Biggest Question: Ireland

Ireland are rapidly becoming favorites to challenge New Zealand for the Rugby World Cup this year, and their track record over the last two seasons speaks for itself. When you consider how well Ireland have played with teams that have been missing some of their biggest names, you get the feeling that if Ireland are healthy they may do a number on a few teams title hopes.

 

Ireland do face some big questions ahead of the World Cup, and I do not envy Joe Schmidt, as he ultimately must come up with the answers.

The biggest questions facing Joe Schmidt are in the centers and the back row, and the question is not so much who starts, as it is, but who stays and who gets to go.

The Centres

Since the retirement of Brian O’Driscoll, Ireland fans have debated who should fill the now vacant 13 shirt. In the North there were, cries for Jared Payne, Stuart Olding, and Darren Cave, in the West, Robbie Henshaw was touted as O’Driscoll’s natural heir, in the East, Leinster fans cried out to see the magic feet of Luke Fitzgerald, or the wily veteran Gordon D’Arcy, and in the South, Keith Earls was the favorite.

In the near future, perhaps we will get to see Garry Ringrose take the 13 shirt for the men in green. There is an element of O’Driscoll magic about the youngster, and the Junior World Championship Player of the Year nominee has produced his own O’Driscoll esque moments, but he is too young as of yet.

During the 6 Nations, Joe Schmidt made his decision regarding his centers, starting Robbie Henshaw at 12 and Jared Payne at 13. Henshaw certainly opened a few eyes, scoring a phenomenal try against England to win the game, and according to the All Blacks own website, “Henshaw gives Ireland Nonu/SBW type attack”.

Payne was not able to have the same impact, and many Ireland fans remain unconvinced. He blew Ireland’s best scoring chance against France when a ball ricocheted off his face, and he struggled in attack for much of the tournament, apart from momentary flashes against Scotland and Wales.

Gordon D’arcy will be keen to get another chance for Ireland after announcing he will retire after the World Cup, and his considerable experience could be of great use to Schmidt, but he no longer has the pace or agility to make an impact on a match on the international level. Defensively he is still excellent, as he showed when targeted by Australia in November, but the Wallabies nearly exploited him on many occasions. Darren Cave is an attacking threat, and he has a great eye for a gap, while young Stuart McCloskey has been pushing hard for a spot over the course of this season. Luke Fitzgerald and Keith Earls appear to have both relinquished their center hopes and returned to the wings, but both would be keen to have another go in the 13 shirt, and their attacking prowess could dislodge Payne.

Expect to see Schmidt stick with his guns, picking the same Henshaw Payne combo, while the likes of Fitzgerald, Earls, and Cave will, sadly, keep the veteran D’Arcy out of the World Cup squad.

The Back Row

Ireland have an abundance of talent in the back row at the moment, and that should be giving Joe Schmidt a headache as he prepares to pick his training squad.

Rhys Ruddock scored a try and made 12 tackles against South Africa in the 7 shirt, 12 months after Sean O’Brien made a huge impact against Samoa, Australia and New Zealand in the same position. Chris Henry was one of Ireland’s stars during the 2014 6 Nations filling in for the injured O’Brien, who then shone in Henry’s absence in the 2015 6 Nations. All while Jordi Murphy stepped in admirably for Jamie Heaslip against Italy and England.

Peter O’Mahony has been the constant, and he has been phenomenal. He remains one of the most dominant “Jacklers” in international rugby, while his tackling has improved enormously this season. Dominic Ryan was fantastic for Leinster in the absence of Ruddock, Murphy and O’Brien, scoring two tries against Wasps in the first of Leinster’s European matches, and putting in a massive hit on Sam Burgess for the Ireland Wolfhounds.

Then Iain Henderson threw himself into the fray. Henderson has been in excellent form this season, and he has been relishing his opportunities with Ireland and Ulster, looking good in the second row and at flanker. Jack Conan has been dominant for Leinster this season, but we can rule him out due to his youth along with the fast growing Munster flanker Jack O’Donoghue, and sadly, CJ Stander’s time has yet to come. Then of course, there is the likes of Robbie Diack and the powerful Tommy O’Donnell, who scored a phenomenal try for Ireland against Italy.

I dont expect a lot of change in the first XV for Ireland, with the trio of O’Mahony, O’Brien and Heaslip unlikely to change. Heaslip’s leadership, O’Mahony’s work at the breakdown, and O’Brien’s physical power means that Ireland have a world class back three, and they probably will be unwilling to change that combination just yet. Chris Henry’s form since he returned from injury means that he will likely be in the side, along with Tommy O’Donnell and Jordi Murphy. Iain Henderson will probably make it as a second row, but it’s unlikely that Ireland will be able to bring more back rowers than that, so Rhys Ruddock and the others who have fallen just short have some serious grafting to do if they are to catch up.

 

Predicted Ireland XV 

1. Cian Healy 2. Rory Best 3. Mike Ross 4. Devin Toner 5. Paul O’Connellⓒ 6. Peter O’Mahony 7. Sean O’Brien 8. Jamie Heaslip 9. Conor Murray 10. Jonathan Sexton 11. Craig Gilroy 12. Robbie Henshaw 13. Jared Payne 14. Tommy Bowe 15. Rob Kearney