Sexton welcomes ‘genius’ Joe and reveals uplifting Bledisloe moment ahead of Lions battle

Ireland legend Johnny Sexton says he has seen enough to believe “genius” Joe Schmidt can turn the Wallabies around and make them a competitive opponent for the Lions starting with their spring tour test in Europe.

Sexton, who won a Six Nations title with the Irish under Schmidt, was making the podcast rounds this week to promote his autobiography. addicted.

Speaking on The Good, The Bad and The Rugby podcast, Sexton was asked whether the Wallabies coach still has the X factor needed to be a national team coach.

Schmidt’s edge lay in analytics and discovering competitive advantages, and improvements in analytics allowed other countries to catch up, Sexton said.

“I still see it,” Sexton said, referring to the heartbreaking moment in a recent Bledisloe Cup match when the Wallabies’ attacking move left Jake Gordon tapping on the try-line from underneath him.

“For example, when we looked at Australia, they didn’t score because the player hit last. But they opened New Zealand with that move with nine breaks of sorts remaining… (Schmidt) scouted it.

“It’s him. That’s exactly what he’s doing. The guy still seems to have intelligence and brains… But it will take some time. He’s only been with them for a few weeks, only a few games, and obviously they had a bad performance against Argentina. But other than that, it was really competitive.”

“We’ve seen an improvement in the game,” Sexton added. Joe will improve any team he joins.

“Listen to what New Zealanders say about him. They loved him, and so did the years he worked there. And he was successful wherever he went. Really.

(Photo by Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images)

“I know he didn’t win the World Cup in New Zealand as an assistant coach, but he came pretty close. “Sometimes you just need a little luck.”

Speaking on the BBC’s Rugby Union Weekly podcast, Sexton said Schmidt continued to have an influence on him even after they stopped working together.

“I’ve had some amazing coaches, and I’m so lucky to have them,” Sexton said. Because some guys have their careers and they have one or two coaches and they’re just fine,” Sexton said.

“I remember towards the end of my career still having Joe Schmidt (the voice) in my head and playing the game in a good way. Because he was a genius. And he influenced me a lot during that period of my career. I worked with him from 2011 to 2018, so most of my career has been around Joe in one way or another.”

(Photo by Matt Roberts/Getty Images)

Sexton said he never thought anyone would come close to Schmidt as a coach but believed the former New Zealand assistant and successor to Ireland coach Andy Farrell had done so.

“He does everything. He coaches offense and defense brilliantly, like the best of the best. A good manager can motivate his team.”

The pair will face off head-to-head when the Lions arrive Down Under next year.

“Now that a year has passed, (the Wallabies) also have time. I think it will be a really good trip. I think it’s a great story. Isn’t that right? Joe worked very closely with Andy again and they still have a very good relationship and will still be in touch with each other.

“It will be interesting. I wonder if it will go the way it did the last time (Warren) Gatland went to New Zealand and all this was going on between the coaches. But I don’t think so. I would say Faz and Joe would be very polite.”

Sexton also used the word genius to describe Schmidt during his GBR appearance.

“He was probably the biggest influence (on me)…what he thought was something that I ingrained in my head. I’ll still be playing the game with his voice in my head long after my career is over…I guess I should probably go. See a psychiatrist,” Sexton said.

“The way he saw the game, he developed a reputation for not attacking, but just being a smart coach. So if he sees a trend in the game he will follow it. But his work was a very simple message: if there is no space, go to space.

“He didn’t care if you ran behind his try line. Some media outlets seem to have forgotten that’s exactly what it is. International rugby is very different. Sometimes you have to play the kicking game because there isn’t a lot of space. At Leinster we used to run everything, but when we came to Ireland international rugby didn’t have a lot of space so we had to find other ways and it was very full.

“But he also saw the strength of our backline. Jared Payne played unbelievably as a full-back in the air, while Robbie Henshaw was excellent in the 12. It was great in the air. We had a back three who were good in the air, so we kicked a lot and won the ball back most of the time. He’s a genius Joe.”