So how did Leinster build the best academy in the world?

[@josephsweeney4219]

American high school rugby coach here. Had the opportunity to attend a Blackrock College training session a couple of years ago. It was the most professionally run practice I have ever seen - any sport, any level. Really, really impressive.

[@MichaelHarrison-s8u]

Very interesting, thanks for the insight

[@alcoyne3333333333333]

Thanks ☘️

[@getridofneocons]

Paarl gym as impressive

[@gavshan]

@@josephsweeney4219 I went to Blackrock College in the late 90s as the game went fully professional and even then rugby was more of a religion in the school. But now as I am coaching minis in a club you can really see the influence of “playing the Leinster way”. We are all coached by coaches who work for Leinster branch from under 7s upwards.

[@MJPP090909]

Plastic paddy alert. Just like ol Joe he's likely more sassenach than irish.

[@spearsgears]

Im from county Wicklow, and played both school and club from c.2000-2009. My school would always ship c.50 points to the fee paying schools, Blackrock, St. Michael's etc - but this year my school Pres Bray had 3 players on the Ireland u20s! Not to mention Ben Murphy another Pres lad tearing it up for Connacht now. Honestly the focus on club and school rugby by Leinster in the last c.15 years has been phenomenal and still continues to improve

[@gavshan]

My grandad was the captain of Pres senior cup team the last time they won it about 100 years ago now!

[@spearsgears]

@@gavshan that's absolutely deadly - I'm sure he'd be delighted to know Pres Bray are on the rise again and competing with the big boys!

[@refuogee]

@@gavshan so fuckin cool!! Thanks for the extra info guys!

[@eoinmiller5620]

Growing up, Newbridge College were a non-entity when compared to the south Dublin powerhouses. Now they're churning out talent. I think people miss the point where Leinster also focused on expanding the player bases by bringing up other schools, not just the big 6.

[@desmonddoyle4470]

@@gavshan Played against Pres in schools final about 50 years ago.There was more than 25 thousand at it and will never forget it.

[@kreishon]

Woah, woah, woah! You’re not seriously telling me that at no point in their academy being built the way it is, that Leinster didn’t go to Square Space, the Jiggly Sextuplets of website builders?!…

[@benvandermerwe4934]

😂⚡🥃🇿🇦

[@georgemiller4937]

Good one 😂😂😂

[@Silex-Flint]

As an Irish Sale Sharks fan since 2012 and being from Kildare, this video was made for me.

[@fergalcollins3898]

Hahaha

[@AlphaNevada123]

I love as well how in the video they show all the state of the art equipment Leinster academies have whilst for sale sharks academy they show clips of players in places that look like marshlands or where criminals dump unwanted items.

[@galacor]

The comments are so funny, people genuinely annoyed at the idea that a professional team use MONEY (GASP) to fund their system!

[@toma411]

@@galacor People are annoyed because they use more money than the rest. Why wouldn't that be annoying, if you supported a club like Connacht, for example? And how is it funny that those people find it unfair? Seems a very normal response from them.

[@galacor]

@toma411 go watch literally any sport, some clubs have bigger budgets than others. French clubs spent the 2010's buying up talent from around the world and no one cared. Real Madrid have a bigger budget than Everton, no one screams about it everytime Madrid win the Champions League. At the end of the day it's bitterness. Ireland were the whipping boys of NH rugby for years and other teams hate to see an Irish team doing well now. And the other Irish teams are just bitter it's not them. Life isn't fair, capitalism isn't fair, sport isn't fair. Some teams are just better funded, better or more successful. Focus on improving your own team instead of whinging about another one

[@lullhabit6292]

It's envy ! I understand that even if they are complaining like craybabies ! Complain to your own rugby leaders guys !

[@brianodriscoll2725]

@@galacorscots and Welsh in particular. My dad tells me about in the 90s going to Ireland games and the we’d get battered by everyone but English and French fans would be rooting for us to improve while Scots and Welsh would be arrogant about it

[@toma411]

@@galacor Plenty of people, including me are annoyed about it when French clubs can just buy their success, and massive football clubs do the same. It's ruined the competition within English football. Think Super league. So you'd be all in for a rugby super league I bet? Where's the fun in that. Shame.

[@LFire12]

What's most pleasing is there is no sitting on their laurels. Yes the fee paying schools are absolutely the backbone, but apart from spreading their nets to the clubs, and picking up some gems as mentioned, it was great reading about the work that Leinster are doing on the ground to encourage traditionally non-rugby playing schools in Dublin and around the province to come on board. An entire team of coaches/support staff, going out to work with non-fee paying / state schools to encourage them to take part / or responding to enquiries. Helping to supply equipment and coaching to said schools.

