Ireland have named their team to play France in the opening round of the Six Nations on Saturday with James Ryan set to start his first game in the championship.
As part of this year’s tournament, every week we will analyse Ireland head coach Joe Schmidt’s selections and consider his alternatives in each position.
Ireland are considered among the favourites for this year’ s tournament, and if they can secure a win in Paris this weekend, they could set themselves up for a path to a Grand Slam with home games against Italy, Scotland and a depleted Wales all set to follow, before a St. Patrick’s Day finale against England in Twickenham.
Ireland team to play France:
Here's the Ireland team to play France in the #NatWest6Nations on Saturday #TeamOfUs #ShoulderToShoulder pic.twitter.com/lhgSCTfVjw
— Irish Rugby (@IrishRugby) February 1, 2018
1. Cian Healy
Alternatives: Jack McGrath, James Cronin
Analysis: With Dave Kilcoyne sidelined, and James Cronin called in as injury cover, this was only ever going to be a straight shootout between Healy and McGrath.
The latter has had the upperhand over the last few seasons with McGrath starting 13 of the last 15 Six Nations games for Ireland.
Meanwhile Healy has had somewhat of a renaissance this season and has enjoyed his best campaign since his 2013 British & Irish Lions season.
McGrath has impressed over the last month during Healy’s three-week suspension for a forearm to the head of Exeter hooker Luke Cowan-Dickie, but a return to the Leinster starting fold ultimately gave Healy a final chance to reassert his place in the pecking order, and it’s on merit this season and not reputation.
2. Rory Best
Alternatives: Rob Herring, Sean Cronin
Analysis: No contest here. Entering his third Six Nations campaign as captain, Best is somehow in career best form at 35. The evergreen hooker has been a standout for Ulster this season, which has not been hard given how abysmal they have been up front, but nevertheless, Best has been a bright spot for his province and there was no question about his place in the Ireland squad. None whatsoever.
3. Tadhg Furlong
Alternatives: Andrew Porter, John Ryan
Analysis: Andrew Porter and John Ryan are alternatives in the fact that they can play tighthead prop, but realistically, there are no alternatives to the best tighthead in world rugby at present.
Furlong has followed up an impressive Lions tour with a brilliant start to this season as he continues to grow as a player. This season he has been able to assume a greater role in the Leinster attack with increased ball handling responsibilities and he certainly has the handling skills to facilitate this role.
An ever-improving scrummager, expect Furlong to make a lot of carries on Saturday as Ireland look to take on the French up front.
4. James Ryan
Alternatives: Ultan Dillane, Quinn Roux, Devin Toner
Analysis: Devin Toner has improved immensely as an international second-row since making his international debut against Samoa in 2010, but the reality is, James Ryan has arrived and he’s a better rugby player.
He’s a more dynamic ball carrier, he has better hands, he can get an offload away and he gets around the park better.
Should Ireland’s line-out begin to falter like it did in last year’s Six Nations opener against Scotland, maybe Schmidt will be tempted to bring on Toner to sure things up, but otherwise, Ireland could be looking at their best second-row combination since Paul O’Connell and Iain Henderson lined out at the 2015 Rugby World Cup.
5. Iain Henderson
Alternatives: Ultan Dillane, Quinn Roux, Devin Toner
Analysis: Henderson was more or less assured of a starting place in Ireland’s tight five as it was only ever going to be Ryan and Toner competing for a place to partner him in Ireland’s second-row.
The Ulster lock has been a steady to brilliant player for Ireland over the last few seasons but he does have a tendency to go missing in big games.
A genuine match winner at his best, Henderson was a non-factor in last year’s loss to Scotland and he can ill-afford a similar performance in Paris on Saturday. At 25, Henderson needs to step up this campaign and make the transition from promising young player to world-class international.
6. Peter O’Mahony
Alternatives: Jordi Murphy, CJ Stander, Dan Leavy
Analysis: Rhys Ruddock may have given Schmidt some pause for concern here given the form he was in prior to his hamstring injury last month, but with Ruddock sidelined for the foreseeable future, it was always going to be O’Mahony here.
The Munster captain has been in good form since the Lions tour but if he can reproduce the type of performances he offered towards the end of last year’s tournament, Ireland will be an unbearably difficult side to play against.
