Eddie Osullivan quits

[Gnevin]

There are alot of lads being a bit harsh on Eddie, yes the last year has turned into a shocker and was glad he went in the end but he was still a great coach and did a great deal for Irish Rugby and gave people who are interested in Rugby some of the best memories.

Also atleast he had the dignity to leave and not drag it out. Best Of Luck Eddie

I think that is fair enough, remember that a bit of luck could of won the grand slam or 6 nations last year and the maybe the year before .

[Hound]

There are alot of lads being a bit harsh on Eddie, yes the last year has turned into a shocker and was glad he went in the end but he was still a great coach and did a great deal for Irish Rugby and gave people who are interested in Rugby some of the best memories.

Also atleast he had the dignity to leave and not drag it out. Best Of Luck Eddie

I think that is fair enough, remember that a bit of luck could of won the grand slam or 6 nations last year and the maybe the year before .

Agreed. Certainly you could argue that there was at least one year, perhaps two, when we played better than the Welsh played in the two years they won the grand slam. On the other side of the coin, given the players we had, I don't know if any other manager would have done any less - and some would surely have achieved more. There is also no doubt in my mind that his management of team affaris over the last 12 months has been downright awful.

And I don't buy this dignity stuff. He was fired. He got compensation. He was allowed by the IRFU to say it was a resignation. In my opinion there's not a chance he would have resigned had the IRFU signalled their intention to keep him. 

[AZOffaly]

Yeah,

I'm undecided as to whether Ireland were a good team because of Eddie, or despite him. I certainly think he was lucky to have the likes of Brian O'Driscoll, Gordon D'Arcy, Paul O'Connell, Donnacha O'Callaghan, Ronan O'Gara, Stringer etc etc at a time when they were coming good with their province.

The biggest gripe I would have with him is his treatment of players not on his first XV. They were obviously there to make up the numbers, and if you had the misfortune to decide to pursue a career in England or France, you were a virtual write off, apart from periodic games for Geordan Murphy and more recently Eoin Reddan. Lads like Bob Casey must have been very frustrated by that position.

[MaroonAndWhite]

Dunno, I think a change from an Irish manager may be no harm. I think Pat Howard would be a good choice after his time in the Premiership....the southern hemisphere lads have a bloody mindedness and arrogance that would rub off on the team and might get them playing with a bit of a swagger again. They were a joy to watch when they were in full flow for example against England and Italy last year and I think someone like Howard can get that type of confidence back. Get Gaillimh in as manager to keep the Irish link.

Let England have White if hes so keen on them.......we dont want to be the runners up prize, especially to them!

And Eddie was ready to be declared Saint Eddie 13 months ago when we were on brink of the championship.....while he had to go after the performances of the last year, I think the turn against him is a bit rich seen as alot of people couldnt say a bad word about him. If only we were as quick to turn on that bollix Bertie.....

[Onlooker]

Eddie Jones would be the best possible option, but I don't think he'd take it. Saw him interviewed on Oz Fox Sports rugby programme, and in a brief chat the panel had about the 6 Nations prior to the start of this years tournament he was fairly adamant that this Irish team were finished

He was spot on in his judgment of the Irish team if he said that.  The so called "Golden Generation" have been living on their reputations for too long and several of them have lost their focus on the game.

[AZOffaly]

Which is why you need a coach who will give other lads a run to give them competition.

Paul O'Connell has to be injured to be not picked. Same for ROG, same for B'OD, same for D'Arcy, Leamy, Dempsey etc. etc. That's not healthy. Stringer must have wondered what in the name of jaysus he had done wrong to be dropped, having been similarly exempt, but it was the right call. Unfortunately for Eddie, it was too little too late to save the World Cup, and he didn't build on it in the 6 Nations.

But the damage was done by essentially not having a backup fly half, scrum half, full back, centres or second row for practically his entire reign, David Humphreys aside, and by not trying to change that by giving lads like Redden, Wallace, Casey, Cullen, Jennings etc. etc a fair crack of the whip.

I don't think that's a new criticism of Eddie, it's simply that people didn't care once the team was winning, at least apart from the people looking at 2008/2009/2010 and beyond.

[Main Street]

And I don't buy this dignity stuff. He was fired. He got compensation. He was allowed by the IRFU to say it was a resignation. In my opinion there's not a chance he would have resigned had the IRFU signalled their intention to keep him. 

We don´t know do we, but all the signs are that it was mutual.
Considering his choice of words immediately after the England game, he knew it was over.
There was no "I´m not resigning" talk.
Either he was given this 6 nations campaign to improve things / he gave himself this campaign or it was mutually agreed between them that this was the case..

[rosnarun]

just got another mail from yuku and look what i found on the old board from 2005
http://gaa96383.yuku.com/topic/855/t/Eddie-O-Sullivan-even-worse-than-Brian-Kerr.html

the wobbler a man before his time