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Irish Examiner
09-07-2025
- Sport
- Irish Examiner
Andy Friend: Demise of the sevens programme is a real shame
TWO of the most significant periods of Andy Friend's coaching career are set to collide in his hometown today when the Brumbies host a British & Irish Lions touring party containing three players whose careers he helped to mould during his five-year tenure as Connacht head coach. That Canberra-born wing and former Brumbie Mack Hansen is part of the Lions matchday squad at GIO Stadium and non-playing prop Finlay Bealham is also from the city adds an extra level of excitement while Friend has already seen Bundee Aki earn Test recognition with the famous touring institution during his stint in Galway, on the 2021 tour to South Africa. 'It's just brilliant for them as individuals and I think it's brilliant for Connacht,' Friend says on the eve of the game in a café near his home in the Australian capital. 'And then two of those boys are actually from this hometown. So I think it's outstanding that they're here to play and have a chance to be here in a town that they used to call home. For them to be brave enough to have packed up and gone over to Ireland, and Bundee, credit to them and they're now at the pinnacle, aren't they? 'You'd pinch yourself if you said five years ago that Connacht's going to have three British & Irish Lions. I think we'd had three in the history of the club but now you've got three there in one squad. So I'm just delighted for them, and I think it shows the opportunity that Connacht's provided those boys, but others as well. 'So it's nothing but fond memories of my time at Connacht.' When Friend, now 56, returned to Canberra, he began working with the national women's team, the Walleroos, in a consultancy role. He still coaches their coaches, and through his business, Performance Friend, also works with the USA Eagles men's team, Australian Rowing and offers one-to-one work with individual coaches and business leaders to unlock their potential. He has just completed a six-month stint as head coach of the Brumbies women's programme, returning to the Canberra franchise whose men's team he head coached between 2007 and 2011. His posting before joining Connacht was as Australia's men's sevens head coach and when he is asked what his sense of where Irish rugby is right now, his bewilderment at the IRFU's decision to shelve its men's sevens programme is evident. 'I think there's been a bit of a golden era come through Irish rugby. Joe (Schmidt) was at the forefront of that as a coach. Leinster's been at the forefront of that for probably the last decade and a bit in the way that they've performed on European stages. And then Ireland, they've been up in the top two or three for the last five, six years. There's incredible talent coming through. 'I always look at the Irish system with a lot of envy. To me, it is a team of us. It's controlled by the central body, which I think it has to be. You've got four strong provinces, but the IRFU still have a control on who goes where. You'd like to see a little bit more movement, I reckon. 'I reckon one of the disappointing things which has just happened recently is the demise of the sevens. I think that's actually been something that's really given Ireland another avenue for players to come through and to show their strength. 'With that now dropping off, I think it's a real shame, to be honest with you. I know they're keeping the women's part of the programme, but there's some great players coming through that men's part of the programme. 'You've got national teams going to Olympics and chances of medals and winning medals at World Cups. That's all part of national pride and part of the whole rugby family. I know David Nucifora spent a lot of time, he and Eddie Wigglesworth (former IRFU director of rugby), building that whole programme up. They'll be very disappointed that's now gone. 'I think David Nucifora deserves a lot of credit for Irish rugby, the way it grew and developed under his stewardship. I think he did a brilliant job, as did others in that whole area. Certainly when I left there, Irish rugby was really healthy. The dropping of the sevens is a warning sign that maybe it's not as healthy as everyone thinks it is. We'll wait and see.' Friend is optimistic for direction of travel Connacht are heading in, however. He and his wife Kerri fell in love with Galway and the province during their time there and he thanked chief executive Willie Ruane for allowing him 'to move into the part of my coaching where I think I operate best, which is in the people development and overseeing a programme' as director of rugby. 'I just love the whole ethos of Connacht Rugby, ambition, belief, community. Three words that really mean something to you. 'If you live on the west coast of Ireland, you've got to be pretty hardy. You've got to know how to roll your sleeves up and get stuff done. Find a way is one of the big phrases they used to say and I just love those type of people. 