FOR ANDY FARRELL, there is a fine line between building squad depth and disappointing players like his captain who have their eyes fixed not on a grand scheme, necessarily, but on Friday and another chance to do right by their international jersey.
And the fact that Johnny Sexton’s eyes pierced in the direction of the coaches’ box following his withdrawal in Paris last Saturday week will mean that, when Ireland take to the field against Wales, all eyes will inevitably be on the Leinster out-half regardless of the fact that he and Farrell extinguished that spark before it became a fire.
Sexton is, in 2020, a lightning rod for such scrutiny and such is his standing within Irish rugby, one can envisage the cameras giving him similar airtime to his prospective deputy even he was to watch Ireland’s Autumn Nations Cup campaign kick-off from the Aviva stands.
“I always feel, personally, that I have a point to prove because you can be the best thing since sliced bread one day and then everyone writes you off the next — and it’s the same with every part of your game,” he says. “Even at times going well, you’ve got that nagging doubt in your head.”
At least, these days, if there is a doubt as to his claim as Ireland’s starting out-half, the 35-year-old can put it to bed for another week internally even while such discourse rages on publicly.
Some things will never change, but Monday and Tuesday this week will be a little bit different under Farrell’s gaze than they were under predecessor Joe Schmidt.
“The competition in training is big. We’re going at it team-against-team and guys are fighting for places.
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“That’s going to spur us on, that’s going to make us better.
It is probably a little bit different to how it used to be in terms of, at the start of the week the team [was] picked and it was very much ‘The Bibs’, we used to call them, would prep the starting team. But at the moment, the start of the week is competition-based. It’s Monday and Tuesday this week of going at each other and then trying to get that jersey.
“It’s good because it brings the standard of training up and guys are ready come Friday. No matter who gets picked or who gets called upon, if it’s a late change or anything, guys are ready.”
Front and centre of Farrell’s selection dilemma this week, irrespective of the extent to which he wishes to shuffle his deck, will be the back three, which Sexton labels “a strong area of competition with “quality across the board”.
Keith Earls is fit again but must now contend with the newly qualified James Lowe as well as Hugo Keenan, albeit many have mooted the Leinster young gun may be due a run-out at fullback where Jacob Stockdale’s defensive errors proved costly at the Stade de France despite some decent cameos in attack.
An uncapped Munster man may yet have something to say about that, however.
“You consider someone like Keith Earls: he’s missed the first two games but he has looked sharp,” Sexton says.
“Shane Daly has been impressive in training, so there are lots of new faces. Shane, James Lowe; Hugo has obviously been very good in the first couple of games. Earlsy is still hanging around and impressing in training.
“Look, whatever back three we put out there, we’ll be confident in whoever gets picked because they’ve all got certain qualities that you want in an international back three.”
On Friday, Ireland face neighbours from across the Irish Sea who find themselves at a lower ebb than Farrell’s men, with Welsh head coach Wayne Pivac admitting on Monday that it was he who took the decision to ostensibly sack defence coach Byron Hayward following Wales’ worst Six Nations in 13 years. They have won just two of seven games since Warren Gatland’s departure, and have suffered five defeats on the spin on either side of sport’s hiatus due to the coronavirus.
A reminder that it could be worse, but equally that turnarounds in fortune — in either direction — can be swift.
“Even in the year Wales won the Grand Slam, it feels like about four years ago but it was only like the 2019 Six Nations,” Sexton says. “The margins in those games — like the first game against France in that campaign, a couple of tries towards the end swings it for them. Moments in that England game… You’re always at a certain level with each international team and often, it comes down to small moments in games.
You even look at our game last weekend against France: we have big regrets but we’re one foot away from scoring a try before half-time. We turn the ball over. You score that and the game is different, maybe. Maybe the game totally changes in that moment. So, they’re the things that we speak about all the time and the small things that make a difference.
“Wales will know that they’re not too far away. They could have easily won a couple of games that they lost in the Six Nations but they’ll have that siege mentality this week and we know they’ll come together stronger than ever.”
