The strength in depth which Ireland have now is just remarkable.
As the clock ticks down to the long awaited Six Nations opener between Ireland and Scotland at Murrayfield, focus is beginning to revolve around to where the game will be won and lost on the pitch.
Eighty minutes of rugby will be a much welcome respite from the arduous talk about injuries, player eligibility when playing abroad and Grand Slam prospects.
There are many different areas where Saturday’s game could prove crucial; lineout supremacy, the breakdown and who will come out on top in the aerial battle between the respective team’s back three players.
Perhaps most importantly of all, will be the performances of Finn Russell and Paddy Jackson. The forecast for Murrayfield is not good and the game is likely to be played in wet and windy conditions.
So which out-half can control the game better will be crucial in terms of who will emerge victorious once the 80 minutes have elapsed.
The spotlight will most certainly be on both players, with Russell’s game management having been brought into question when he ignored the decision to go for a drop goal in the Glasgow Warriors’ narrow defeat to Munster in the Champions Cup.
For Jackson, anyone who has to fill the shoes of Johnny Sexton will be under a certain level of scrutiny.
Russell, writing in his column for BBC Sport in the build up to this weekend’s match, reveals that he was preparing for a showdown against Sexton.
“Some of the chat in the build-up to this game was about me going up against Johnny Sexton. He has now been ruled out through injury…It would have been good to go up against him, but Paddy Jackson has been going well this year.”
For Russell, he acknowledges that both players have the ability to steer Ireland to victory and that preparations haven’t altered too much after the Sexton announcement.
“It doesn’t change that much for us as a team, our attacking or defensive game-plan. We might have to make some minor alterations, but it doesn’t change much for us as a team or me as an individual.”
Of course, Sexton is a world-class 10 who’s absence is a huge blow for this Ireland team. However, the fact that Jackson has so seamlessly slotted into this pivotal position and steered Ireland to victory on more than one occasion over the past 12 months is an acknowledgement of not only Joe Schmidt’s game plan but also to how Jackson has developed as a player over the past 18 months.
This is further re-enforced by Russell’s comments relating to their own preparations and to his admiration for both players.
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