[@matt248]

That's not what he said in the video, I think you are seeing what you want to see

[@dukeluffy1549]

@@matt248 squidge got a lot of things wrong in the video. For instance the 1.5-2 million figure quoted for blackrock and Michaels is completely made up. That would be like half the schools budget for the year, it’s obviously not true. Leinster does have those outreach programs and are trying to expand their catchment area for scouting talent

[@rugbyvideos5646]

@@matt248 I know for a fact that they are. I've been involved in it.

[@matt248]

Lads how many players for Leinster came from clubs. Check the vid. The Leinster system, heavily aided and abetted by the IRFU, are pumping money into private schools. Some of that money is public money. Into coaches who are not accidemic teachers in private schools. Meanwhile the club system is diluted and eroded. That not representative, thats not inclusive. Its elitist. GAA at least is not economically restricted

[@conorh4882]

Can confirm that they sent coaches and equipment to my old school in Tallaght as a reach out program to build a team that the school never had.

[@VariousJams]

Something you brushed over (understandably) is the Leinster club structure. The standards set by the schools also bleed into the club game, and the non fee-paying schools. To take just one example, Naas RFC has always produced players like Geordan Murphy & Jamie Heaslip. Both of those went to Newbridge College which is the most local and cheapest (by far) “big” rugby school. But now that club has also produced James Treacy, Adam Byrne, Jamie Osborne and Jimmy O’Brien There’s been a general raising of standards throughout the province, though the very best players are mostly coming from the schools Its only fair to point out also the enormous challenge that rugby faces in Ireland; the GAA. I dont think people overseas realise the hold it has in Ireland. There are more GAA clubs in Cork than rugby clubs in all of Ireland. It does produce superbly talented cross over athletes but the sheer numbers hoovered up mean rugby will always struggle by comparison

[@stuartmaher8178]

in 1989 I was (briefly) part of the Belvedere Senior cup panel and we were coached by Stephen Aboud who went on to be part of the IRFU elite player development and be involved in coaching other national set ups. Even back then, I remember us playing in the 1991 semi final against Clongowes and sitting their in a crown of around 20,000 at old Landsdowne. By the time they decided to properly invest and structure pathways into the school system, it was already a massive thing!

[@bongwonsa]

Fond memories of the piss up in captain Steve's that night

[@MrCravendish]

Amazing system, what surprised me is that it was only in 2013 that Ireland rugby decided to overhaul! Look at the results after only 11 years, consistently top 3 in the world and current ranked number 1 side

[@fazertace6837]

Exactly! And don’t forget they also made it ALL THE WAY to the quarterfinals of the WC 3 times in those 11 years as well 🙄

[@leinsterfan1802]

​@@fazertace6837 RWC is a modern construction from 1987. Rugby is much older.

[@frankdosantos1]

Trigger warning! I'm South African! Thank you for your in-depth analysis of the games and everything rugby. I always enjoy your shows.

[@georgemiller4937]

He's the best analyst ever, isn't he 😊

[@Muesli711]

I grew up in Wicklow, Leinster and played underage rugby in the early 90s. Sometimes we would struggle to get 15 players and our minibus would be stopping outside player's houses and we'd pressgang them into playing! I've since moved away but Wicklow RFC underage and women's rugby is absolutely thriving at the moment.

[@eoinmiller5620]

My Father is from Athy. Uncle was involved with the club for years after moving away from GAA. At that time it was a small rural club. Now there's an army of kiddies trains and playing and they're starting to feed up the line. Kildare used to be lucky to have one maybe two players kitting out in Green. Now there's at least 10-12 playing across all provinces and feeding into the international set up.

[@peterroycroft]

Thanks Squidge. I'm a fairly old geezer who supports Leinster (naturally as I am a Dubliner), and I learned an awful lot watching this video. Keep up the excellent work.

[@coreyv8150]

I'm a kiwi in the Netherlands and this is exactly what Dutch football clubs like Ajax and Feyenoord have been doing for years. Their academies start at U8 and are famous for churning out talent. Dutch rugby is now doing the same with 6 regional academies where players start at U12. Small sport here, but their U20s were in this year's trophy and the women in the WXV. The people at Leinster are smart operators, looking for the best players and coaches that add value to their organisation. NZR can learn a thing or two from them.

[@rob130901]

I would think NZ would be quite a good place to do something similar with the whole all blacks culture there and all the schools they have

[@bluemonkey1013]

@@rob130901 we already kind of do to a degree though its more at NPC level due to the size of the country compared to the population the only place it would really work due to the concentration of schools is probably Auckland, NZ is a similer size to the uk i think but with only 5 mil people

[@IrishBorussen]

Good to hear the Dutch will be giving up the football soon 😂 the can't win shit so better switch to rugby!