'I connected with them and they connected with me. It was a brilliant way to round out 29 years of pro coaching. So nothing but fond memories coming out of there. A lot of hard work and a lot of really good people. Just a really nice way to wrap things up.' THE arrival this summer of Stuart Lancaster as Connacht's new head coach and the completion of the Sportsground's redevelopment and rebirth as Dexcom Stadium has Friend anticipating more good times ahead. 'Brilliant. I just think it's fantastic. I couldn't be happier for the Connacht faithful. They've been there following that team from around the greyhound track and in the Clan Terrace. Now you've got a stadium and now the players have got a place that they can really call their own. There's no excuses there anymore. 'Now they've got Stuart Lancaster, they've kept Cullie Tucker and Rod Saib has come over from Australia. They've got John Muldoon back there. They've got a great coaching set-up. Billy Millard's gone in there now. Timmy Allnut's still there. They've got some great people there. 'I just really, really hope it all now clicks and they just take off. They're always going to be battling against others because they don't have the finances that others have. But they play a brand of footy that is entertaining to watch and I think makes most people from Connacht pretty proud because they work really, really hard for each other. 'Some of our better games, we didn't win them but we actually played really, really well and pushed some of the big teams. You want to win everything, of course you do, but I think people from Connacht are pretty realistic as well. 'But now they've got a great stadium to go and watch it in. The players have got a good facility to go and train in. So hopefully everything does keep improving.' Friend concedes the Clan Terrace, home of Connacht's most passionate and vociferous supporters, will be missed but added: 'They'll have to put them somewhere. Well, like all things in history, you think back with fondness to that. But then there's always development. So I believe Dexcom now has got, there'll be terraces there and they'll try and mimic it, but it probably won't ever be the same. 'Kerri and I are thinking of going back there in 12 to 18 months just to have a look. 'We've got a real soft spot in our hearts for Connacht and for Galway and to go back and see it all humming would be fantastic. So we'll probably sneak back there in a little bit of time and have a look. And we'll get down to the Crane Bar as well and have a couple of pints down there.'
Irish Examiner
26-06-2025
- Sport
- Irish Examiner
Ben Murphy's 'far-fetched' Ireland ambition realised after big year at Connacht
Go back to the end of the 2024/25 season and Ben Murphy was stuck in a long queue of scrum-halves angling for game time at Leinster where Jamison Gibson-Park and Luke McGrath were the elder statesmen proving so hard to dislodge. Now the 24-year old is coming off the back of a first season at Connacht where he played more minutes than any of their nines and he is poised for a summer mini-tour to Georgia and Portugal having already spent time in Ireland camp during the Six Nations. 'From the outside looking in, it probably would have been far-fetched, but I kind of felt that with the movements this year, Lions year and all that, that there was going to be an opportunity for a young scrum-half to come into the squad. 'I just wanted to put my best foot forward to be the one to be in that position,' said the son of Ulster head coach Richie Murphy. 'Thankfully I got an opportunity earlier with Connacht. I've managed to push forward and get into the squad so delighted.' That involvement during the spring has served as something of a settler for the man out of Bray. That and the fact that he was one of half-a-dozen Connacht players named originally in Paul O'Connell's squad for this two-game tour of duty. Finlay Bealham and Cian Prendergast already had caps to their name. Murphy, Darragh Murray, Shayne Bolton and Hugh Gavin have all yet to play at the Test level for their country, and the management's plan is that all will do so this next few weeks. Bealham, of course, has since been called up for, and played for, Andy Farrell's British and Irish Lions. The Canberra-born tighthead joined his Connacht teammates Bundee Aki and Mack Hansen in putting on the red jersey against Argentina in Dublin last Friday. That's a huge moment in time for the province. Murphy passes to Sam Prendergast during Ireland rugby squad training. Picture: Brendan Moran/Sportsfile The entire country of Wales has just two men in the entire Lions squad. Only Leinster, Glasgow and Northampton have more and among the feted clubs with less are Munster (1), Bath (2), Leicester (1) and Harlequins (1). 'They've worked very hard to get into that position,' said Murphy of the trio. 