Rugby

Ulster’s John Cooney takes inspiration from American Football and GAA to hone his kicking game

John Cooney is focused on nailing down a place on Ulster team
John Cooney has been studying American Football in a bid to improve his kicking game
BKT United Rugby Championship: Ulster v Connacht (Friday, 7.35pm, live on ViaPlay)

John Cooney recently became only the second player in Ulster’s history to score 1000 points following David Humphreys, the milestone was reached with a try away to Glasgow.

The scrum half’s meticulous preparation and eye for detail has made him the province’s talisman since arriving from Connacht as a replacement for South African World cup winner Ruan Pienaar in 2017.

Cooney has practiced kicking in training, wearing earphones with crowd noise blasting through them to replicate hostile away atmospheres and has spend time in America studying NLF kickers to enhance his own game.

The Dubliner has also been receiving messages from GAA players on his kicking techniques.

“I enjoy goal kicking and I look forward to it every week, for me it is a non-negotiable on my day off I have to kick,“ revealed Cooney.

“I don’t take the day off, I don’t understand how some people can do that, I prefer to risk getting injured by doing too much than doing too little and it is always just the way I’ve been.

“When I retire and finish my career, I can accept that on occasions I have done too much to the detriment of my body which is probably what happened in the summer.

“For me, I have to do my goal kicking because if I go into a game and miss I can accept it, but if I don’t do the work, I’ll think it is because I didn’t do what I should be doing, I have been kicking well this season, so it is worth it.

“It is interesting because some weeks like the week before in my head I kicked poorly, I left angry, I left annoyed, you learn the next week you need to relax and stop taking this too seriously.

“I’m at my best when I’m just enjoying it just kicking the ball over the bar and simplifying everything, when you make it too complicated you get in your own head.”

With Monaghan’s Rory Beggan and Down’s Charlie Smyth being linked with switches from GAA to the NFL, at 33, Cooney believes his chance to go to America has gone.

“Me and Doaky (Nathan Doak) were thinking about it but being contracted players it is difficult, but it is something we both wanted to do, I’m not young anymore maybe Doaky would be the man to do it, I might actually send him off to do it.

“That is actually the best thing that I have brought into my training habits, last year was using the NFL kicking stick to practice off the floor kicking.

“I did it last week again just to fix what I did wrong, for me goal kicking is just winning the first half yard and that is what I gain from doing that.”

An All-Ireland winner has been in touch with Cooney to pick his brains on kicking and the introduction of the shot clock into rugby.

Tyrone goalkeeper Niall Morgan was among the scorers in Edendork's win over Killyclogher, which helped ease their relegation worries
Tyrone goalkeeper Niall Morgan has been picking John Cooney's brains about the kicking challenges he faces in rugby

“Niall Morgan from Tyrone GAA messaged me the other day asking is it an issue with the shot clock, looking back on my kicks I look over six times.

“He was like ‘does that affect you going from the target to looking at the clock and then looking back, do you lose the target,’ I was like maybe I don’t know.

“I have got all my kicks so far looking over, I try to take longer with my kicks because I was tired, and I wanted to waste time so then you find yourself looking over a good bit.

“It definitely is a little bit different, but I haven’t found an issue yet but I’m sure at some stage I’ll miss a kick because I’m looking at it.”

Cooney will start for Ulster in Friday night’s interprovincial clash with Connacht in a side which sees six changes from last weekend’s memorable Champions Cup win over Racing 92 at the Kingspan Stadium.

An injury in that game to hooker Rob Herring had already ruled him out of the match, but coach Dan McFarland has replaced his entire front row. Tom Stewart comes in for Herring while Andrew Warwick and Marty Moore are in for for Steven Kitshoff and Tom O’Toole respectively, who drop too the replacements.

The other changes see Kieran Treadwell come on for Alan O’Connor at lock while Sean Refell comes back after almost a year on the sidelines to replace Dave Ewers in the back row.

Billy Burns has failed to recover from an arm injury suffered against Racing and is replaced at out half by Jake Flannery.