[@AshleyMooney-ip6kx]

The issue with Dutch rugby pathways at least with the womens side is retaining that top talent I feel? Like if you look at the team that went to Dubai there's a large amount that don't play domestically and it's just a case of the womens Ereklasse isn't that high level of a league and also not being that competitive and AAC being fairly dominant in alot of recent history. Plus there isn't any higher level to play under Rugby Nederlands other than Ereklasse domestic competitie whereas with the mens they have things like Delta.

[@rory4016]

very different. Leinster don't have an academy right up until players are past u20s, instead relying on the schools to do the job for them.

[@MichaelLayden-d2t]

Seems like an omission not to mention that great fictional character Ross O'Caroll-kelly when discussing leinster private schools and rugby. A good rugby system needed a world class satire.

[@Tianton1]

here here

[@TheCJD89]

Was thinking about that when watching the video 😅

[@spearsgears]

@@MichaelLayden-d2t what's the best RO'CK book you'd recommend mate? I've actually never read any of them, and could do with something light-hearted and easy to get stuck into

[@MichaelLayden-d2t]

The miseducation of ro'ck covers his rugby playing years in school. These are the glory years he harks back to throughout the series. Gives a glimpse at the rugby culture in the schools. You also get an accurate idea of the peculiar dialect of the posher schools.

[@spearsgears]

@@MichaelLayden-d2t legend - duly noted! Gonna grab that one so. Cheers boss appreciate the recommendation

[@tofinobeach7093]

You're brilliant mate, don't let the haters get to you - block the feckers!

[@Ccxgggghhhhhkeksjsisjwjwj]

One thing that Leinster does well (coming from an American) is branching out their academies, coaches and reach to relatively untapped markets (USA for example). Leinster recently set up a partnership with my Alma, Syracuse University, which I see as an amazing opportunity to both extend the Leinster name across the US, whilst also nurturing some serious talent that often turn to other “similar” sports ( eg. American football, lacrosse, football etc)

[@brendanward9877]

With respect I was going to say it’s a very American concept , re the NFL and NBA. I love watching it , way too small to have ever played but the International level is certainly entertaining as is the club level in international competitions.mind you my thing is cycling and none of those guys will get up a mountain fast, suppose they don’t have to .

[@babysick20100]

Squidge, I’m listening to your forensic analysis for years. Magic. You have single handedly made the nerd look fashionable. Keep up the good work brother. Dublin.

[@peterdavies8077]

Wow, just wow. Speechless. Well done on this brilliantly insightful video Robbie. Great stuff!

[@aidanmcguire313]

As always great work squidge, peerless!

[@conorleonard1699]

As an Aussie, while I don't think they could afford to implement the full system, I reckon a pared down version would work really well in Sydney with the Waratahs, large wealthy city with a lot of private schools that have rich rugby traditions, trickiest thing would be keeping them from being poached by all the rugby league clubs in the city, though that would be easier to do on a smaller budget if you get to them early and support them in the school system

[@Bobbydyland]

Yeah, Oz needs to do something to get back to it's good days. We need you, man!

[@Runboyrun89]

Australia has far more professional opportunities which is a challenge for you. That said, you really managed it badly when you had more money than the NRL.

[@HughCoughlan]

Sydney probably the closest to Dublin. All flows to one state team. Bigger population. One big difference, NRL have got the jump. Lads in top private schools playing union, but contracted or at least on some form of pathway to sign for NRL team. Possibly on scholarships too.

[@spl2572]

Squidge - your a top man with a great set of informative and hilarious videos. Ignore the prix!!! I'm SA and I love your stuff.

[@davidbrennan8671]

With a 60-odd man squad each year as you mentioned it is very hard for these great up and coming players to get substantial gametime. It almost feels like all this effort is going in just so we can beat a team like the Dragons in the regular season of the URC whilst the big boys are on international duty. I'd love to see some of the academy boys get loan moves to the other provinces because although they may be downgrading their everyday training facilities and what not, ultimately they need more important senior rugby minutes than what they are currently getting (and it could/should benefit the other provinces which would be great for Irish rugby in general). We have been so close and very unlucky not to win at least 1 of the last 3 Heineken Cups, but for all that time and effort not to result in at least a URC in that time shows that all this man management of their development doesn't set them up for the business end of seasons. Of course they can't just magic up the pressures of knockout rugby on the training pitches of D4, but given that you need a whole squad to compete at the highest level, if 47 players are all playing 5 ish matches a season like you said in the video, that just cannot benefit the team overall with the amount of changes that takes to implement. I know its all long-term planning and it will pay off but I can be short-term salty seeing Munster win the URC before us despite all of it!

[@Bobbydyland]

Great vid, Squidge. Don't let the bell-ends on twitter grind you down, you're a national treasure and a fantastic servant for the sport.

[@TaTa-wv9kl]

Excellent episode. Much talked about but rarely explained.

