Andrew Porter said of Johnny Sexton in an interview this week, "He epitomises what it means to be a Leinster and Ireland rugby player. He's put so much in to both jerseys and to be playing on the international stage at 38, to the level he was playing at, is just incredible."
That is what Ireland have lost in their departing captain. Ireland must now look to the future and Denis Leamy has revealed this week who he believes is the right man to take over the role. That man is Peter O'Mahony.
Leamy on O'Mahony
At a press conference this week Leamy, the current Munster defense coach who previously worked with Leinster, discussed the vacancy Ireland now must fill in the role of national captain. Of O'Mahony's credentials he said:
“He’s respected universally among the Irish players. I know that for a fact, having worked with the Leinster players and the esteem they hold him in, which is a great thing to see at first hand. I’m sure right throughout the provinces, in Connacht and Ulster, that would be the same.
I suppose he’s achieved so much in the game, he brings that edge and standard-setting that’s so important as a captain. And yeah, if Ireland were to go down that road he’s obviously been a Lions Test captain as well, there’s a huge amount of pedigree there.
As well as captaining the Lions in the first Test of the 2017 series, O'Mahony has captained Munster since 2013 and captained Ireland at different points throughout his career. Including a series win in Australia. There is no doubt he represents everything you could want from a captain and commands the respect of every player in Ireland.
Peter O'Mahony is the best example of a modern day enforcer in rugby today.
He takes 'stand up and fight' quite literally.
To see 8 minutes of him winding opponents up, click the link here: https://t.co/ggxEp4HAEP pic.twitter.com/3vD3gttvnW— Andrew Forde (@andrewfrugby) June 15, 2023
Importantly, as Leamy outlines, he is thought of very highly by players at Leinster. While you need respect from players across all the provinces, the bulk of Ireland's squad these days is from Leinster. It's similar to when Brian O'Driscoll was captain of Ireland, and 7/8 of the Irish pack would be from Munster, as well as his fly half, Ronan O'Gara. O'Driscoll commanded his team's respect despite there being incredible leaders such as Paul O'Connell in the starting XV.
Why not Peter O'Mahony?
One of the first arguments against O'Mahony as captain is his age 34. He has proven people wrong time and time again but Andrew Porter described the fact Sexton was still playing international rugby to a very high standard at 38 as "incredible." You'd have to question at what age could you still justify starting in the back row in test match rugby as captain. If Peter O'Mahony were to still be playing to his current standard for the next 4 years as Irish captain it would be a certified miracle.
Who else?
When you analyse the other options for Ireland as captain the shortlist is probably as follows; James Ryan, Gary Ringrose, Iain Henderson and Caelan Doris.
Ringrose/Ryan dilemma
Both would be considered frontrunners for the job alongside Peter O'Mahony. Leinster have recently selected them as co-captains, which you feel doesn't help either of their cases for taking the Ireland job outright.
𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟑/𝟐𝟒 𝐂𝐨-𝐂𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐬
Garry Ringrose and James Ryan have been named as #LeinsterRugby Co-Captains for the 2023/24 season.
Congrats Garry and James!
Read here 👉 https://t.co/356SUH8Zok #FromTheGroundUp pic.twitter.com/gVh0ys2JR0— Leinster Rugby (@leinsterrugby) November 9, 2023
Iain Henderson
Henderson has captained Ulster for an extended period but has not played in that role week in, week out for his province over the past three seasons, with reports of swirling earlier this year that he was seeking a move away from Ravenhill. He was a supremely calm and influential captain in those final 10 minutes against South Africa as Ireland sealed victory. However, another issue around Henderson and Ryan is that one of them becoming captain likely means the other cannot start due to the immense output of Tadhg Beirne.
14 October 2023; Iain Henderson of Ireland during the 2023 Rugby World Cup quarter-final match between Ireland and New Zealand at the Stade de France in Paris, France. Photo by Brendan Moran/Sportsfile
Caelan Doris
Caelan Doris was Ireland's best player over the last year. He was in the Six Nations team of the tournament, the World Rugby Dream XV in 2023 and was the Rugby Players Ireland-Players' Player of the Year . The question would be his lack of experience as captain, having never started a game as captain for club or country.
He may be only 24 years of age but Caelan Doris is now one of the best back rows in the World. Here are some of his highlights from his Man of the Match display on Saturday in the @SixNationsRugby #RTERUGBY #IREvFRA #6nations2023 pic.twitter.com/xMWZcWNnxA
— Bernard Jackman (@bernardjackman) February 13, 2023
Outside bets
A couple of guaranteed starters that few have mentioned would be Dan Sheehan and Hugo Keenan. Keenan has been a constant at fullback for Ireland since making his first start in 2020. His commitment to the jersey and body on the line attitude would lend well to a leadership role. Dan Sheehan is another who has been immense for Ireland and his sensational performance as captain of Leinster against the Dragons last weekend couldn't have hurt his chances.
World class by Dan Sheehan - wins turnover/offload - gets back in support - 2v1 - try 👏👏 # DRAvLEI . pic.twitter.com/1UyuTEFteS
— Brett Igoe (@brettruganalyst) November 12, 2023
When Paul O'Connell's career ended so cruelly at the 2015 World Cup, Keith Wood stated, "The greatest truth he ever extolled-it was not about him, it was all about the team. With somebody else to pick up us his mantle. The King is dead, let there be other Kings." The Johnny Sexton era is now over, the question is who will pick up his mantle.
