You fail to set the place alight in your second World Cup and opinions begin to alter.
Johnny Sexton had a good World Cup but, much like the rest of the Northern Hemisphere, he did not have a great World Cup.
The end of every major tournament and tour, from now until 2017, will bring about speculation of who will and will not make it into a British & Irish Lions squad.
Sky Sports got their talking rugby heads together and ask for their prospective starting Lions XV for the First Test against world champions New Zealand [a short 19 months away].
While it would be fair to say that the eventual XV will deviate somewhat from the pundit selections, it is interesting to note who the experts feel is the home union’s top dog in their chosen position.
Irish players make up 25 of the 105 positional calls – just under a quarter. An even spread or a raw deal for the reigning Six Nations champions?
Only two of the panel – Ieuan Evans and Shane Horgan – selected Johnny Sexton at out-half. Four went for Wales’ Dan Biggar while Stuart Barnes has high hopes for England’s George Ford.
Here's @rorylawson9 's @lionsofficial XV to play NZ in 2017. #WhosYourPick pic.twitter.com/US0YmFvYex
— Sky Sports Rugby Union (@SkySportsRugby) November 4, 2015
Six of the seven believe an Irish loosehead will start against New Zealand, with Jack McGrath and Cian Healy splitting the vote.
Sean O’Brien features in the most squad selections [4] of any Irish player while Robbie Henshaw and Iain Henderson [3] feature next.
Solo runs are Stuart Barnes going for Luke Fitzgerald on his left wing while Scott Quinnell believes Paul O’Connell and Alun Wyn Jones will resume their 2009 and 2013 Lions partnerships in the second row.
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