'I thought all of them put their best foot forward. Bundee obviously scored and I thought Finlay did well. Mack had a good impact of the bench as well. It was a proud day for everyone watching and hopefully they kick on and see if they can get involved in the Tests.' All of which is hard to square with the disappointment that Connacht endured as a collective last season. A 13th-place finish, five rungs and nine points off the ladder spot they needed to make the playoffs, spoke for the difficulties suffered on and off the pitch. Murphy talks about frustrations around the collective, and the failure to grasp chances in the Challenge Cup knockout game against Racing 92 and down the stretch of the URC when they still could have done something but succumbed to familiar failings and inconsistencies. The future promises more. Much more. The project delivering the new Dexcom Stadium and the province's state-of-the-art training centre is taking shape and the announcement some weeks ago that Stuart Lancaster is to be the new boss has sent a jolt of excitement through the club and the region. Murphy didn't feel Connacht were a million miles away, in some respects, last season and he has already had the chance to grab a quick chat with Lancaster about some of the areas the new boss intends to focus on ahead of the new campaign. The pair already had a history. Lancaster was still at Leinster during Murphy's two years in the academy in Dublin and the scrum-half points to the plethora of Leinster players currently touring in Australia as proof of the Englishman's body of work. 'Any dealings I had with him, I've always had massive respect for him and I think you can see the development in the likes of a lot of the Lions who've gone in who've worked with him in Leinster. 'How he's brought them up from 19/20-year olds to now hopefully Lions internationals in a few weeks. He is very good, not just on the pitch but off the pitch, in building leadership skills and driving a team so I'm looking forward to hopefully picking his brain a bit on that.' Read More Fazball the way forward for Lions team intent on playing exciting rugby
7NEWS
17-06-2025
- Entertainment
- 7NEWS
Penthouse sale serves $1.925 million payday for tennis star Nick Kyrgios
Loading content... Tennis star Nick Kyrgios has offloaded his luxury Sydney penthouse on the eve of its scheduled auction. The three-bedroom, two-bathroom apartment sold on June 13 for $1.925 million with Tristan Oddi and Brandon Shaw of PPD Real Estate. The property in Kensington was marketed with a guide of $1.8 million. Cotality records show the 30-year-old athlete purchased the property in Sydney's Eastern suburbs for $1.6 million in March 2022. The sale follows Canberra-born Kyrgios' split from long-term girlfriend, influencer Costeen Hatzi, 26, earlier this year. The pair dated for four years. Positioned on the top floor of the Capella building, the penthouse boasts wrap-around windows with panoramic views of the city and stretching as far as the Blue Mountains. The property also has a private 24 square metre rooftop garden terrace with a wet bar. Inside, the floor plan comprises a large master suite with an ensuite and two built-in robes, two additional bedrooms, and the main bathroom. The open-plan living space is filled with natural light from the walls of glass. The sleek kitchen features stone benchtops, an island bench with built-in wine storage and Miele appliances. The sale includes two car parking spaces, and owners can access the heated outdoor lap pool and on-site gym. According to Cotality, the median price of a unit in Kensington is $1.06 million. Kyrgios, who celebrated his 30th birthday in April, debuted as a professional tennis player in 2012. He has won seven ATP Tour singles titles and reached 11 finals, including a major final at the 2022 Wimbledon Championships. Kyrgios ruled himself out of competing at Wimbledon this year due to a knee injury, which forced him to abandon a planned return at the French Open last month. On Instagram on June 2, he said: "Just wanted to give everyone a quick update - I've hit a small setback in my recovery and unfortunately won't make it back for grass season this year. "I know how much you've all been looking forward to seeing me out there, and I'm genuinely sorry to disappoint. "This is just a bump in the road, though, and I'm already working hard to get back stronger than ever." Kyrgios has been absent from playing at Wimbledon since losing the 2022 final to Novak Djokovic. A combination of knee, foot and wrist injuries has plagued his playing career. The former world No.13 has played four singles matches this year. He claimed his first tour victory in two-and-a-half years at the Miami Open in March. Although he won't compete at Wimbledon this year, Kyrgios will bring his podcast Good Trouble with Nick Kyrgios to the Wimbledon Theatre in London on June 24. The show will head to New York City's Beacon Theatre in August before coming to Australia for five dates in November, including appearances at the Sydney Opera House and Canberra Theatre Centre. The tour will reportedly feature a "huge surprise guest".
