stickland/INPHO

The fact that the Pro12 is made up of four competing nations marks it out as very different to the Top 14 and England’s Premiership, of course, although Anayi is confident that the Celtic-Italian league has the attributes required to grow in the coming years.

“We have to concentrate on our strengths, which is the cross-border element of our competition. That’s what makes us different.

“If you think of our 2021 vision, we’re always talking about that because that’s the timescale for the next TV window. You’re always talking TV windows because it’s very difficult to change the finances of a competition mid-window.”

Catching up on the TV revenue front is essential for the Pro12 – currently the figure stands at around €14 million per season – though there is a recognition that hitting the figures being attained in France and by the Premiership – more than €40 million per season – is realistically not possible at this point.

Nonetheless, Anayi thinks the Pro12 can make up some of the ground next time they negotiate.

“We can make a big leap, definitely. We’re not going to make the leap on one deal the way Canal+ went to €97 million with the Top 14 or the way BT Sport did with PRL [a 50% leap], because that’s one big domestic TV deal based on how many chimney stacks they’re selling to.

“We just don’t have that model because the Celtic nations have a cumulative population of 12 or 13 million people. Italy is still a developing market for us, so we have to think about it differently.

“We have to think about how we actually create more of our tournament almost by showing less. It’s about creating exclusivity, it’s about creating the chance for international players to be playing in a higher proportion of games.

Anayi is the Pro12’s managing director. Source: Billy Stickland/INPHO

“That is what are fans are asking us to do. We’ve said that percentage needs to be at 70% or 80% of the games where they international players are fit. A conversation needs to be had at World Rugby level because that’s the window we’re in.”

The Pro12′s desire to move to a conference system ties into their aim of reducing the number of regular season games and adding more glamorous play-off fixtures to the league calendar.

“The reason we would do that is because we’d be looking at ‘less is more,’” says Anayi. “How do we create a tournament where a conference system means you’re not playing everybody home and away, so you’re taking games off the calendar?

“My personal opinion is that the conference system works really well where you’ve expanded the tournament. If you’re expanding the tournament to new markets you have to do that through a conference system.”

Which brings us to the US topic. It sounds exciting or potentially disastrous, depending on one’s position, but where does the process actually stand? Are there concrete plans?

“Nothing concrete,” answers Anayi. “We’re in a really early stage of discourse with the right people in the States and we have the right people around the table discussing whether it’s viable or not. It’s too early to tell.

“It’s all positive and we’re very enthusiastic about their response and how much our teams have bought into it. It has to form part of their [USA Rugby’s] strategic plan too. If it does, then great, we are aligned.

“Then we can work out the logistics – where the venues would be, who would be the teams. We’re not at that stage yet.”

The Italian clubs need to step up this season. Source: Gary Carr/INPHO

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While there is hope of adding one or two US franchises to the league eventually, others wonder what the Italians have offered to the Pro12 and whether they deserve their place in the league.

Treviso and Zebre have been the bottom two sides for three seasons in a row now, and certainly their lack of clear progress has been frustrating.

“They don’t need our help, but we’re incredibly involved,” says Anayi. “Conor O’Shea has come in as national team coach, Steve Aboud is looking after the development pathway, Mike Catt taking over the attack, you’ve got Kieran Crowley coming in as head coach of Treviso, other strength and conditioning staff coming in.

“Those are great hires and if you were going to hire anyone to get their head around Italy and the raw attributes they have, it would be those guys; guys who have done it at club level before, and bring that through.

“It you talk about the global calendar, the Italian clubs get hit more than anybody. They could lose 25 internationals in a weekend, so for us they are part of the tournament and we believe in their strategy and how much they have invested.

“The next two years will be really important for them. Now, there’s no reason for them not to move forward.”

A year ago, Anayi felt that Irish perceptions of the Pro12 were that it had been “too easy,” but after what was quite probably the league’s best-ever and most competitive season in 2015/16, he believes that has changed.

Connacht’s remarkable trophy success was good for the Pro12, particularly as it concluded in front of a final record crowd of 34,550 at Murrayfield. Encouragingly, almost 32,000 of those tickets had been sold even before the finalists were known.

Connacht’s success capped off an excellent 2015/16 Pro12 season. Source: James Crombie/INPHO

The rugby played in last season’s Pro12 was also entertaining on the whole, and the campaign represented a real step forward. Now is the time to capitalise and Anayi believes that this is the beginning of a new era for the Pro12.

“In a year’s time, we’re going to be having a very different conversation, I suspect, about what this tournament is perceived as,” says Anayi.

“We’re going to take pretty significant steps forward, whether that’s through our broadcast, our sponsorship – which was renewed by Guinness through to 2020, which is a massive statement of intent and belief.

“The thing about our growth plan is that we’ve got significant people investing their time in it. All the constituent elements to make that development a success are there.

“The key thing that underpins it all will be when we do it, how much to we develop and, ultimately, making sure that what we do doesn’t jeopardise our most important asset, which is our fanbase.”

Anayi stressed the importance of those fans a number of times at last week’s season launch in the Aviva Stadium, outlining the Pro12′s ‘fan first’ philosophy.

If and when there is a clear strategy in place, the fans of Pro12 clubs would surely appreciate being let in on the key plans. These fans want and need to know what’s going to happen with a league that some still don’t feel is their league.

The LNR and Top 14 are certainly not faultless, but they know how to engage and excite supporters better than anyone.

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AN AUSTRALIAN RUGBY league player has died after collapsing following a tackle, police and officials said Monday, just over a year after another player died in similar circumstances.

Father-of-two Grant Cook was playing for the Murwillumbah Mustangs in a regional New South Wales game against Casino Cougars on Sunday when he was taken ill.

As sports around the world grapple with the growing problem of head injuries, New South Wales police said a report on the death of the 28-year-old would be prepared for the coroner.

“Police have been informed that the man collapsed shortly after being tackled during the match,” a statement said, without detailing his injuries.

Attempts were made at the scene to revive the unconscious player before he was airlifted to Gold Coast University Hospital in a critical condition and passed away overnight.

Brian Rix, president of the Northern Rivers Regional Rugby League, said Cook had left the field just before half-time.

At first there was “no indication it was anything major”, he told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, but said Cook then had “some sort of fit or convulsion” and needed CPR.

“He had to leave the field because he didn’t feel great, he sat on the bench before he started to feel even worse,” he said.

“When the half-time break came, we knew then it was quite serious. He must’ve copped a knock or something, we have no idea.

“They had to do CPR on him, he did stop breathing for a while and they revived him, then the ambulance turned up.”

WEEK 3 OF the Guinness Pro12 was by and large a good one for the Irish provinces with wins for Munster, Ulster and Leinster while Connact’s game was postponed at half-time due to a storm in Italy when they were trailing Zebre 22-10.

Darren Sweetnam may not want to watch the highlights from the Dragons game after he lost the ball in the in-goal area while Ulster fullback Charles Piutau and Leinster flanker Dan Leavy played starring roles for their sides.

Here’s how the action panned out.

Newport Gwent Dragons 16 Munster 20

Source: PRO12 Rugby/YouTube

Click Here: Chiefs Rugby JerseyUlster 19 Scarlets 8

Source: PRO12 Rugby/YouTube

Edinburgh 20 Leinster 33

Source: PRO12 Rugby/YouTube

Sorry Connacht fans, we’re still waiting on footage from the game in Italy that was abandoned at half-time. Although maybe it’s for the best.

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