[@saoirsedeltufo7436]

Sending love, hugs and solidarity to you both after the sheer nastiness on Twitter - we will miss your wit and insights there. Look after yourselves, and thanks for another insightful and interesting video

[@rynnesy]

Been a phenomenal rise in Leinster since I was a lad, probably all started with what was a meant to be a temporary move from Donnybrook Stadium to the RDS, the way they've invested the extra money from getting the extra bums on seats has been impressive. To break the stigma of being a team of D4's, afraid to get the shorts dirty, to be gritty and inclusive of all of Leinster.

[@gordon1545]

Did you watch the video? They're not representative of all of Leinster, they're overwhelmingly drawn from 16 private schools.

[@zombievikinggaming4258]

​@@gordon1545Yeah but there's a few tokens now, so it makes everyone feel better

[@matt248]

Really good vid, thanks for covering. Its pretty obvious for the last number of years that the Leinster system is an outstanding success, building on clear advantages in the province. Personally i do have a problem with the IRFUs inability to help develop the other provinces and address the systemic blockages that have not been solved for decades.

[@knoll9812]

Huge task in gaa country

[@XenoDisco]

Ireland's most respected national newspaper The Irish Times has in the past (and maybe still does, I don't live in Ireland anymore) printed a picture of the Leinster Schools Cup Winners on its front page!

[@johngallagher2007]

It's not our most respected anymore. The Irish Crimes you mean. It's driven by a globalist agenda these days and not short on fake news and labelling ordinary Irish people with genuine concerns as far right etc.. But the front cover photo of the Senior Cup winners was or is a great thing alright.

[@johnmc3862]

Most respected, it doesn’t have much competition in fairness.

[@paolozmm]

@@johnmc3862 The point being a cup winning school ends up front page in the national press.

[@georgemiller4937]

Formerly the paper of record, until the woke lefties and right wing religious nutters dominated the column inches 😊

[@bernardswart2019]

As a bok fan, I enjoyed the Dupont currie cup bench jab given the divided views on his alleged GOAT status. Squidge always delivers some golden easter eggs

[@rhymeocerous]

Both the Leinster player pathway and Squidge Rugby's level of research are astoundingly well realised

[@The_Fresh_Mr_Breed]

What an excellent video... possibly your best ever; very well done! Also, I didn't get the Sale digs, but I do want to apologize for the scenario that led to the need for the Antoine DuPont Currie Cup comments. Hope you guys are staying positive and sane.

[@designmanagementconsultanc4143]

When I lived in Ireland some 20 years ago rugby wasn't as popular as it is now. In fact I couldn't get any of my Irish friends to watch games with me. They said it was an "English game" It was impossible back then to get either rugby or football games played at Croke Park either. Everyone back then was focused on hurling and gaelic football only. It's incredible to see the changes since then

[@OscarOSullivan]

Depends on the circle people from larger towns and the cities were and still are more likely to be soccer or rugby fans.

[@daithipol]

Never had that problem. But I played and ½ my mates played. But we're only talking about 5N back then. We'd catch an odd interpro. Then the AIL started and there would be big crowds coming to watch in our local ground

[@brianward6131]

Loved that,great research.

[@philcoffey5656]

Literally just finished listening to the rugby pod's video on this same topic 😅 hurts as a Munster fan, was at the gane at the weekend and the gap is widening 😢 If the don't do the league/champions cup double this year, it will be a bad year

[@donalmoriarty]

And they won't, because Toulouse exist

[@cateym]

Me too. It is depressing.

[@hannesbornman1045]

They haven't won the URC nor the championship cup in quite a while, while being favourites every year. Not sure why they have to win it this year or it will be a bad year for them

[@philcoffey5656]

Would a team starting two competitions every year as favourites and not winning either not be considered a bad year??

[@eamonlyons8069]

Munster should look to take some lessons from Leinster. It's never going to be the same but investing in the youth systems is the only way forward. Stop relying on buying players from abroad. It is how we get back to winning European Cups.

[@finlaydargan2668]

As someone who attended one of those schools, it was so painful watching us in all the starting clips loose close matches with last minute tries. Finally had one of Clongowes (CWC in purple) scoring at 15:47, thanks Squidge!

[@ChaunceyGardner100]

(Leinster fan here) Great research & synopsis Squidge. It is worth adding that there are some talented players dropping out of the pathways you outlined because it was a little too serious and for them, it took the fun out of the game. Not many but it's worth mentioning...they tended to prefer just togging out for a saturday game with the local club for thê fun. Really feel a bit for our Munster buddies. As you point out, a huge percentage of their squad comes from private schools too but I think Munster made some poor decisions recently, Spendning big money on foreign players, rather than what Leinster did and invested in the academy & youth levels. It's not a copy & paste but the population of munster would be well over 1.3 million now and the same concepts could be employed across state & private schools.