The Advertiser
11-06-2025
- Sport
- The Advertiser
'A great fit' - Aussie weapon hailed by the Lions
British & Irish Lions head coach Andy Farrell believes his Australian replacement call-up Finlay Bealham will prove a "great fit" for the squad following the "heartbreaking" withdrawal of injured Scotland prop Zander Fagerson. Glasgow Warriors tighthead Fagerson has been ruled out of the summer tour to Australia with a calf problem, prompting Farrell to bring in the Canberra-born Bealham, who he's coached when in charge of Ireland. The news of Fagerson's withdrawal came a day before the squad - minus those involved in Premiership and United Rugby Championship finals - headed out to Portugal for a training camp. Farrell, though, accepts such situations are part of the game, with the group now looking to sharpen focus towards a warm-up fixture against Argentina in Dublin on June 20. "It is heartbreaking, but at the same time, he (Fagerson) is a realist. All rugby players know that's the game," Farrell said. "He will work unbelievably hard to get himself fit and who knows what's going to happen down the track." On Ireland's Bealham being added to the squad, Farrell said: "Finlay has been called up in his place and he is in good form. He is very good at what he does. "He was certainly right up there in the conversation from the very start as well, and he would have been disappointed not to make the group. "So we just know he will be a great fit for the group going forward. He is the only conversation that I was able to have because of the way we did the squad announcement. "By giving him a phone call and telling him he was selected within the squad, unfortunately for Zander, but it was one of the best phone conversations I have ever had. "The emotion that went through the phone actually welled me up. It was great to be able to do that." With 15 of the selected players still on club duty - including 12 from Leinster - England duo Jamie George and Asher Opoku-Fordjour have also joined the five-day training camp at Quinta do Lago to provide some front-row cover. The fixture against Argentina is set to be a first Lions game played in Ireland. The tour of Australia schedule - which features three Tests against the Wallabies - begins against Western Force in Perth on June 28. British & Irish Lions head coach Andy Farrell believes his Australian replacement call-up Finlay Bealham will prove a "great fit" for the squad following the "heartbreaking" withdrawal of injured Scotland prop Zander Fagerson. Glasgow Warriors tighthead Fagerson has been ruled out of the summer tour to Australia with a calf problem, prompting Farrell to bring in the Canberra-born Bealham, who he's coached when in charge of Ireland. The news of Fagerson's withdrawal came a day before the squad - minus those involved in Premiership and United Rugby Championship finals - headed out to Portugal for a training camp. Farrell, though, accepts such situations are part of the game, with the group now looking to sharpen focus towards a warm-up fixture against Argentina in Dublin on June 20. "It is heartbreaking, but at the same time, he (Fagerson) is a realist. All rugby players know that's the game," Farrell said. "He will work unbelievably hard to get himself fit and who knows what's going to happen down the track." On Ireland's Bealham being added to the squad, Farrell said: "Finlay has been called up in his place and he is in good form. He is very good at what he does. "He was certainly right up there in the conversation from the very start as well, and he would have been disappointed not to make the group. "So we just know he will be a great fit for the group going forward. He is the only conversation that I was able to have because of the way we did the squad announcement. "By giving him a phone call and telling him he was selected within the squad, unfortunately for Zander, but it was one of the best phone conversations I have ever had. "The emotion that went through the phone actually welled me up. It was great to be able to do that." With 15 of the selected players still on club duty - including 12 from Leinster - England duo Jamie George and Asher Opoku-Fordjour have also joined the five-day training camp at Quinta do Lago to provide some front-row cover. The fixture against Argentina is set to be a first Lions game played in Ireland. The tour of Australia schedule - which features three Tests against the Wallabies - begins against Western Force in Perth on June 