Eddie O'Sullivan (born November 21, 1958) is the current head coach of the Ireland rugby union team.^[1] is the 325th day of the year (326th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Jan. ... For other uses, see Rugby (disambiguation). ...

O'Sullivan was born in Youghal, County Cork, in the Republic of Ireland. After attending the Christian Brothers school in the town, he graduated from Thomond College, which a decade later became part of the University of Limerick. WGS-84 (GPS) Coordinates: 51. ... Statistics Province: Munster County Town: Cork Code: C (CK proposed) Area: 7,457 km² Population (2006) 480,909 (including City of Cork); 361,766 (without Cork City) Website: www. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Thomond College of Education, Limerick (Coláiste Oideachais Thuamhurnhan, Luimneach in Irish) was established in 1973 in Limerick, Ireland as the National College of Physical Education to train physical education teachers. ... The University of Limerick (UL) was established in 1972 as the National Institute for Higher Education, Limerick and became a university by statute in 1989 in accordance with the University of Limerick Act 1989. ...

Early career

O'Sullivan played for the famous Garryowen Football Club during the 1970s and 1980s, while teaching physical education, maths, and science in Mountbellow, County Galway. He started his coaching career at a minor club in Galway before being appointed as a rugby development officer with the IRFU. He followed this with spells coaching at Blackrock College, (first as assistant, then as head coach) Connacht and the Irish Under-21 side. The Under-21 side won the 1996 Triple Crown, beating Clive Woodward's England. Garryowen Football Club, usually referred to as Garryowen, is a rugby union club in Limerick, Republic of Ireland, founded in 1884. ... In rugby union, the Triple Crown is an honour contested annually by the national teams of England, Scotland, Ireland, and Wales as part of the Six Nations Championship. ...

After failing to secure a high profile coaching position in Ireland, O'Sullivan moved to America to coach the US Eagles. He was then appointed as the assistant coach of the Irish national side in 1999, and in 2001 as the head coach following the departure of Warren Gatland. Warren David Gatland (born 17 September 1963 in Hamilton, New Zealand and educated at Hamilton Boys High School and Waikato University) is a former All Black and the current Coach of the Waikato Air New Zealand Cup team. ...

Ireland career

Eddie O'Sullivan has been Ireland's most successful coach of the modern era. Ireland have won three triple crowns and risen as high as third in the world rankings.

After finishing third in his first Six Nations Championship in 2002, O'Sullivan's Ireland went on to achieve second place in 2003, only losing the Grand Slam in the final match against England. At the 2003 Rugby World Cup his team lost to France in the quarter finals after dropping Anthony Foley and subsequently losing to France. The RBS 6 Nations Championship, (referred to as RBS 6 Nations for sponsorship reasons) known before 2000 as the Five Nations Championship, is an annual international rugby union competition held between six European sides: France, England, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales. ... A Grand Slam can be completed in two ways in rugby union. ... First international (also the worlds first)  Scotland 4–1 England  (27 March 1871) Largest win  England 134–0 Romania  (17 November 2001) Worst defeat  Australia 76–0 England  (6 June 1998) World Cup Appearances 6 (First in 1987) Best result Champions, 2003 The England national rugby union team represents... The 2003 Rugby World Cup was the fifth rugby union world cup. ...

Ireland again finished second in the 2004 Six Nations, losing the Grand Slam to France this time. After starting as many people's favourites for the 2005 championship, O'Sullivan's side slumped to third place with defeats by France and Wales. In the 2006 Championship only a poor first half performance against France cost O'Sullivan his first Championship and Grand Slam.^[2]. In the 2007 Championship, a last-minute lapse in concentration in the game against France lost them that match, this time coming joint top on points (France lost to England), losing the championship on a count of points scored. First international  England 30 – 0 Wales  (19 February 1881) Largest win  Japan 0 – 98 Wales  (26 November 2004) Worst defeat  South Africa 96 – 13 Wales  (27 June 1998) World Cup Appearances 6/6 (First in 1987) Best result Third 1987 The Wales national rugby union team represent Wales in international... The 2006 Six Nations Championship was the seventh series of the rugby union Six Nations Championship to be held since the competition expanded in 2000 to include Italy. ... Rugby was played at Croke Park for the first time, seen here during the Irish-French match. ...

2007 World Cup Campaign

In August of 2007, O'Sullivan's contract with the IRFU was extended for a further four years, which means that he is contracted to be in charge of the Irish Rugby Team until 2012. Part of the terms of the contract allow him to leave the position temporarily to coach the 2009 Lions squad, were he to be offered that role.^[3] Since then he has been the subject of press criticism after a run of poor results. Ireland turned in poor performances in the opening matches of the World Cup against the lower rated Georgia and Namibia. They had previously also struggled in pre-tournament games against Italy, Scotland and Argentina. Criticisms have included a failure to inspire passion in the team^[4] and a failure to have developed any depth in the squad, which has been said to have caused complacency in the first team players.^[5] Many are now seeing the signing of his contract as a premature move, with an internet petition calling for his resignation after a poor start to the world cup. Ulster's Justin Harrison, an ex-Australia International, has been scathing of the IRFU's decision to sign O'Sullivan a new contract. He has also been criticised for his refusal to play Geordan Murphy, who has excelled in club games in England.^[6][7]. Rumours have abounded of conflict in the Irish camp stemming from this, and even that Murphy might leave the squad as a result.^[8] The string of poor results continued with the failure of Ireland, for the first time in its history, to qualify for the knock-out stages of the World Cup, finishing 3rd in its Group with 2 wins and 2 losses.

References

External links

• IRFU Website