Munster senior coach Mike Prendergast has backed Tom Farrell to make the step up to international rugby at the age of 32 after being added to the Ireland squad on Monday.
The Dublin-born centre would become the oldest back to make his debut for Ireland in the professional era should he be capped during next month’s autumn internationals, having been brought in after a number of injury withdrawals in the squad.
Munster moved quickly to snap up Farrell when he was surprisingly let go by Connacht during the summer of 2024 and Farrell has repaid them handsomely, taking his player of the season form into the new campaign and shining in their victory over Leinster at Croke Park last weekend.
“Personally, I always fancied Tom as a player,” said Prendergast, who took Farrell under his wing as attack coach last season. “I suppose it’s his skill set, it’s the unknown a bit about him as well.
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“I always speak about a player that carries the ball in two hands. It sounds very simple, and sometimes it is that simplicity. He’s a player that carries the ball in two hands, so you actually don’t know what he’s going to do, whether he’s going to pass, whether he’s going to carry, and he manages to get his nose through, makes a lot of line breaks.
“I always refer to players like, actually, ironically, in the same position, Brian O’Driscoll as a 13, and Barry Murphy that played with us previously as well.
“There were two centres that ran with the ball in two hands and played and teased defences, and Tom, he has the ability to do that. Even when he was with Connacht, he had great seasons there as well. Fortunately for us, we picked him up.”
Prendergast admitted that Farrell, who came through the Leinster academy and went to Connacht for a seven-year stint after he was picked up midseason from Bedford Blues, made a bigger impact than anyone could have wished for when he arrived in Limerick aged 30.
“As I said, I always fancied him as a player. Did I feel he would be as, I suppose, dominant with us? Something maybe I didn’t expect him to get to that, but he showed unbelievable form over the last two seasons, and he justifies his call-up this season. And he’s picked it up at the start of the season.”
So does Prendergast believe that at 32 he can make the step up into an Irish jersey?
“I think so. I think the thing with Tom is, he does it on the big days as well. He does it against the big teams.
“I was even thinking back to when we were showing clips last week against Leinster in Croke Park, and a lot of it was around Tom and the amount of line breaks he made. He’s a different type of player, but he’s an incredibly effective player and we’re just really delighted to have him here.”
Munster are in interpro action this weekend, with Farrell’s old side Connacht the visitors to Thomond Park on Saturday (kick-off 7.45pm).
They are waiting to establish how long promising number eight Brian Gleeson will be sidelined with an elbow fracture he picked up in the win over Leinster.
Former Connacht player Andrew Smith has been ruled out with a hamstring injury while hooker Diarmuid Barron is waiting for a scan on a neck injury.
Prop Roman Salanoa, who has not played since the URC final win over the Stormers almost two and a half years ago, is nearing a return from a knee injury having played for Nenagh Ormond and Munster A over the past two weekends.
