Irish team announcement - discussion thread.

[Glas a du]

First topic message reminder :

Ireland team to face USA in Rugby World Cup Pool C on Sunday, 11 September at 7am (Irish time)

15 Geordan Murphy, 14 Tommy Bowe, 13 Brian O'Driscoll, 12 Gordon D'Arcy, 11 Keith Earls, 10 Jonathan Sexton, 9 Conor Murray, 8 Jamie Heaslip, 7 Shane Jennings, 6 Stephen Ferris, 5 Paul O'Connell, 4 Donncha O'Callaghan, 3 Mike Ross, 2 Rory Best, 1 Tom Court

Replacements: 16 Jerry Flannery, 17 Tony Buckley, 18 Donnacha Ryan, 19 Denis Leamy, 20 Eoin Reddan, 21 Ronan O'Gara, 22 Andrew Trimble

Source: RTE.


( I always wanted to do that)

[rodders]

BOD needs to 80 mins IMO Rodders.

Stag there is no full back cover on the bench and if Earls was considered a fullback he'd have played there in the warm ups at some stage. Unless Murphy gets injured Murphy will play 80min.

There is absolutely no way Kidney will keep BOD on for 80min 6 days before we play Australia and if he does hes and idiot. According to Thornley Sexton is now considered cover at inside centre.

Stand Trimble has been dropped, not rested and Kidney has stated this as has every journalist. There is no Irish coach ever who will drop BOD,no chance. Kidney, rightly or wrongly, would have made O'Connell captain in 2008 if he could have but he knew he'd be writing his resignation letter by doing so.

[Standulstermen]

There are an awful lot of suppositions there Rodders. You may well be right about them all but we dont know that. If Trimble has been dropped then i do wonder what it will do to the lads confidence.

Earls is clearly FB cover in this game and i agree we may see the same back three that played against England at some point to see if it is viable. If not i would suggest we would have Murphy and Kearney in our matchday 22 for Oz. If it is viable then one of them misses out.

As i said Rodders IF(and it is a massive IF) the issue with BOD is that a coach doesnt have the danglers to move him then that person has no business being a coach.

[valjester]

Agreed Val. He does need managed better. I still dont think he is a centre but then there are Munster guys on here who watch him more than me who suggest that he is. Either way i hope the call is made (and stuck to) soon

I think he could be a good international player at any of centre, wing or full back. He just needs to settle on a position. I think its fair to say that before the warmups he would have been favourite for the 11 jersey but now will probably miss out due to trimble playing well but also because of not getting much of a chance is a bit unfair on him. I think that if we were solely on form for the last six months or so, then the wings would be trimble and earls but bowe is too good to leave out. He the end though our backline troubles in the end all come back to 12. Darcy's form has been c**p for a while and is making too many wrong decisions in attack which are killing any decent ball we get. I'm not convinced that paddy is the answer but that's down to the way Ireland insist on using him, and as good a player as he is, I believe that the best use of resources would definitely be to play one of bowe or earls in the centre. I hope kearney is fit too start next week as he usually plays well against aus, and despite what others say is a good counter attacker, but more importantly he is solid at the back, with superb position which will be needed because genia and cooper kick a fair bit.

[rodders]

Stand hopefully when Trimble gets on (62min if Kidney keeps to the script ) he'll carry on with the barnstorming form he's been in.

As has been alluded to earlier he hasn't scored in an international in a while so I think a try would do his confidence wonders.

[Standulstermen]

Maybe so but i dont think we can read into not scoring a try in those games. By God we were playing like drains in most of them bar a half hour away in france and 15 mins in the Aviva.

I thought the biggest talking point in this team would be Murray instead of Reddan to be honest.

[valjester]

Stand hopefully when Trimble gets on (62min if Kidney keeps to the script ) he'll carry on with the barnstorming form he's been in.

As has been alluded to earlier he hasn't scored in an international in a while so I think a try would do his confidence wonders.

Also just have to say that as good as trimble was in all the games it was more his defensive abilities that were on show rather than his attacking, scotland game excepted. And like has been said before I think that is down to gaffney.

