The IRFU have announced that Willie Faloon will be the man tasked with replacing Richie Murphy as Ireland U20s Head Coach after Ulster announced that Murphy will stay on as Head Coach in Belfast on a two-year deal.
Faloon has been part of Murphy's coaching ticket at Ireland U20s since 2022 and will now be joined by Neil Doak as Senior Coach while Aaron Dundon and Ian Keatley will continue their roles as Forwards Coach and Attack and Backs Coach respectively.
Faloon made over 100 appearances in his playing career where he lined up as a flanker for Ulster and Connacht from 2008-2016. He retired at the end of the 2015-16 season and became the Head Coach of City of Armagh RFC where he achieved back-to-back promotions into the AIL Division 1B. He was also Head Coach at Royal School Armagh and lead them to the Ulster School's Cup Final in 2020 before getting the role in the U20s set-up.
Speaking upon the announcement of Faloon IRFU’s Head of Elite Player Development Peter Smyth spoke about the importance in continuity with the appointment of Faloon.
It was important for us to maintain consistency within our group so we are pleased to confirm the appointment of Willie as Ireland U-20 head coach for this summer, with Aaron and Ian continuing in their roles and Neil joining the team as a senior coach.
A World Rugby U-20 Championship is always an exciting challenge and, coming off the back of the Six Nations, the group are motivated to work hard in the weeks ahead to put themselves in the best position to perform against the world’s best in South Africa.
Murphy has been in the role on an interim basis at Ulster since the end of the U20 Six Nations Championship and has helped steer Ulster back into the Top 8 of the URC and with that a spot in the Champions Cup. While the spot is not guaranteed yet Ulster are in a prime position to be in Europe's elite competition next season.
The Ireland U20s have had unprecedented success under Murphy but this gives a young coach in Faloon and opportunity to continue working with players he's already familiar with in a greater role. There's been a conveyor belt of top U20 teams in Ireland over the last few years and hopefully Faloon can continue the trend.
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