The Irish Rugby Football Union have today announced the appointment of former England assistant coach Andy Farrell.
Following his departure from the England setup alongside head coach Stuart Lancaster and fellow assistants Graham Rowntree and Mike Catt after an abysmal Rugby World Cup campaign the former Rugby League star is relishing the new challenge.
Farrell, 40, will link up with Joe Schmidt following this year’s Six Nations as the squad’s defence coach as he has also excelled in the role with the British & Irish Lions following their victorious tour in 2013.
Speaking upon his appointment to Irish Rugby, Farrell said:
To have this opportunity to work with a very talented management and playing group really excites me. With a wealth of top class experienced senior players and a fantastic crop of youngsters pushing hard the future is very positive for Irish rugby and I can’t wait to get started.
Ireland coach Schmidt also admitted he was pleased to be welcoming such an experienced coach into the setup as the squad will soon be preparing for their summer tour to South Africa following his arrival:
It’s great to have Andy coming into our coaching team. The quality of his delivery and breadth of his experience as well as the positive impact he had when coaching a number of our senior players during the 2013 Lions tour will add real value for us.
Having lost his role in the England setup after new head coach Eddie Jones decided against retaining the remaining backroom staff Farrell has agreed upon a four-year deal that will see him remain with Ireland up until the next Rugby World Cup in Japan in 2019 as he replaces the departing Les Kiss who has moved to Ulster.