7. Josh van der Flier
“van der Flier was one of the stars of the 2016 November series, and after an injury plagued 2017, he needs to use this year's Six Nations to leave no doubt in Joe Schmidt's mind as to which player deputises in the absence of O'Brien.” https://t.co/DLNFh5YO7U
— SportsJOE (@SportsJOEdotie) February 1, 2018
Alternatives: Jordi Murphy, CJ Stander, Dan Leavy
Analysis: One of the toughest decisions Schmidt had to make, as with no Sean O’Brien, there were always going to be some strong contenders in this area.
Ultimately, Josh van der Flier has earned the first shot at holding down the no. 7 jersey and he should keep it if he can maintain his current form.
The Leinster flanker has been superb for the Blues this season and he gives Ireland a ferocious workrate in defence and their best threat over the top of the ball alongside Best and O’Mahony.
Schmidt couldn’t have got it wrong with any of his choices here, but van der Flier deserves his chance on Saturday.
8. CJ Stander
Alternatives: Jordi Murphy, Jack Conan
Analysis: Conan has been immense for Leinster this season and in a future where residency players are a thing of the past, he may have received a call up here, but as long as Stander is playing for Munster, he’s hard to look past, especially in the absence of Jamie Heaslip.
9. Conor Murray
Alternatives: Luke McGrath, Kieran Marmion
Analysis: Murray is one of the first names on the teamsheet, if not the very first. One of three players in this current Ireland squad that could lay a legitimate claim to being one of the best players in the world, he’s a guaranteed starter.
McGrath has got the nod over Marmion on the bench and it’s probably deserved. He impressed off the bench against England last year, he impressed during the November internationals and he has impressed all season for Leinster.
He’s not Conor Murray, but he’s probably the next best thing.
10. Johnny Sexton
Alternatives: Joey Carbery, Ian Keatley
Analysis: What’s there to analyse? Carbery has played just one game off the bench since November and Ian Keatley is simply not competing with Sexton.
11. Jacob Stockdale
Alternatives: Andrew Conway (knee), Jordan Larmour, Fergus McFadden
Analysis: His form has been patchy since the November internationals but his performances against Argentina and South Africa have seemingly bought a lot of credit with Schmidt. He enters the game with some heavy leg bruising but in his last full game, he impressed mightily against La Rochelle and will be raring to go by Saturday.
12. Bundee Aki
Alternatives: Rory Scannell, Chris Farrell, Robbie Henshaw
Analysis: Injury to Garry Ringrose made this a straightforward selection for Schmidt. Aki has been eyeing off this game since he first moved to Connacht in 2014 and he will be an absolute handful for Henry Chavancy and Remi Lamerat.
He will reprise his PRO12 winning partnership with Henshaw and it will be a nightmare combination for almost every centre partnership in the championship.
13. Robbie Henshaw
Alternatives: Chris Farrell, Bundee Aki, Keith Earls, Jacob Stockdale, Fergus McFadden
Analysis: Nailed on starter. Henshaw has been superb this season and is probably the most in-form player in the country this season. The versatile Leinster centre has been crunching players defensively this season and has such an all-round skillset that he should once again thrive playing outside Aki.
If Ireland can get Henshaw in space on the fringes, France should be in some real trouble.
14. Keith Earls
Alternatives: Andrew Conway (knee), Jordan Larmour, Fergus McFadden
Analysis: Earls has been right there with Robbie Henshaw as Ireland’s best player since November. The Munster winger was electric against both Racing and Castres recently and he enters the game in career-best form.
His place was temporarily in the Ireland starting XV was in jeopardy after Andrew Conway and Jacob Stockdale’s November series, but he answered any concerns over his spot in resounding fashion leaving no doubt that he was one of Ireland’s two best options on the wing.
15. Rob Kearney
Alternatives: Andrew Conway (knee), Jordan Larmour, Joey Carbery
Analysis: Night follows day.
As long as he can walk and chew gum simultaneously, Rob Kearney will always have a place in Joe Schmidt’s Ireland teams.
Jordan Larmour put down the biggest threat yet to Kearney’s place with his performances for Leinster over the last month, and although Leo Cullen started the electric 20-year-old over Kearney against Glasgow last month, it would have taken something of a minor miracle or a spiritual reawakening for Schmidt to follow suit.
Larmour is unlucky not to have at least earned a spot on the bench, while he could have laid a legitimate claim to start, but Kearney holds on to his spot for another Six Nations game, and in all likelihood, another campaign.
He performed reasonably well in November but there’s no doubt that Larmour is the better full-back of the two.
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