[Sin é]

Lets see now how some of his team mates have been managed by club & country!

Andrew Trimble - played in the centre for both Ulster & Ireland. Now, he is settled on the wing. He is a couple of years older than Earls.
Shane Horgan - similar
Gordon D'Arcy - Player of the 6Ns in 2004 ( think) at outside Centre. Also plays on the wing.
Fergus McFadden - he is a centre playing as a wing. Has played wing, outside & inside centre at international level.

I'd be pretty sure that Earls' coaches know what they are doing and do give him a bit of leeway because he is moved around so much. One thing for sure though - his versatility will always get him into the 22 at least.


Most non-Irish international backs play at least 2 positions equally well.

[valjester]

Maybe so but i dont think we can read into not scoring a try in those games. By God we were playing like drains in most of them bar a half hour away in france and 15 mins in the Aviva.

I thought the biggest talking point in this team would be Murray instead of Reddan to be honest.

I would have thought murray and d.ryan would be the big talking points but I think the whole team being named at 4 in the morning thing has made a lot less discussion.

[rodders]

I thought the biggest talking point in this team would be Murray instead of Reddan to be honest.

Yeah I don't think thats actually a big deal. Kidney has a history of rotating the half backs. All it shows is that Murray has slipped into TOL's role. Reddan will play with ROG and Murray with TOL and they'll rotate starts every two games.

Val it was Trimble defence that stood out but he was also the only back to really make any clean linebreaks. I have no doubts about Trimbles attacking prowess and try scoring ability.

[valjester]

Lets see now how some of his team mates have been managed by club & country!

Andrew Trimble - played in the centre for both Ulster & Ireland. Now, he is settled on the wing. He is a couple of years older than Earls.
Shane Horgan - similar
Gordon D'Arcy - Player of the 6Ns in 2004 ( think) at outside Centre. Also plays on the wing.
Fergus McFadden - he is a centre playing as a wing. Has played wing, outside & inside centre at international level.

I'd be pretty sure that Earls' coaches know what they are doing and do give him a bit of leeway because he is moved around so much. One thing for sure though - his versatility will always get him into the 22 at least.


Most non-Irish international backs play at least 2 positions equally well.

Mcfadden hasn't played 12 at international level.

I disagree with you the coaching he is getting. The munster backs looked slightly better against dragons but last year there seemed to be no coherent game plan for the majority of the season. Gaffney has been a disaster for the Irish backs and its clear that earls as a huge amount of talent but he should be ahead of where he is in terms of his development.

[rodders]

its clear that earls as a huge amount of talent but he should be ahead of where he is in terms of his development.

I don't know, I think he is exactly where he should be. The reason he gets moved around a lot has as much to do with his own failure to nail down a position as it has to do with the coaches.

Earls still has a lot of flaws to his game which means he doesn't quite have the skill set for any one position at this time. He needs to stop thinking like a gaelic footballer and grubber kicking the ball away and start thinking like a rugby player and look for support.

[Sin é]

Lets see now how some of his team mates have been managed by club & country!

Andrew Trimble - played in the centre for both Ulster & Ireland. Now, he is settled on the wing. He is a couple of years older than Earls.
Shane Horgan - similar
Gordon D'Arcy - Player of the 6Ns in 2004 ( think) at outside Centre. Also plays on the wing.
Fergus McFadden - he is a centre playing as a wing. Has played wing, outside & inside centre at international level.

I'd be pretty sure that Earls' coaches know what they are doing and do give him a bit of leeway because he is moved around so much. One thing for sure though - his versatility will always get him into the 22 at least.


Most non-Irish international backs play at least 2 positions equally well.

Mcfadden hasn't played 12 at international level.

I disagree with you the coaching he is getting. The munster backs looked slightly better against dragons but last year there seemed to be no coherent game plan for the majority of the season. Gaffney has been a disaster for the Irish backs and its clear that earls as a huge amount of talent but he should be ahead of where he is in terms of his development.

Right about international 12. He played beside BOD for the Magners Final though.