[@MrRedwhiteandgreen]

Love the videos Rob - potential idea for a future vid: explore the concept of ‘cunning’ as a means of scoring points that you haven’t necessarily had to work very hard for Trick plays (especially off lineout, tap penalties etc), misdirection, setting traps (opposition analysis during the week tells you this team always does X then on Saturday they do Y and catch you completely offguard with a suckerpunch) What teams / coaches show the most cunning The impact it has (cheap / sneaky tries to keep you in games you dont deserve to be in, impact on opposition morale when they know they’ve been out-thought / mugged) I cant think of anyone who’d do a better video on this subject 💪🏼

[@cops1430]

Still surprised on how squidge hasn't reached 1m subs, this guy is underrated 🤞🏾

[@fab11ism]

Sooo good. Anyone who wants to understand the leinster system..this is the definitive video. Well done.

[@yodebih]

Hi @squidge, thanks for the video, great as always. I would like to mention that Toulouse used 59 players last year. Not that it removes any glory off Leinster academy:)

[@Grumbo91]

I played for one of the dublin fee playing school that wasnt one of the big ones. We lost to blackrock heavily on tv to a team that had many future professionals and a few future ireland internationals.

[@OnlyDrams-ro]

Some of those private schools on the list are all girls schools. I’m not saying they don’t help young men play better rugby but..

[@hedonaut]

LOL

[@pudwellion]

There's no point playing rugby as a teenager if you can't flex your guns for some young wan. Without the girls schools the lads would be just in class studying.

[@AshleyMooney-ip6kx]

I mean an amount of them also have rugby teams and an amount of their players also go onto play for Leinster's women's side sooo it's still relevant

[@dankmemelord904]

​@@AshleyMooney-ip6kxseeing a rugby day between two rival all girl schools could prove to be quite the experience. Im unsure if the world is ready for that though? Whos going to be the hooker?

[@gordon1545]

And Ireland women just beat New Zealand. What's your point?

[@fposhaughnessy]

Wow, love the level of research, thanks Squidge.

[@Doradexplora]

His level of research missed the entire schooling system of Northern Ireland... There are 14 fee paying schools outside of Leinster in the Republic of Ireland (two in ulster), but he didn't consider Northern Irelands private fee paying schools at all, which make up the rest of the Ulster Rugby school system.

[@robbiee814]

@@Doradexplora The video was about Leinster not Ulster, why would he go into to depth about Ulster schools. And he does allude to the Ulster schools during the video when talking about other provinces replicating the success.

[@Kingpenguin94]

The schools rugby system is also so good because the schools are so competitive against each other and the culture among the schools has become so strong in recent years also.

[@OscarOSullivan]

Competitive it is not.

[@Kingpenguin94]

@@OscarOSullivan they are. care to elaborate? yes michaels and rock are dominant but it is still very competitive with around 5-6 teams believing they can win the cup each year

[@aidanmasterson50]

Leinster are also cultivating the club rugby system in parallel. They run summer camps for underage rugby and summer academies form 15 years old and upward. While rightly the schools are the main focus of this, ever increasingly kids are seeing a pathway through the clubs also.

[@brianodriscoll2725]

I played underage club rugby in Dublin in the 2000s , was a great standard until u16 when half the players were lost to the JCT (can’t play cup rugby and club in the same year ) and I remember half the teams in the league couldn’t field a team anymore and the other half were badly depleted. The likes of clontarf , lansdowne , naas and navan etc could but the likes of malahide , Sutton etc barely had XV from u16 -u20 ended up losing interest as my club were one of those .

[@daithipol]

Brian o driscoll was in town one night when an ex Rock player whipped out his Junior cup medal and started slagging him because he didnt 'have on of these' 😂😂

[@babysick20100]

I’m a rugby fanatic, played till I was 40. I love Leinster. I also love Munster. I’ve been at European Munster games wearing their jersey, including the Neil Back final in Cardiff. If Connaught were in a final tmrw, I’d be there with my Connaught jersey. Anyone remember the start of Ireland not getting the shit kicked out of them every year? It was when Ireland selected Clohessy, Wood, Galway and others, and they sorted it. Suddenly Munster were beating mighty French clubs home n away. I’ll never forget that era. Then came ODriscolls hat trick in Paris v the French, n we’ve been on d improvement march since. My best friend’s wife threw him outta d house d morn after Ulster won their final. I love all provinces.

