{"id":288211,"date":"2023-09-10T10:35:01","date_gmt":"2023-09-10T10:35:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportstoft.com\/?p=288211"},"modified":"2023-09-10T10:35:01","modified_gmt":"2023-09-10T10:35:01","slug":"jack-crowley-talks-up-true-leader-johnny-sexton-after-his-ireland-return","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportstoft.com\/rugby-union\/jack-crowley-talks-up-true-leader-johnny-sexton-after-his-ireland-return\/","title":{"rendered":"Jack Crowley talks up \u2018true leader\u2019 Johnny Sexton after his Ireland return"},"content":{"rendered":"
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World Cup debutant Jack Crowley believes fellow Ireland fly-half Johnny Sexton showed \u201cthe type of man he is\u201d with his seamless return from almost six months on the sidelines.<\/p>\n
Captain Sexton starred on his first competitive appearance since celebrating Six Nations Grand Slam success in March with a 24-point haul, including two tries, in Saturday\u2019s 82-8 demolition of Romania.<\/p>\n
The 38-year-old received a standing ovation from tens of thousands of Irish fans when replaced 15 minutes from time before understudy Crowley came on to land four successful conversions on his tournament bow.<\/p>\n
Munster playmaker Crowley, who only made his Test debut in November, has been inspired by Sexton\u2019s resilience and dedication to overcoming setbacks.<\/p>\n
The 23-year-old is also ready when required to step in for his influential skipper looking ahead to Pool B fixtures against Tonga, South Africa and Scotland.<\/p>\n
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\u201cIt just shows the type of man he is, the preparation he puts into his training and the mindset he has,\u201d Crowley said of Sexton\u2019s comeback.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s the type of leader he is: through actions. You could see that it doesn\u2019t matter if he\u2019s out for nine months, 10 months, he\u2019s always going to perform because of the way he prepares. He\u2019s a true leader.<\/p>\n
\u201cOf course, you\u2019ve always got to be prepared (to fill in). You can\u2019t be presuming or assuming anything.<\/p>\n
\u201cHis level of preparation to get his performance is something that I learn from and I will try and do and put into action. You always have to be ready.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Ireland\u2019s thumping 12-try triumph in the blistering heat of Bordeaux was their biggest World Cup win.<\/p>\n
Record-breaking Sexton shrugged off his lengthy absence through injury and suspension to surpass Ronan O\u2019Gara as his country\u2019s highest points scorer at the tournament (102) and John Hayes as Ireland\u2019s oldest international.<\/p>\n
Crowley feels he and fellow back-up number 10 Ross Byrne enjoy a \u201cspecial, special relationship\u201d with the 2018 world player of the year.<\/p>\n
\u201cBeing in camp over the last 10, 12 months has been massive to be able to learn from him,\u201d he continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo see the way that he\u2019s been out for the last couple of months, the way he\u2019s applied himself to training and the way that he applies himself to preparation and everything like that is massive.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou saw that it wasn\u2019t just by fluke that he performs the way he does, the way that he can do certain things.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo be able to come on for someone like him, for myself and Ross to learn from him, and the three of us to be able to bounce ideas off each other is a special, special relationship.\u201d<\/p>\n
Crowley has leapfrogged provincial team-mate Joey Carbery and, seemingly, Byrne to become Sexton\u2019s first-choice replacement.<\/p>\n
You could see that it doesn’t matter if he’s out for nine months, 10 months, he’s always going to perform because of the way he prepares. He’s a true leader<\/p>\n
The Test rookie, who helped his province win the United Rugby Championship last season, admits the prospect of playing at the World Cup initially felt like a distant dream.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs a young fella, you\u2019re always looking at World Cups and Six Nations and wanting to be involved in it but you never really think that it\u2019s possible because you\u2019re so far back with where you are,\u201d he said, following his seventh cap.<\/p>\n
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\u201cBut just staying in it and going through the levels and earning your rankings is massive.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m very grateful where I am right now but I think it\u2019s more that I\u2019m in a special group of players and staff that are providing me with the opportunities to be the player that I can be.\u201d<\/p>\n
Source: Read Full Article<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Sign up to our free sport newsletter for all the latest news on everything from cycling to boxing Sign up to our free sport email […]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":288210,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n