Last season was a transition year for Munster. Mafi was in poor form for the early part, Earls coming back from injury, Sammy getting suspended/ not working out. Johne Murphy was Earls' partner at inside centre for one Heineken Cup game.

Earls is still only 23 - Tommy Bowe was left at home for the last world cup and Trimble made it - both had the same coach at club level.

[valjester]

its clear that earls as a huge amount of talent but he should be ahead of where he is in terms of his development.

I don't know, I think he is exactly where he should be. The reason he gets moved around a lot has as much to do with his own failure to nail down a position as it has to do with the coaches.

Earls still has a lot of flaws to his game which means he doesn't quite have the skill set for any one position at this time. He needs to stop thinking like a gaelic footballer and grubber kicking the ball away and start thinking like a rugby player and look for support.

The reason he has been moved around lately is due to injuries to other players.

He has some flaws to his game but a lot of them would have been sorted out by better coaches. I disagree with you on him thinking like a gaelic footballer. He overuses the kick at times but generally he uses it to good affect mainly because he is a superb footballer and his kicking and control with his feet is unbelievably good.

[mrsuperclear]

Can anyone tell me who's going to be playing FB and SH against Australia? Is Kearney injured or what? Haven't seen him since the first game away against France sure. And Reddan didn't get much game time in the warm ups either. Seems like a couple of baffling decisions by Deccie there to me.

On Trimble, there is no way he was dropped. He was, by a mile, our best player during the warm up's. There's no justification for dropping him. Earls is just being given a game on the wing and Trimble is being rested after playing all four warm ups. Nothing more to it than that IMO. FB is the interesting one for me. Is the back three against Australia going to be Earls, Bowe, Trimble now?

[Sin é]

its clear that earls as a huge amount of talent but he should be ahead of where he is in terms of his development.

I don't know, I think he is exactly where he should be. The reason he gets moved around a lot has as much to do with his own failure to nail down a position as it has to do with the coaches.

Earls still has a lot of flaws to his game which means he doesn't quite have the skill set for any one position at this time. He needs to stop thinking like a gaelic footballer and grubber kicking the ball away and start thinking like a rugby player and look for support.

The majority of his club career, Earls has played at outside centre. At the moment he isn't going to nail down the 13 Jersey at international level.

The only times he does those grubber kicks is when the defence is on top of him and he is going to be bundled out of play. In a few other situations I've seen him in the support has been too slow to get to him.

Still, he has a decent enough try scoring record for someone who rarely starts in the same position two games in a row.

[valjester]

Can anyone tell me who's going to be playing FB and SH against Australia? Is Kearney injured or what? Haven't seen him since the first game away against France sure. And Reddan didn't get much game time in the warm ups either. Seems like a couple of baffling decisions by Deccie there to me.

On Trimble, there is no way he was dropped. He was, by a mile, our best player during the warm up's. There's no justification for dropping him. Earls is just being given a game on the wing and Trimble is being rested after playing all four warm ups. Nothing more to it than that IMO. FB is the interesting one for me. Is the back three against Australia going to be Earls, Bowe, Trimble now?

Kearney will be fullback next week. He was training this week but they don't want to risk any damage and murphy needs time as he has been out as long as kearney but is older and needs more time to get back up to speed.

I'd say reddan is most likely to start next week unless murray is amazing tomorrow.

[Standulstermen]

I wouldnt be using Trimble as an example to say that Earls is being managed right. True, Trimble has had bad luck with injuries but being shoved from centre to wing certainly held him back imo. We seem to have plenty of depth coming through in the backs anyway.

My belief is that the like of Nonu, Kahui, O'Connor, Beale are so settled in there position of choice and so confident in their ability in said position that it allows them to move positions and put in decent performances. Im not sure i could say that of our backs. Bowe circa 2009 probably being the exception.

[Sin é]

its clear that earls as a huge amount of talent but he should be ahead of where he is in terms of his development.

I don't know, I think he is exactly where he should be. The reason he gets moved around a lot has as much to do with his own failure to nail down a position as it has to do with the coaches.

