It felt like a long time coming, and even something he admitted he thought had passed him by, but Tom Farrell finally made his Ireland debut in their 42-10 win over Japan on Saturday.
In a career that has seen him go from the AIL to the English Championship to Connacht and now Munster, Farrell has taken the long and hard road to the Test game. After starring for Munster since moving to Limerick last year, the proud Farrell admits that even as recently as a few weeks ago, he thought his chances in green had gone.
‘There’s definitely been times over the last couple of years and more recently, times I thought that opportunity might be drifting away. Certain things weren’t going my way and whatever, but over the last couple of weeks, opportunities arose, and different injuries and whatnot came the opportunity today.
Tom Farrell posses after receiving his first cap. Pic: INPHO/Gary Carr
‘Probably just the summer gone,’ Farrell said after being asked when in particular he felt the opportunity had gone. ‘Obviously, I knew with the Lions lads were going to be gone, so I thought there might be a window there. For whatever reason, obviously, I didn’t get picked.
‘So I just knuckled down at Munster and just enjoyed my rugby there, I kind of put it to one side. I’ve really enjoyed my time at Munster, the environment there is brilliant, and it just gave me an opportunity to put my game out there, and I kind of just focus on that really, to be honest.
‘I didn’t really think about Ireland, and then I said it during the week that I was doing the walk-through to prepare for a URC game, and then I got a call to come into camp, and then two weeks later, I’m making my first appearance.’
Ireland’s Tom Farrell is tackled by Japan’s Ben Gunter. Pic: INPHO/Billy Stickland
Farrell was also open about his first impression of the Test game. ‘The first half, to be honest, I was blowing. I was finding my feet. Probably as a unit, we weren’t really firing. Came in the second half, and I thought we were better in the second half. We were a bit more in sync, a bit more cohesive together. We were kind of finding each other a bit more.
‘There were a lot of changes, new combinations in the team, in the backs in particular. So all in all, that second half performance, I thought we’d done quite well.’
Farrell’s only other experience in an Irish camp came back in 2019 during the first two rounds of the Six Nations with Joe Schmidt still at the helm. He didn’t make his debut then, and he spoke about how he wasn’t read for the green jersey at the time.
Ireland’s Tom Farrell in action. Pic: INPHO/Billy Stickland
‘I first came to camp back in 2019. I probably wasn’t cut out for international rugby. I was a bit raw. I didn’t really understand the demands of test rugby and the intensity and the speed of it. Just even experiencing it there firsthand, the Japanese love to keep the ball in play, quick throws and quick lineouts and stuff. So you’re constantly just on your guard, really.’
And now that he’s got a flavour for the International game, Tom Farrell only wants this to be the beginning, even if he’s the oldest back to make his debut in the professional era.
‘I do want more, yeah, massively. Obviously, I know that the personnel is there and they’ve been there for so long, so I’m aware of that. But yeah, like you said, I do want more. We’ll see how it goes come Monday or Tuesday.’
Ireland’s Tom Farrell and Robbie Henshaw celebrate after the match. Pic: INPHO/Billy Stickland
His one bit of advice for those who think their opportunity may have passed. ‘Oh, Jesus. As cliché as it is, just keep the head down and stick with it, I suppose. I didn’t try to focus on the Irish stuff. I just kind of just focused on Munster and enjoyed it, really, because I just came to that stage, my career was getting a bit older, and I was like, “Okay, I’ gonna enjoy my role Munster here.”
He definitely did his chances of starting again no harm on Saturday, as Andy Farrell’s side looks ahead to Joe Schmidt’s Wallabies side next Saturday.