THERE HAVE BEEN times before when Johnny Sexton limped off at the Aviva Stadium where you could just feel the belief draining out of the place.
That didn’t seem to be the case on Saturday, though, as Ross Byrne calmly entered the fray after 48 minutes when the Ireland captain was forced off with a groin injury.
Byrne had been impressive off the bench a week before in Cardiff and he had kicked the match-winning penalty against Australia in Dublin back in the autumn. His form with Leinster has been superb too, so the confidence in his ability was well-earned.
The 27-year-old’s return to a prominent position with Ireland continued apace as he provided a composed performance at out-half, helping to see Andy Farrell’s side home from their winning position. It was 22-16 when Byrne came on but he did well as Ireland finished over the top of the French.
It was beneficial that he came into a team that now has so many other leaders. Sexton is still the king but we know that the leadership group around him has developed.
Referee Wayne Barnes might have had to tell James Ryan he had assumed the captaincy with Sexton off, but the Leinster lock was already leading in a big way. At one stage late in the game, he made three carries in 35 seconds. Lung-busting stuff.
Eight minutes after Sexton’s departure it was Hugo Keenan who stepped up to deliver a calming moment as he spotted space in the French backfield and rolled a brilliant 50:22 kick into touch down the right. The Irish number 15 is always a beacon of composure.
James Lowe, who turned 30 last summer, continued to provide relieving contributions with his left boot and power.
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24-year-old Caelan Doris has become a leader for Ireland. Dan Sheridan / INPHO
Dan Sheridan / INPHO / INPHO
And then when the game was well and truly still in the balance in the 72nd minute, two of Ireland’s biggest leaders stepped up to the plate in stunning fashion.
After another enormous workload, Caelan Doris found the energy to throw a sensational offload/skip-pass hybrid while France defensive captain Gaël Fickou was hanging off him. Garry Ringrose was the recipient and having looked physically spent only minutes before, the outside centre summoned the power to fire a left-handed fend out at Matthieu Jalibert and then hitch through Romain Taofifenua’s despairing tackle effort.
This was leadership of the highest quality from Doris and Ringrose.
It was impressive that Ireland finished in this manner without the reassuring presence of Sexton on the pitch for 32 minutes. In previous times, that would have been a worrying scenario but Ireland took it in their stride and continued to accelerate towards the final whistle.
The thought struck us yesterday that it’s actually difficult to pick the next Ireland captain because there are now a handful of strong candidates.
After years of being disparaged as overly reliant on Sexton, that seems to be less the case than ever for Ireland. Obviously, he is still crucial and they wouldn’t be the same team without him, but it feels like those around him are stepping up more and more.
Interestingly, when it put to Ireland boss Andy Farrell on Saturday evening that his team are now less reliant on Sexton, he simply underlined that the 37-year-old remains key to everything they do – pointing out that his influence is about much more than what he does on the pitch.
“He’s still unbelievably important,” said Farrell. “He’s our captain and he adds to the performance of somebody like Ross coming on there because of how he helps set up the week, set up the last three weeks, etc.
Ross Byrne replaced Sexton against on Saturday. Dan Sheridan / INPHO
Dan Sheridan / INPHO / INPHO
“So he’s doing a phenomenal job as a senior statesman of the squad, our captain, our leader. He’s helping, he’s selfless in his approach and that’s been tremendous to see.
“So therefore, when Johnny is around then the lads are learning properly off Johnny, how to get to the point where he has been at for so long. That can only be a good thing for us.”
Sexton clearly remains essential as number one at out-half and as the key leader in the Ireland squad, but there now seems to be less doubt around the pecking order behind him for the number 10 shirt.
With long-term number two Joey Carbery currently out of the squad altogether, Byrne has made his mark impressively in Ireland’s last three games.
He has thoroughly earned this return with his form for Leinster. Byrne has always been a great game manager and kicker but crucially, he has improved his threat with ball in hand and his passing, as Farrell and his assistants had asked him to do.
On Saturday, Byrne barked out orders to his team-mates and came up with some excellent kicks, including one clever touch-finder on the right. He also featured centrally in the 19-phase passage of attack that led to Ringrose’s try.
“I think Ross’s game in general has been outstanding this year and he deserves his chance to get his Ireland shirt,” said Farrell.
“Because it has been tough for him over the last couple of years but we’ve seen that transfer to the international stage and that’s all he wanted, a chance.”