Earls still has a lot of flaws to his game which means he doesn't quite have the skill set for any one position at this time. He needs to stop thinking like a gaelic footballer and grubber kicking the ball away and start thinking like a rugby player and look for support.

The reason he has been moved around lately is due to injuries to other players.

He has some flaws to his game but a lot of them would have been sorted out by better coaches. I disagree with you on him thinking like a gaelic footballer. He overuses the kick at times but generally he uses it to good affect mainly because he is a superb footballer and his kicking and control with his feet is unbelievably good.

Actually good point. Interesting comment about Will Chambers (and probably why he doesn't have a contract with the Queensland Reds).

McKenzie has attributed the 22-year-old's struggles to the enhanced contest for the ball at the breakdown, which has put more emphasis on ball playing - passing and kicking - by backs over ball running.

[valjester]

I wouldnt be using Trimble as an example to say that Earls is being managed right. True, Trimble has had bad luck with injuries but being shoved from centre to wing certainly held him back imo. We seem to have plenty of depth coming through in the backs anyway.

My belief is that the like of Nonu, Kahui, O'Connor, Beale are so settled in there position of choice and so confident in their ability in said position that it allows them to move positions and put in decent performances. Im not sure i could say that of our backs. Bowe circa 2009 probably being the exception.

I wouldn't use beale and joc as examples.

[Standulstermen]

superclear

I pretty much amalong those lines of thought aswell. If Reddan is our first choice 9 (i thought he was after the 6N) and we havent actually started him with Sexton (who i thought, and still do think is our first choice 10) then i think it is absolute madness. If that is the case is Deccie trying to hold something back for Oz. I genuinely dont know but i do think it is plausible that Murray is our No.1 which would be a meteoric rise.

My only issue with Earls at 13 at present (and going on the Munster lads saying he was injured when he played there last season) is his passing. By the same token though im not sure we have a great passing 13 in our midst

[Standulstermen]

JOC is a freak fair point but Beale certainly. He is an awesome FB and that confidence exudes from him when he plays 10.

[debaters1]

Rodders, I think Sexton is more than being considered cover for IC. When the team sheet for the RWC Final 2011 against New Zealand is issued it will read:

9. Conor Murray
10. ROG
12. Sexton.

You heard it here first.

Seriously though, i think that 10-12 axis will feature in the tournament unless D'Arcy seriously improves. I have now worries about BOD and whatever outside backs are selected they will perform.

On that issue actually, Deccie is the last coach to say he is resting a player in such a competetive area. So Trimble is 'unlucky' when in fact he is 14 or 11 next week and Earls & Bowe are essentially playing for the other spot. Should Earls get it Murphy is 22, should Bowe get it Earls is 22. Trimble starts in every scenario. This isnt anti Bowe or any nonsense like that, big fan of Tommy's, but he is less adaptable than Earls so I do not see him filling the 22 Jersey, and if Earls starts then we will need an FB that can play wing, rather than a winger that can play centre (read the ROG & Sexton axis as some reasoning here)

Either way, it has started now, August was ages ago, time to move on. Murray to have a cracker & start against the Aussies too.

Bring. It. On.

[valjester]

superclear

I pretty much amalong those lines of thought aswell. If Reddan is our first choice 9 (i thought he was after the 6N) and we havent actually started him with Sexton (who i thought, and still do think is our first choice 10) then i think it is absolute madness. If that is the case is Deccie trying to hold something back for Oz. I genuinely dont know but i do think it is plausible that Murray is our No.1 which would be a meteoric rise.

My only issue with Earls at 13 at present (and going on the Munster lads saying he was injured when he played there last season) is his passing. By the same token though im not sure we have a great passing 13 in our midst

Cave but I don't think he has the pace to be an international 13 unfortunately and he is quite injury prone.
Earls passing is usually quite good but at times but he still seems to suffer from nerves at times which means the rest of his game can fall apart when he feels under pressure to deliver something special to make up for a mistake.