Bernard, Murray and Gavan dissect Ireland’s Paris defeat, Sexton’s ‘storm in a teacup’, and Farrell’s latest squad:
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Sexton: Later team selections, less of 'The Bibs', and little moments driving Ireland
FOR ANDY FARRELL, there is a fine line between building squad depth and disappointing players like his captain who have their eyes fixed not on a grand scheme, necessarily, but on Friday and another chance to do right by their international jersey.
And the fact that Johnny Sexton’s eyes pierced in the direction of the coaches’ box following his withdrawal in Paris last Saturday week will mean that, when Ireland take to the field against Wales, all eyes will inevitably be on the Leinster out-half regardless of the fact that he and Farrell extinguished that spark before it became a fire.
Sexton is, in 2020, a lightning rod for such scrutiny and such is his standing within Irish rugby, one can envisage the cameras giving him similar airtime to his prospective deputy even he was to watch Ireland’s Autumn Nations Cup campaign kick-off from the Aviva stands.
“I always feel, personally, that I have a point to prove because you can be the best thing since sliced bread one day and then everyone writes you off the next — and it’s the same with every part of your game,” he says. “Even at times going well, you’ve got that nagging doubt in your head.”
At least, these days, if there is a doubt as to his claim as Ireland’s starting out-half, the 35-year-old can put it to bed for another week internally even while such discourse rages on publicly.
Some things will never change, but Monday and Tuesday this week will be a little bit different under Farrell’s gaze than they were under predecessor Joe Schmidt.
“The competition in training is big. We’re going at it team-against-team and guys are fighting for places.
“That’s going to spur us on, that’s going to make us better.
“It’s good because it brings the standard of training up and guys are ready come Friday. No matter who gets picked or who gets called upon, if it’s a late change or anything, guys are ready.”
Front and centre of Farrell’s selection dilemma this week, irrespective of the extent to which he wishes to shuffle his deck, will be the back three, which Sexton labels “a strong area of competition with “quality across the board”.
Keith Earls is fit again but must now contend with the newly qualified James Lowe as well as Hugo Keenan, albeit many have mooted the Leinster young gun may be due a run-out at fullback where Jacob Stockdale’s defensive errors proved costly at the Stade de France despite some decent cameos in attack.
An uncapped Munster man may yet have something to say about that, however.
“You consider someone like Keith Earls: he’s missed the first two games but he has looked sharp,” Sexton says.
“Shane Daly has been impressive in training, so there are lots of new faces. Shane, James Lowe; Hugo has obviously been very good in the first couple of games. Earlsy is still hanging around and impressing in training.
“Look, whatever back three we put out there, we’ll be confident in whoever gets picked because they’ve all got certain qualities that you want in an international back three.”
On Friday, Ireland face neighbours from across the Irish Sea who find themselves at a lower ebb than Farrell’s men, with Welsh head coach Wayne Pivac admitting on Monday that it was he who took the decision to ostensibly sack defence coach Byron Hayward following Wales’ worst Six Nations in 13 years. They have won just two of seven games since Warren Gatland’s departure, and have suffered five defeats on the spin on either side of sport’s hiatus due to the coronavirus.
A reminder that it could be worse, but equally that turnarounds in fortune — in either direction — can be swift.
“Even in the year Wales won the Grand Slam, it feels like about four years ago but it was only like the 2019 Six Nations,” Sexton says. “The margins in those games — like the first game against France in that campaign, a couple of tries towards the end swings it for them. Moments in that England game… You’re always at a certain level with each international team and often, it comes down to small moments in games.
“Wales will know that they’re not too far away. They could have easily won a couple of games that they lost in the Six Nations but they’ll have that siege mentality this week and we know they’ll come together stronger than ever.”
Bernard, Murray and Gavan dissect Ireland’s Paris defeat, Sexton’s ‘storm in a teacup’, and Farrell’s latest squad:
The42 Rugby Weekly / SoundCloud
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