Joe Schmidt explains why Jared Payne is back and Stuart McCloskey is dropped

Tough calls made and Italy coming into focus.

Joe Schmidt may have been tempted to invoke some wholesale changes after Ireland's win-less start to the Six Nations but he is more focused on getting his team back on track. To that end, Schmidt has recalled Jared Payne to midfield, opted for Simon Zebo over an untested fullback [Payne], went with Mike Ross at tighthead and kept Ultan Dillane on the bench. Schmidt made two changes from the side that lost to England, at Twickenham, on February 28; thus ending their championship hopes. Zebo and Payne are in while Rob Kearney [hamstring injury] and Stuart McCloskey [dropped] miss out. At Carton House this afternoon, Schmidt told us why:

"We haven't trained with Jared at 15 so it would be a big step for us to go with that... What we lack with Jared in midfield has been evident to us, especially on the edge, defensively." "... I don't think it is a re-occurrence of Rob's [previous hamstring injury] but it is the same hamstring... When something is recurrent, you do worry about it."

Schmidt was at pains to stress that the door was not closed on McCloskey in this championship.

"We want to keep investing in Stuart but [selecting him] would create a concertina effect as it would mean shifting someone over elsewhere."

For Paddy Jackson fans out there, Schmidt did note that his status as a 'one-position player' had hindered his chances of making the Irish bench. The same stands for Sexton.