[valjester]

Rodders, I think Sexton is more than being considered cover for IC. When the team sheet for the RWC Final 2011 against New Zealand is issued it will read:

9. Conor Murray
10. ROG
12. Sexton.

You heard it here first.

Seriously though, i think that 10-12 axis will feature in the tournament unless D'Arcy seriously improves. I have now worries about BOD and whatever outside backs are selected they will perform.

On that issue actually, Deccie is the last coach to say he is resting a player in such a competetive area. So Trimble is 'unlucky' when in fact he is 14 or 11 next week and Earls & Bowe are essentially playing for the other spot. Should Earls get it Murphy is 22, should Bowe get it Earls is 22. Trimble starts in every scenario. This isnt anti Bowe or any nonsense like that, big fan of Tommy's, but he is less adaptable than Earls so I do not see him filling the 22 Jersey, and if Earls starts then we will need an FB that can play wing, rather than a winger that can play centre (read the ROG & Sexton axis as some reasoning here)

Either way, it has started now, August was ages ago, time to move on. Murray to have a cracker & start against the Aussies too.

Bring. It. On.

Trimble or earls will be at 22.

[rodders]

The back 3 for Australia will be Kearney, Bowe and Earls.

I am surprised no one has picked up on the fact that ROG seems to be ahead of Sexton for the big games now and looks likely to start against Australia alongside Reddan.

[valjester]

The back 3 for Australia will be Kearney, Bowe and Earls.

I am surprised no one has picked up on the fact that ROG seems to be ahead of Sexton for the big games now and looks likely to start against Australia alongside Reddan.

I don't think so, I still think that sexton is first choice.

[Standulstermen]

Again Rodders i think you may be jumping the gun there. To be honest (and fair play to Deccie) i am none the bloody wiser in certain positions.

Val
Cave is looking very good but im not certain about him at the top level either (if his form holds he will deserve a chanc mind you). At the risk of reopening my debate with Rodders i think Spence needs to work on his hands too.

O'Malley at Leinster might be a decent option but could possibly be considered too small. Is McFadden a 12 or a 13?
Bowe or Earls are obvious replacements.

[rodders]

Val ROG has started pretty much every other game recently as has Reddan so if he's not starting this week, he'll be starting next week.

[valjester]

Again Rodders i think you may be jumping the gun there. To be honest (and fair play to Deccie) i am none the bloody wiser in certain positions.

Val
Cave is looking very good but im not certain about him at the top level either (if his form holds he will deserve a chanc mind you). At the risk of reopening my debate with Rodders i think Spence needs to work on his hands too.

O'Malley at Leinster might be a decent option but could possibly be considered too small. Is McFadden a 12 or a 13?
Bowe or Earls are obvious replacements.

It will all depend on how long bod goes on for. Spence would need to work on his hands depending on the type of 12 he plays with, the same as earls. I think that both spence and earls will work best with a playmaking 12 and hopefully if they both say a 13 they will have that option with at provincial level with both marshall and hanrahan looking like they have the potential to play rabo and hec level, and international in marshalls case. Spence's problem is getting past cave which won't be easy. Then obviously in rugby, as shown with mckinley, pollock and others this year, injury is going to stop a few of the current prospects from realising their potential.

Rodders; warm ups are different to the six nations(Edit; meant World Cup) . I hope, and would be shocked if its otherwise, that sexton starts next week.

[rodders]

Val
Cave is looking very good but im not certain about him at the top level either (if his form holds he will deserve a chanc mind you). At the risk of reopening my debate with Rodders i think Spence needs to work on his hands too.

Cave and Spence should both get a chance in an Irish jersey next year. Not because we need to build for the future but because they are both excellent players who are arguably playing better than some of the encumbants.

For a guy whos slow Darren Cave sure seems to get on the score board a lot.

I don't want to overhype the lad but I've heard rumours that the IRFU took O'Driscolls and Mike Gibsons DNA and grew Nevin Spence in a university of ulster lab from it.

[Standulstermen]

Jesus, i hope none of our young guys retire. Between Ferris being injury prone and Pollock having to retire i would hope we have had our fair share of troubles in that regard. I had forgot about Hanrahan. I like the look of him but i felt again he may be too small for centre. (plenty of time for that to change mind).

