Tommy O’Brien is beginning to understand the importance of grasping opportunity. The winger has played a full 80 minutes in all three of Ireland’s Autumn internationals so far, and with each minute on the pitch looks the better for it.
A player hampered by injury earlier in his career, he’s now benefiting from time in the Test match arena and his own fine form.
Game time now is consequential for O’Brien. When Hugo Keenan returns and the numbers become more difficult to crunch with Mack Hansen and James Lowe doing what they do, O’Brien’s contribution in recent weeks will be hard to ignore.
Lowe and Hansen always look for constant involvement in games, whether it is at fullback or on the wing. Waiting by the tramlines for a pass is old-school folly, and O’Brien, who played in the centre when he was younger, never needs to be asked twice.
The modern winger’s game has become more complex and multifaceted.
“Definitely. I would have always said it to myself, you want to try and get as many touches on the ball,” says O’Brien. “(Ireland under-20s coach) Noel McNamara back in the day would always say to us if you get two touches on the ball someone’s going to score and if you get three touches on the ball in a phase you’re going to be the one that scores.
“So, it’s just about working off your wing, trying to create the extra man and then if you can keep the ball alive, attacking against disorganised defences can lead to great rewards.”
It helps that O’Brien has that scrappy, high-octane style of playing. His clever grubber-kick against Australia almost created a try for Lowe, who came up fast enough to force a five-metre scrum by driving back fullback Max Jorgensen.
“The grubber, yeah. I guess Lowey and Dan (Sheehan) made it a good outcome,” he says. “That’s something we talk about as well in terms of any kick is only as good as its chase.
Tommy O’Brien during a press conference on Tuesday. Photograph: Ben Brady/Inpho
“I saw Jorgensen being a little bit high, put it in behind and then wasn’t sure if it was a great option. Then Lowey and Dan made it the right option by driving him over the line.”
O’Brien was also in action in the air, taking a high ball from Sam Prendergast’s cross-field kick, a move that led to Hansen’s third try.
Getting meaningful involvements like McNamara spoke about, and making the most of them, have all been part of the 27-year-old’s expanding playbook.
“As I’ve grown as a player, I’ve kind of become a bit more aware and try to add that to my game,” he says.
“Obviously growing up I was a bit more of a centre, so I would have always thought that I could be that kind of playmaker as well.
“That’s probably why the evolution of a winger has probably helped me in that sense that it’s not just out and out finishing on the edges, you’ve got to be able to pop up in the middle of the park, be those kind of second playmakers and put people through holes as well.”
But it’s not just on the wing that rugby is changing, and Saturday’s opponents South Africa are lead proponents in crossing boundaries. Hybrid players like Deon Fourie (a World Cup winning hooker and flanker) and more recently Andre Esterhuizen (centre and flanker) have asked questions of the traditional player skill sets.
“They’ve obviously have Esterhuizen as a hybrid. They’re using the 7-1 (bench split) and stuff like that, so they’re not afraid to try a few things” says O’Brien.
“Obviously that’s something that’s great, and we’re all keeping an eye on how they’re innovating.”
Still, the Springboks haven’t ventured so far from their moorings that they’re indistinguishable from their World Cup winning team of two years ago.
At the heart of their game are the basic elements of physical domination, line speed and intensity. Their kicking game is also a weapon of destruction.
“They obviously kick a lot,” says O’Brien. “I think they’re averaging something like 36 kicks a game. So, it’s probably something that we’re expecting there to come after us early.
“So, a lot of work being done on that and then obviously we just know that they’re very good chasers. Colby and Arendse (Kurt-Lee) are very good at chasing the box kicks. So that’s something we’re doing a lot of work around.”
He always said he didn’t want to be a one-cap wonder. Opportunity has knocked, and O’Brien is answering.