[@a7uiop]

Also worth noting the Leinster player's that go out to the other provinces. I think Ulster, Munster and Connacht captains were all from Leinster one weekend! (Timoney, Beirne and Prendergast)

[@Cian097]

He briefly alluded to it but it's definitely something that's fascinating to talk about all right! You'll also find plenty of Leinster products in the premiership in England

[@ShellzHD]

Always found Joey Carberry's comment on Schools Rugby being more difficult to Leinster's intriguing but thats just credit to how competitve the Leinster School is both between schools and for the players competing for the match day squad

[@Runboyrun89]

He would have moved from Athy the club to Blackrock College as a 17 year old so I expect that felt like a bigger jump.

[@ChristopherShea-McCormick]

Great video. I knew the academy was pretty good, but I had no idea of the details and mechanics of it. Crazy good system. PS, sad to see you ditching the cesspool formally known as twitter.

[@22grena]

X = free speech

[@boojeout]

Great stuff squidge! Leinsters academy is far and away the best around.

[@boojeout]

Excellent video squidge

[@Ronan_L66]

Great video. One nuance I'd add is that St Michael's being in the 'top two' schools is pretty recent. If you were to have asked someone in 2002 who would be with Blackrock in the top 3 schools for rugby players, I think most of those in the system would have said Clongowes, Terenure or maybe St Mary's. Naturally, it helps that St Michael's is situated in the wealthiest part of Dublin but nonetheless, there was nothing pre-ordained about their success. I don't know the full story but from what I hear a key coach hire in the mid-2000s is at the root of their success (especially in producing back-rows!).

[@christudorprice7471]

Excellent Squidge.👍👍

[@100Equipoise]

Credit always rightly given to the Leinster "schools system": big big Dublin schools of St Michael's and Blackrock especially - correctly. So big shout and congratulations also to the very small Cistercian College Roscrea for another 'find' via Cormac Izuchukwu.

[@obriaind]

Something touched on, but not followed up, is that a key reason the schools system works so well in Leinster (and that the provincial system works so well for Ireland) is that it builds on the history of the game in the country. When rugby turned pro in the 90s, the 4 provinces already existed in Ireland, and we didn’t have to create them (like the Welsh regions) and it was just good fortune that they happened to be at almost the perfect scale for the sport that professional rugby would become. Basically, the IRFU jammed their way into this system that they would never have invented on their own, and that the other home nations have struggled to create a version of ever since.

[@RachelRubin-w2v]

Awesome analysis guys. I guess you know this already but the Leinster turnaround was the brainchild of a Manhattan management consultant from St Mary's College - yeah makes a bit more sense now right! My husband played with him back in the day wish he'd play with me a bit more :))

[@GerryRosenstein]

That's true. He began @ Celtic then Shamrock Rovers. His go-to is "It ain't rocket-science!" Also 9/11 survivor fyi

[@RachelRubin-w2v]

​@@GerryRosenstein #Dermot Desmond

[@Givemeabreak12]

Great work, amazing content! Thank you

[@foggy7577]

Ridiculous amount of research for this vid. Really indepth

[@RobinCafolla]

Best Squidge video ever?

[@seanivan5421]

As you mentioned in a previous video, the established provinces over a few thousand years really feed into the sense of team and community which is highly important. Compare rugby to football these days (and it mightn’t last forever), but the players in football aren’t drawn from the clubs or regions they represent which renders the club crest kind of pointless in a way.

[@davedagg1391]

Very interesting, you should do videos about other countries academies, like new zealands and south africas

[@JosephMoroney]

You could do this in Sydney or Brisbane, very similar dynamics to Leinster.

[@supernovanad8181]

Very sorry and saddened to hear your engagements in this space will be pulling back due to ongoing online abuse. As a saffa, I enjoyed your insight, narratives and inclusion of all into this great game and I do believe a line is being crossed where leaving is the only reasonable outcome. Take care and hope to see your content under more palatable and safe conditions

[@henrybourke2518]

Great vid Squidge. I think a point that probably needs making is that Ireland have approx 22k senior registered players,France have 165k, SA about 120k, NZ about 120k, Eng about 320k. That Ireland are even remotely competitive is due to the organisation that Leinster have brought alongside the advantages the schools game gives them. Rugby across Ireland and the world is immeasurably better for it as a result. Otherwise we would be just like Wales or Scotland. Sorry couldn’t resist.

[@bluemonkey1013]

as a kiwi theres no way we have 120k regestered seniors maybe 120k regestered players

[@colmgrimes2996]

I think those numbers are inflated by a factor of 10 lol! the ratio might be more accurate but there is no way in hell there are 22k senior rugby players in Ireland is this maybe the total number of players registered thats mens/womens underage boys and girls etc ?

[@henrybourke2518]

@@colmgrimes2996 have a look online mate, that’s all I did, didn’t take me long. Come back and update us when you do.

[@henrybourke2518]

@@bluemonkey1013 you are correct and I’m wrong twice. The number isn’t 120k it’s 140k but that includes men, women and teens. Womens and teens make up about 65k so the mens game is about 80k

[@somenamethatdoesntmatter]

@@henrybourke2518 sa and france have waaaaay more registered total players than england. sa has 800k. sure you said senior but it distorts the picture wildly.