28. British & Irish Lions head coach Andy Farrell believes his Australian replacement call-up Finlay Bealham will prove a "great fit" for the squad following the "heartbreaking" withdrawal of injured Scotland prop Zander Fagerson. Glasgow Warriors tighthead Fagerson has been ruled out of the summer tour to Australia with a calf problem, prompting Farrell to bring in the Canberra-born Bealham, who he's coached when in charge of Ireland. The news of Fagerson's withdrawal came a day before the squad - minus those involved in Premiership and United Rugby Championship finals - headed out to Portugal for a training camp. Farrell, though, accepts such situations are part of the game, with the group now looking to sharpen focus towards a warm-up fixture against Argentina in Dublin on June 20. "It is heartbreaking, but at the same time, he (Fagerson) is a realist. All rugby players know that's the game," Farrell said. "He will work unbelievably hard to get himself fit and who knows what's going to happen down the track." On Ireland's Bealham being added to the squad, Farrell said: "Finlay has been called up in his place and he is in good form. He is very good at what he does. "He was certainly right up there in the conversation from the very start as well, and he would have been disappointed not to make the group. "So we just know he will be a great fit for the group going forward. He is the only conversation that I was able to have because of the way we did the squad announcement. "By giving him a phone call and telling him he was selected within the squad, unfortunately for Zander, but it was one of the best phone conversations I have ever had. "The emotion that went through the phone actually welled me up. It was great to be able to do that." With 15 of the selected players still on club duty - including 12 from Leinster - England duo Jamie George and Asher Opoku-Fordjour have also joined the five-day training camp at Quinta do Lago to provide some front-row cover. The fixture against Argentina is set to be a first Lions game played in Ireland. The tour of Australia schedule - which features three Tests against the Wallabies - begins against Western Force in Perth on June 28.
West Australian
11-06-2025
- Sport
- West Australian
'A great fit' - Aussie weapon hailed by the Lions
British & Irish Lions head coach Andy Farrell believes his Australian replacement call-up Finlay Bealham will prove a "great fit" for the squad following the "heartbreaking" withdrawal of injured Scotland prop Zander Fagerson. Glasgow Warriors tighthead Fagerson has been ruled out of the summer tour to Australia with a calf problem, prompting Farrell to bring in the Canberra-born Bealham, who he's coached when in charge of Ireland. The news of Fagerson's withdrawal came a day before the squad - minus those involved in Premiership and United Rugby Championship finals - headed out to Portugal for a training camp. Farrell, though, accepts such situations are part of the game, with the group now looking to sharpen focus towards a warm-up fixture against Argentina in Dublin on June 20. "It is heartbreaking, but at the same time, he (Fagerson) is a realist. All rugby players know that's the game," Farrell said. "He will work unbelievably hard to get himself fit and who knows what's going to happen down the track." On Ireland's Bealham being added to the squad, Farrell said: "Finlay has been called up in his place and he is in good form. He is very good at what he does. "He was certainly right up there in the conversation from the very start as well, and he would have been disappointed not to make the group. "So we just know he will be a great fit for the group going forward. He is the only conversation that I was able to have because of the way we did the squad announcement. "By giving him a phone call and telling him he was selected within the squad, unfortunately for Zander, but it was one of the best phone conversations I have ever had. "The emotion that went through the phone actually welled me up. It was great to be able to do that." With 15 of the selected players still on club duty - including 12 from Leinster - England duo Jamie George and Asher Opoku-Fordjour have also joined the five-day training camp at Quinta do Lago to provide some front-row cover. The fixture against Argentina is set to be a first Lions game played in Ireland. The tour of Australia schedule - which features three Tests against the Wallabies - begins against Western Force in Perth on June 28.