I have said it for a while but i think in the next generation of young Irish backs i think Marshall will be our lynchpin (hope he doesnt let me down)

[valjester]

Jesus, i hope none of our young guys retire. Between Ferris being injury prone and Pollock having to retire i would hope we have had our fair share of troubles in that regard. I had forgot about Hanrahan. I like the look of him but i felt again he may be too small for centre. (plenty of time for that to change mind).

I have said it for a while but i think in the next generation of young Irish backs i think Marshall will be our lynchpin (hope he doesnt let me down)

Hanrahan is only 19 and he might be a bit short but he is quite stocky and looks strong enough. I hope none retire but I think we have to accept that unfortunately some of them will.

[red_stag]

I think Hanrahan will see a lot of gametime at 10 for Munster when he eventually breaks into the team as backup.

[rodders]

I hope none retire but I think we have to accept that unfortunately some of them will.

Jeesus and people are accusing me off jumping the gun!

Lets not write off our young chaps before they even get started. Every player is different,remember Sexton didn't come good until he was 25. Every player is a bad injury away from retirement not just the young guys.

[Notch]

Lets see now how some of his team mates have been managed by club & country!

Andrew Trimble - played in the centre for both Ulster & Ireland. Now, he is settled on the wing. He is a couple of years older than Earls.
Shane Horgan - similar
Gordon D'Arcy - Player of the 6Ns in 2004 ( think) at outside Centre. Also plays on the wing.
Fergus McFadden - he is a centre playing as a wing. Has played wing, outside & inside centre at international level.

All of those players careers suffered as a result; you can add Luke Fitzgerald and Paddy Wallace to that list as well. There's six players outside of Keith Earls who have suffered from being shunted around the backline. Versatility is great, but what we have is players playing one position in school, shunted to another position when they turn professional and then- three or four years later- we finally figure out what their best position is. That's quite different to being able to fill in in another position.

You might cite that as a positive, but the fact it takes some backs until they are 25 or older at all three provinces before we finally find a way of getting the best out of them in one position is rather worrying for me.

[valjester]

I hope none retire but I think we have to accept that unfortunately some of them will.

Jeesus and people are accusing me off jumping the gun!

Lets not write off our young chaps before they even get started. Every player is different,remember Sexton didn't come good until he was 25. Every player is a bad injury away from retirement not just the young guys.

Sorry for coming across as pessimistic and overly harsh but I think it is fair to say that we will see more rugby players retiring young as the sport becomes more physical and the players become bigger.

[Sin é]

Lets see now how some of his team mates have been managed by club & country!

Andrew Trimble - played in the centre for both Ulster & Ireland. Now, he is settled on the wing. He is a couple of years older than Earls.
Shane Horgan - similar
Gordon D'Arcy - Player of the 6Ns in 2004 ( think) at outside Centre. Also plays on the wing.
Fergus McFadden - he is a centre playing as a wing. Has played wing, outside & inside centre at international level.

All of those players careers suffered as a result; you can add Luke Fitzgerald and Paddy Wallace to that list as well. There's six players outside of Keith Earls who have suffered from being shunted around the backline. Versatility is great, but what we have is players playing one position in school, shunted to another position when they turn professional and then- three or four years later- we finally figure out what their best position is. That's quite different to being able to fill in in another position.

You might cite that as a positive, but the fact it takes some backs until they are 25 or older at all three provinces before we finally find a way of getting the best out of them in one position is rather worrying for me.

I wasn't citing this as a positive - just it was opined that Earls is the only one who is hard done by with regard to being moved about. Its not unusual for this to happen to young players. I suppose if they survive all that chopping and changing, they will just rise to the top anyway and be better players for it.

[Notch]

Albeit a few years later than they really should! It's a problem we've had in Irish rugby that needs looked at.

I don't have a problem with Earls; he's played pretty consistently on the wing for Ireland, his appearances at centre have been less impressive but he's not at centre on Sunday so I'm not overly concerned. He needs a big performance to stay in the XV though.