[@aonghus3860]

Great vid. Something I have been wondering for a while- what effect will the change from Lancaster to Nienaber have on the schools game and the coaching at sub academy and academy level? For example, are we going to start seeing Leinster schools using rush defence and basing their game around the Nienaber/Bleyendall playbook now? Or is Nienaber just a two year experiment and will see how it goes before implementing it at schools/sub academy level? If anyone has any thoughts or insight on this I would be very interested to hear.

[@seanm7445]

I wonder if the schools in Wellington, NZ could replicate this model? As for Munster/Leinster divide: While Cork and Limerick have a few rugby schools that could compete on a national level, the wealth difference to Dublin parents and alumni is huge. The finances in just the Dublin-4 postcode is crazy-stupid, with some families - speaking anecdotally - being able to match those €2million investments easily. There’s also social factors, with rugby being more of a working class sport in Munster (or at least Limerick)

[@MikeH89]

One qualification that's worth adding is that although Leinster and Wales have similar populations, rugby isnt the biggest sport in the province. Gaelic football is bigger and in fact a lot of the criticisms of leinster (resources, population) are applied to the Dublin GAA team too. It's difficult to say which of hurling, rugby, and soccer is the second sport of Leinster, but certainly in Dublin there's a huge soccer tradition and a decent hurling tradition. And historically those four main sports haven't been in harmony with each other, with GAA and hurling supporters seeing rugby and soccer as English sports imposed on Ireland, and soccer fans seeing rugby as a sport of the elite (which, to a certain extent, it is). The population advantage is still definitely there, but it is worth qualifying it for these reasons.

[@winterishere9828]

Those factors apply in the other provinces too Mike. People speak of London and the SE of England as being out of proportion to the rest of England but Dublin is much more so here. The other cities, Cork, Limerick, Galway and Waterford have declined relative to Dublin since independence when the aspiration was that development would be evenly distributed. As with population and wealth, so sporting success. How much better would Ireland be today with four or five moderate sized cities of 400K each rather than one monster and four pygmies?

[@200lbpenguin]

Another great video!

[@Bellerophon17]

I’m from the west of Ireland and the Dublin fee-paying rugby-playing school culture really seems like it exists in a totally different country. Ireland is small, but each community is insular enough all the same.

[@wiskers69]

Mayo for Sam!

[@deadtopcat]

I'm from tallaght and it feels the same from up here

[@brucemoran1063]

It's a real bubble, one of the reasons it works so well IMO, no dissenting voices, everyone on the same page, clear objective. Vision, strategy, implementation, reward. Funny because it's very 'unIrish', I don't think Ireland has any other example of that kind of world class system (maybe our corporation tax system lol) or the ability to deliver on that level. For a rich country or infrastructure/ systems are piss poor here.

[@MeltyCrispy]

Scouts come to games from all the leinster counties, both club and school levels, they scout and offer scholarships for people to play with them too

[@DM-rp9ik]

I have a solution Sale Sharks quit the Premiership and play in the Leinster senior cup

[@arthurdoyle8266]

😂😂

[@DM-rp9ik]

@arthurdoyle8266 Okay fine fine the Vinny Murray cup see how they go in that before putting them in with the big dog's

[@Natedawg38]

Needed some irish rugby, thanks

[@MrDugiwe]

Dear Squidge. I apologise on behalf of all the Saffas that are being tjops on the socials. We love your content!

[@Natedawg38]

What happened?

[@silversolver7809]

Excellent video!

[@truecalling61]

This was excellent! Thank you! Will you please make a video on the Toulouse system? You only touched on it. Is that replicable elsewhere?

[@dpg957]

Excellent video thank you

[@Happy_Zulu]

Great video was always. Its not a direct comparison but this video reminds me of what LaMarcia was in Barcelona. Until it was ruined by Bartomeu, LaMarcia produced arguably the greatest football side there has ever been. Messi, Puyol, Aniesta, Pique, Busquets, Pique, Iniesta, Xavi, etc. Growing from within can work if done with consideration.

[@09hunterboy8]

Great Video ❤

[@paulevans808]

Another great video. Alun Wyn Jones also went to Llandovery College.

[@GerryRosenstein]

@GerianKock; The biggest advantage is the small/tight-knit layout of Dublin. A lot of these opposing players know one another socially as do their families. That makes for intense personal rivalries which, as we know, always translate to better performance - survival of the fittest.

[@truecalling61]

Gerry you get that in lots of places. The border region in Scotland comes to mind.

[@murray02i]

The "Dublin Dirtbags". As a Dubliner, I loved this and lol'd hard.

