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Ireland Call In Advice From Brian Fenton On Major New Rugby Rule Change

Ireland Call In Advice From Brian Fenton On Major New Rugby Rule Change
Eoin Harrington
By Eoin Harrington Updated
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Ireland's quest for a third successive Six Nations crown is off to the perfect start, and Simon Easterby's men welcomed the visit of Dublin football legend Brian Fenton to camp this week.

Fenton's retirement from intercounty football shook the GAA world late last year, with the Dubs planning for 2025 without one of the finest midfielders ever to play the game.

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The Raheny man visited Ireland during their Six Nations "off week," with the IRFU sharing footage on social media of his encounter with the Boys in Green.

Fenton revealed that he had been sitting in on team meetings as he shared the "transferables" he saw between his and the Ireland squad's experiences at the top level.

Sitting in, observing, maybe getting a different set of eyes on things.

I know there are a lot of transferable skills between Gaelic football and rugby.

Just sitting in and adding value if I can...there's different skills like high fielding, to timing of my jumps, to contests, to different things.

I'm just chatting to them, seeing if I can learn and seeing if they can learn.

The focus on fielding was certainly appreciated, with Garry Ringrose saying that Fenton's advice would be valuable as rugby's laws in that area continue to shift.

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Dublin legend Brian Fenton visits Irish rugby camp

Recent changes to world rugby's laws on obstruction have pushed high fielders in rugby to make major changes to their technique.

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Given the strength of Ireland's kicking game and the immense fielding of Hugo Keenan, James Lowe and others, it is only natural that this would be a major focus for the Irish coaches.

James Lowe had suggested that Gaelic football-esque catches could become an even more regular part of rugby, so perhaps it was only natural that Brian Fenton was invited into the Ireland camp this week to share some tips.

Garry Ringrose told the Irish media that his pointers were greatly appreciated.

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He's some man to win a ball in the midfield and, with the new rules, we were asking him for some tips and cues that he uses that helped him through his career.

There's loads of crossover between high-performance environments so I was picking his brain a little bit and even on some of the aerial stuff so it was really cool having him in.

It's just a massive challenge and right from the kick-execution to the timing of the chase, the entry into the contest, trying to win the breaking ball, there's loads of different aspects and it was just really cool hearing his perspective, what helped him through the years.

The fielding of Brian Fenton will certainly be a major loss for Dublin as they look ahead to the 2025 All-Ireland championship.

However, if the legendary midfielder can impart some of his wisdom onto the Irish team, it could push Garry Ringrose and co. even further forward (or, rather, upward) in the years to come.

SEE ALSO: England Star Nails What Makes Ireland So Difficult To Play Against

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