[Sin é]

Val ROG has started pretty much every other game recently as has Reddan so if he's not starting this week, he'll be starting next week.

The only predictable thing about Kidney is his unpredictability. I think Sexton & Reddan will start against Australia. Reddan & Sexton play plenty together so it won't be an issue.

Murray will be fine against the US and any nerves will be sorted (mind you, he seems to be a very cool customer) with getting a game under his belt.

Bear in mind that Jim Williams's previous job was Declan Kidney's Assistant Coach. Jim will have a fair idea as to how Kidney works, so Kidney had to up his game considerably to confuse him! He seems to be doing a good job because no one has a clue what he is going to do.

It seems that Boss isn't getting much of a look in at all.

[Notch]

Jim will have a fair idea as to how Kidney works, so Kidney had to up his game considerably to confuse him! He seems to be doing a good job because no one has a clue what he is going to do.

This is the logic of Irish Rugby; it doesn't seem like our coach knows what he's doing! Sure, isn't he doing a great job of confusing the opposition altogether?

[Sin é]

Albeit a few years later than they really should! It's a problem we've had in Irish rugby that needs looked at.

I don't have a problem with Earls; he's played pretty consistently on the wing for Ireland, his appearances at centre have been less impressive but he's not at centre on Sunday so I'm not overly concerned. He needs a big performance to stay in the XV though.

I think Tommy Bowe needs as big a performance - even more so as Trimble played most of his games on that wing.

(Beside BOD in the centre (D'Arcy got injured), Earls scored 2 tries against Wales in his first 6Ns).

[Boyne]

I think it was a shrood decision sticking Murray in there. What better place to get your 1st start than against a minnow in a world cup where feel good factor is high in the squad whist playing with basically the 1st 15 around you.

We will win the game and this is good man management.

Reddan and Sexton will start next week.

[Standulstermen]

If Reddan and Sexton do start next week then i think it is a big gamble. They have seen virtually no game together since the end of the season and while this could be described as keeping your powder dry i just cant believe that our first choice half backs wont have played together since may.

[Boyne]

Me neither.

None of this will matter if we beat Oz and Italy. DK will be vindicated.

IF it comes undone, there are plenty of reasons starting to appear which might justify why.

[Standulstermen]

I agree it could be a masterstroke Boyne but it is a gamble on Kidneys part if he selects Reddan/Sexton against OZ with no gametime together and we get humped then it will be used as a stick to beat him. (in saying that he will come under fire whatever he does should we lose)

[RubyGuby]

Irelands default position of underdogs (not this game) again will suit them well for the RWC - I'm expecting the 1/4's plus for them

[Boyne]

Yes, but if he covers his bases and we fail then, hey, he did everything right.

If not, there are many reasons why people might say "I told you so".....

1. Not knowing our 1st choice fly half.
2. Not having a credible center partnership (Darcy's not and neither are Earls or Wallace)
3. Not trying Bowe in the center
4. Refusal to look at Hagan as an alternative to Buckley (I've an awful feeling that's going to hurt us later, bigtime)

But if we get on well in the group (win it) none of it will matter.

[rodders]

Kidney hardly ever plays Reddan alongside Sexton so why would he start now. Face it ROG will be starting next week, all the signs are there.

A fiver says Rog will start against Australia and Italy and Sexton will start the QF, if we make it. It's Kidneys way of keeping both guys happy .

[Boyne]

Keeping both guys happy mi arsh.

He should be more concerned with winning matches.

We will see ROG sometime at the weekend and most probably during the Oz game (especially if we are chasing the game) but Sexton will start.

[rodders]

Keeping both guys happy mi arsh.

He should be more concerned with winning matches.

Winning's got nothing to do with Boyne. Deccie is building a squad and trying to keep the lads happy. Less of the winning and losing chat please .

Did you see the lads out doing their rafting and go-karting? They've never looked so happy. Don't let the 30% win ratio worry you, Deccy has the boys playing with smiles on their faces!

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