[@snoradin2771]

speaking as someone who went to a rugby playing fee paying school in Munster, we didn't have a pitch to train on. Either we went to Shannon rugby's pitch or we trained on Astro

[@jamesgerardmccarthy2897]

How many caps does Alexandra College have to date?

[@paulbarker68]

Ken Floor lolllll 😂 take a bow my good man

[@JamesFound]

It depends upon how we look at it. To make this system work it needs some serious centralisation of funding but this comes at the expense of regional competitiveness. Leinster are now the only truly competitive team from Ireland within their respective competitions

[@Ouiskey]

14:13 "Keep the best players fresh" - pans to Ross Byrne on the bench

[@christopherhamill525]

Michael’s while definitely top 2 now, definitely don’t have the history in comparison to other schools. From my experience in what u called a “top 6” school, Michaels over the last maybe decade and a half have pumped millions into their system along with having a large large amount of Leinster coaches. That and they are as far as I know the only school who offer places to students strictly based off their rugby talents as one of my former club teammates was given that opportunity. That all being said, they are a machine for pumping out Leinster talent, it’s freakish how rapidly they improve as a squad from 2nd year to 5th year for example where they all seem to pack on 20-30kg with most being muscle.

[@mikenewey3949]

That was really interesting and must have taken a long time to research and put together. Bit depressing as well as its difficult to see how the other England, Wales and Scotland can compete.

[@briscoe99er]

I wonder how many players throughout the other provinces and the UK came out of the academy played this year as-well?

[@Kingpenguin94]

michaels have produced an enormous amount of players yet have only won the senior cup once since 2012. Just goes to show how hard it is

[@daithipol]

Always amazes me

[@Runboyrun89]

@@Kingpenguin94 they also didn’t win one before 2007…

[@rubenviljoen5953]

I think we have more than 1 or 2 of those😆Not even mentioning the private schools you have schools like Grey College, Affies, Boys High, Paarl Boys, Paarl Gim, Oakdale, KES ect. Knowing people who went to some of these schools as I live in South Africa and a lot of good players from smaller regions get poached. These guys have immense training and skills programs and a lot of these Schools are more professional than some lower level currie cup teams. Otherwise great video and I learned a lot!

[@gerhardolivier6285]

"South Africa has 1 or 2" , that made me laugh. 😂 Problem is developing them within or keeping them at the unions.

[@rivenwizz]

A squidgy don't be giving away our secrets 😂😂😂

[@Shendersonsports3003]

The only other city I can think of which could match this system is Edinburgh, as we apparently have the highest private:state school ratio in the world (1/3 of all children within the city). However, the SRU doesn't earn anywhere near as much as the IRFU and the chances of them creating a system as cohesive and large-scale as this are virtually none.

[@Runboyrun89]

The thing is that the schools in Ireland are self funding. This actually allows the IRFU to funnel money elsewhere- hence why you get more club players now. It should be noted on club players that some notional “schools” players came from clubs who transferred when their talent was noted.

[@davidkavanagh1341]

A large amount of the investment is former pupils/players who contribute to the system rather than direct from leinster rugby.

[@paolozmm]

Its so good. Imagine being a rugby mad young lad and having such a clear and visible track towards potentially playing for your country from 13 years of age . Aside from pure experience, It builds so much motivation and confidence from such a young age. Brilliant. Not to bash Munster, but they never properly utilised their winning years to plant seeds and create clear pathways from Munster schools towards club / country level. Of course players did make it, but it was a missed opportunity to have a far bigger cohort brought through. . Back then there must have been 100's of young lads who would have dreamed of playing for Munster like their idol champs. Then the routes were never laid down and they didn't capitalise on a potential huge feed into their academy. Similar to the FAI. A football mad country in the 90's / early 2000's due to our WC qualifications ye bugger proper systems ever put in place to harness these football mad young lads. So disappointing.

[@celtic4862]

I think Ireland should have a 5th team called Dublin city not enough play time for players coming for leinster and probably missed out on loads of talent and should have atleast 3-5 rugby schools in the working class areas of Dublin

[@TyronePatOne]

Let's not forget that rugby is 4th on the popularity list in Ireland. Gaelic football, hurling and soccer are above it. Although personally I would put soccer 10th on my list.

[@davekerins]

Another great video - forget the haters!

[@jthegoodguy6052]

Hi Squidge can you cover the Springboks EDP please

[@shaneglackin]

A normal sail, sorry, saleboat actually goes fastest against the wind, because the sail works as an aerofoil rather than a parachute. You have to zig-zag to get where you want to go, but you're going faster.

[@neilmontgomery3470]

Leinster fan here. While our academy system is excellent I think we need to bring more players through the club system too. We also need expand the interest of the game into non rugby parts of the country and aggressively recruit from areas where a high proportion of young athletes go into GAA sports.