The Remarkable Journey of Connacht Rugby

Ahead of The Pro12 Final in Edinburgh, The Rugby Pod’s Culann Walsh looks at the remarkable journey of Connacht, from near extinction to the brink of Pro12 glory.

When 2,000 Connacht fans marched on Lansdowne Road, the home of Irish rugby, in January 2003 to save their club, it was three times their average attendance for a home game. Given what would befall the Scottish club, Border Reivers, four years later, there’s no doubt that Connacht were on the brink of extinction. 13 years later, the province will compete in their first ever Pro12 Final and have announced plans for a stadium with a permanent capacity of 10,000 and potential for expansion. Talk about a turnaround.

This remarkable improvement in fortunes, in what was traditionally Ireland’s fourth province, has not been all smooth sailing. Connacht went on to reach the playoffs of the Celtic League in the 2002-03 season, as well as making the European Challenge Cup quarter final. Despite finishing ahead of Leinster in the league, they missed out on a place in the Heineken Cup because of their status as a “development province”. This rule would be expunged in 2007, but Connacht were never able to take advantage of it by finishing ahead of another province.

The following season they reached the semi-final of the Challenge Cup but were the lowest Irish team in the league table, finishing ninth. Between 2004 and the introduction of the Italian teams to the Pro 12 in 2010, Connacht finished tenth in the league every season, only finishing ahead of the late Borders.

Connacht’s journey to the Rugby elite really began with the appointment of Eric Elwood as head coach. Elwood, one of few Connacht players to be an international starter for Ireland in the late 90s and early 2000s and a participant in the march on Lansdowne Road, led Connacht to ninth in the expanded Pro 12 in the 2010-11 season.

More importantly, however, Connacht gained entry to the Heineken Cup the following season in part thanks to Leinster’s Heineken Cup victory. This led to renewed excitement and hope around Connacht Rugby. A team that was once coached by renowned spoofer George Hook would now welcome Toulouse to the Sportsground.

The 2011-12 season delivered moderate success for the province, finishing eighth in the league and beating Harlequins 9-8 for their only win in the Heineken Cup. Leinster helped Connacht get another shot at the Heineken Cup the following season with their second consecutive victory and their second effort brought improvement, winning three out of six games, although two were against Zebre, and beating Biarritz comfortably in Galway.

Elwood stood down ahead of the 2013-14 and was replaced by former Auckland Blues coach Pat Lam. Connacht’s performances in the league were disappointing but the season was defined by two events, one off the pitch and one on it. The IRFU increased Connacht’s budget to be in line with the other three provinces, helping them to fund the signings of former Chiefs captain Craig Clarke, Scottish out half Dan Parks and potential future Irish international and former All Blacks under 20s captain Jake Heenan, among others.

On the pitch, however, Connacht provided what was, until the victory over Glasgow last weekend perhaps, their most famous victory. Playing in a near capacity Stade Ernest-Wallon, Connacht beat Toulouse 16-14 with a try from Kieran Marmion and an epic defensive effort. This victory sent a wave through the rugby union consciousness that wouldn’t be matched until Japan’s overturning of the Springboks in the 2015 World Cup.

Since then, Pat Lam has truly managed to put his stamp on the team. Connacht has embraced him and the them. Lam has famously picked up the cúpla focal and started speaking some Irish, encouraging the siege mentality, the us against the world notion, which has stirred the spirit of Connacht fans and players.

The signing of Mils Muliaina, although ill-fated in the end, further showed the power of Pat Lam’s culture and last season showed huge progress in Connacht’s game. Although they were eliminated at the quarter final stage of the Challenge Cup, they were in contention for a place in the European Champions Cup on league position all year, finishing seventh in the end and losing to Gloucester in a playoff for the competition thanks in part, to an inexplicable call from Romain Poite.

This rise in the league was largely down to the development of a playing style, which has been exhilarating. While the Irish international side have been accused of a growing level of pragmatism, the exact opposite has been leveled at Connacht. Almost too willing to run the ball at times, they have taken advantage of some electrifying talent in the backs, capitalising on the pace of Tiernan O’Halloran, Matt Healy and Niyi Adeolokun and the power of Bundee Aki, who can already rest assured that he never needs to buy a drink in Galway again.

On to this season then, and while Connacht’s seventh place finish last year showed signs of encouragement, surely no one could have seen this coming. Leading the league for long parts of the year, Connacht are now staring down the barrel of a Pro 12 final against Leinster, the team whose success gave Connacht a crack at Europe’s best and helped them on the path to joining Europe’s rugby elite.

Pat Lam’s philosophy has bedded itself even more strongly this year. The improvement in performances has led to recognition from national selectors, with five Connacht players being on the field at the same time for the first time in Ireland’s victory over Italy in the Six Nations.

The decision to have academy players train with the first team has also paid dividends, with players like James Connolly and Shane O’Leary making significant contributions this year due to injuries in the squad. Lam’s obsession with ball skills, which started with him prescribing all players to carry their own ball with them at all times in his first month on the job, has created Connacht anew as the best handling team in the Pro 12, a long journey from a team that hoped for wet and windy nights at the Sportsground.

Connacht have the opportunity on Saturday to win a trophy for the first time in the professional game. The game in Murrayfield will bring a huge contingent of fans from Out West, and while Leinster may be favourites, the ties this season have been tight affairs and they will fancy their chances.

With the signing of one-time Springbok out half Marnitz Boshoff and the poaching of Cian Kelleher from Leinster and the return of Eoin Griffin to compensate for the departure of Robbie Henshaw, added to a hunger for the game among fans in Connacht, one thing is for sure: win or lose, the west is wide awake and it may not go back to sleep.

Culann Walsh - Writing for The Rugby Pod - www.TheRugbyPod.com