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Sexton remains essential but Ireland are becoming less reliant on him
THERE HAVE BEEN times before when Johnny Sexton limped off at the Aviva Stadium where you could just feel the belief draining out of the place.
That didn’t seem to be the case on Saturday, though, as Ross Byrne calmly entered the fray after 48 minutes when the Ireland captain was forced off with a groin injury.
Byrne had been impressive off the bench a week before in Cardiff and he had kicked the match-winning penalty against Australia in Dublin back in the autumn. His form with Leinster has been superb too, so the confidence in his ability was well-earned.
The 27-year-old’s return to a prominent position with Ireland continued apace as he provided a composed performance at out-half, helping to see Andy Farrell’s side home from their winning position. It was 22-16 when Byrne came on but he did well as Ireland finished over the top of the French.
It was beneficial that he came into a team that now has so many other leaders. Sexton is still the king but we know that the leadership group around him has developed.
Referee Wayne Barnes might have had to tell James Ryan he had assumed the captaincy with Sexton off, but the Leinster lock was already leading in a big way. At one stage late in the game, he made three carries in 35 seconds. Lung-busting stuff.
Eight minutes after Sexton’s departure it was Hugo Keenan who stepped up to deliver a calming moment as he spotted space in the French backfield and rolled a brilliant 50:22 kick into touch down the right. The Irish number 15 is always a beacon of composure.
James Lowe, who turned 30 last summer, continued to provide relieving contributions with his left boot and power.
And then when the game was well and truly still in the balance in the 72nd minute, two of Ireland’s biggest leaders stepped up to the plate in stunning fashion.
After another enormous workload, Caelan Doris found the energy to throw a sensational offload/skip-pass hybrid while France defensive captain Gaël Fickou was hanging off him. Garry Ringrose was the recipient and having looked physically spent only minutes before, the outside centre summoned the power to fire a left-handed fend out at Matthieu Jalibert and then hitch through Romain Taofifenua’s despairing tackle effort.
This was leadership of the highest quality from Doris and Ringrose.
It was impressive that Ireland finished in this manner without the reassuring presence of Sexton on the pitch for 32 minutes. In previous times, that would have been a worrying scenario but Ireland took it in their stride and continued to accelerate towards the final whistle.
The thought struck us yesterday that it’s actually difficult to pick the next Ireland captain because there are now a handful of strong candidates.
After years of being disparaged as overly reliant on Sexton, that seems to be less the case than ever for Ireland. Obviously, he is still crucial and they wouldn’t be the same team without him, but it feels like those around him are stepping up more and more.
Interestingly, when it put to Ireland boss Andy Farrell on Saturday evening that his team are now less reliant on Sexton, he simply underlined that the 37-year-old remains key to everything they do – pointing out that his influence is about much more than what he does on the pitch.
“He’s still unbelievably important,” said Farrell. “He’s our captain and he adds to the performance of somebody like Ross coming on there because of how he helps set up the week, set up the last three weeks, etc.
“So he’s doing a phenomenal job as a senior statesman of the squad, our captain, our leader. He’s helping, he’s selfless in his approach and that’s been tremendous to see.
“So therefore, when Johnny is around then the lads are learning properly off Johnny, how to get to the point where he has been at for so long. That can only be a good thing for us.”
Sexton clearly remains essential as number one at out-half and as the key leader in the Ireland squad, but there now seems to be less doubt around the pecking order behind him for the number 10 shirt.
With long-term number two Joey Carbery currently out of the squad altogether, Byrne has made his mark impressively in Ireland’s last three games.
He has thoroughly earned this return with his form for Leinster. Byrne has always been a great game manager and kicker but crucially, he has improved his threat with ball in hand and his passing, as Farrell and his assistants had asked him to do.
On Saturday, Byrne barked out orders to his team-mates and came up with some excellent kicks, including one clever touch-finder on the right. He also featured centrally in the 19-phase passage of attack that led to Ringrose’s try.
“I think Ross’s game in general has been outstanding this year and he deserves his chance to get his Ireland shirt,” said Farrell.
“Because it has been tough for him over the last couple of years but we’ve seen that transfer to the international stage and that’s all he wanted, a chance.”
Get instant updates on your province on The42 app. With Laya Healthcare, official health and wellbeing partner to Leinster, Munster and Connacht Rugby.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
andy farrell Garry Ringrose Ireland Johnny Sexton Leaders Ross Byrne