6 Nations
‘In Terms Of Testing Ourselves, It’s Huge’ – Sexton
When South Africa last visited these shores as reigning Rugby World Cup champions, Jonathan Sexton’s international career was in its infancy. It was November 2009 and he had only just made his Ireland debut.
Taking the reins at out-half from Ronan O’Gara, Sexton kicked all 15 points in only his second Test appearance as the home side, fresh from that year’s historic Grand Slam success, defeated the Springboks at Croke Park.
Saturday will mark the current Ireland captain’s sixth time to play South Africa on home soil, the last two occasions taking his win tally to three thanks to those convincing victories from 2014 (29-15) and 2017 (38-3).
It is always a hugely physical battle coming up against the ‘Boks – Sexton played out the 2009 game with two broken fingers – but with plenty of pace in their selected back-line, he knows they are much more than the power game they are famed for.
“The South African DNA is unbelievably strong up front, strong set piece, they base the majority of their game off that. Good kicking game, good in the air,” highlighted Sexton, who is set to captain his country for the 21st time in the Bank of Ireland Nations Series opener.
“But they’re also not afraid to play when it’s on, and they’re also not afraid to go wide-wide, and they’ve picked a pretty exciting back-line.
“A back-line that they probably haven’t had the luxury of picking so far with injuries and suspensions and stuff. To bring (Cheslin) Kolbe back, and (Kurt-Lee) Arendse on the right wing, they’re almost like duplicates of each other so we’ve got double threats there.
“They’ve got top quality players across the park. They build their game on strong set piece, strong kicking game, pressure. They’re pretty well rounded.”
Damian Willemse, who won the BKT United Rugby Championship with the DHL Stormers last season, will be Sexton’s opposite number this weekend. The versatile 24-year-old start at out-half, alongside the Cell C Sharks’ Jaden Hendrikse.
The Ireland skipper rates Willemse highly, acknowledging: “He’s a very, very good player. I suppose he’s only played a couple of games at 10 for South Africa. He’s unpredictable, he’s got fantastic footwork, he’s got a good kicking game, strong and fast obviously.
“Some traits you wouldn’t normally associate with a 10, but he’s an excellent player. We’re going to have to be ready to play but we expected him to be named at 10. We’ve done a little bit of analysis on him and will do some more.”
Despite narrowly missing out on the Rugby Championship title to New Zealand, Jacques Nienaber’s men took plenty of encouragement from their biggest win over New Zealand since 1928 and their first Test victory in Australia since 2013.
This weekend will see them come up against some of the British & Irish Lions players they defeated to win the 2021 Covid-19-impacted Series, including Tadhg Furlong, Robbie Henshaw and Jack Conan who started all three Tests.
While also encouraged by the form of the South African sides in the URC and their eagerly-awaited debuts in the Heineken Champions Cup, Nienaber is bracing his squad for a supercharged clash with an Ireland team that ‘can be a force to be reckoned with in Dublin’.
“We last faced Ireland on their home patch in 2017 and they beat us 38-3 in that match, and they also beat us here 29-15 in 2014 and they will draw confidence from that,” said the former Munster defence coach.
“Similarly to us, they will also view this as a vital match with an eye on next year’s Rugby World Cup in France where we will cross paths in the pool stages.
“Obviously we are a long way out from the World Cup, but we have a limited number of games left before the competition. The preparation doesn’t get better than playing a side we will face in the World Cup and the number one side in the world.
“This match is important for us for many reasons, one of which is to test our player combinations with the World Cup less than a year away.”
For Sexton, the opening Test of the Bank of Ireland Nations Series is a chance for Ireland to build on what they achieved during the summer and to start the new international season on a strong footing.
“It’s what we need. We need another big test and to find out where we’re at. Obviously we have to give South Africa the respect that they absolutely deserve. They’re the best team in the world in terms of they’re world champions,” he added.
They’re a top class team. They’ve won the World Cup, beat the Lions, had some big results over the last few years. So in terms of testing ourselves, it’s huge.
How we can get a result? We have to bring our game and make sure we do it even better. Because when you have a couple of results like we did during the summer, teams start to properly look at you and it’s like, ‘how are we going to mess up this Ireland team?’
“How are we going to combat this? We’ve got to do it better and we’ve got to evolve a little bit and make sure that we bring something new to the table.”
Images & Content from Irish Rugby & Images © Inpho Photography
Munster Rugby and the IRFU are pleased to confirm contract extensions for Conor Murray and Jack Daly with Brian Gleeson to be promoted from the Academy to the senior squad next season.
Murray and Daly have signed one-year extensions with Gleeson moving up to the senior squad on a two-year deal.
Gleeson is one of five Academy players moving up to the senior squad next year with Tony Butler, Ethan Coughlan, Mark Donnelly and Edwin Edogbo also signing two-year deals.
Conor Murray is one of the most decorated scrum-halfs in world rugby with 116 Ireland caps and three British & Irish Lions tours to his name.
A former St Munchin’s College student, the Garryowen man won his fifth 6 Nations title with Ireland last month and earned his second league title with Munster last season.
The 34-year-old has made 185 Munster appearances and scored 34 tries for the province to date and was named on World Rugby’s Team of the Decade in 2019.
25-year-old flanker Jack Daly came up through the ranks at Castleisland RFC and made his Munster debut against Zebre in 2020.
Daly joined the Academy in 2018, moved up to the senior squad in 2021 and plays his AIL rugby with Garryowen. A former Ireland U20 international, he made his Champions Cup debut against Toulouse in the quarter-final at the Aviva Stadium in 2022.
Try-scoring number 8 Brian Gleeson leads the charge for the Ireland Under-20s against France ©INPHO/Evan Treacy
20-year-old Gleeson moves up to the senior squad after just one year in the Academy that has seen him score one try in nine senior appearances.
Currently out of action with an ankle injury, he had already made three Champions Cup appearances before turning 20.
The powerful back-row forward was a Grand Slam winner with the Ireland U20s last year. plays his AIL rugby with Garryowen and came up through the ranks at Thurles RFC and Rockwell College.
Images & Content from Irish Rugby & Images © Inpho Photography
Head Coach Andy Farrell has named his Ireland Match Day Squad for Saturday’s Guinness Men’s Six Nations clash against Scotland at Aviva Stadium (Kick-off 4.45pm).
Ireland – currently sitting top of the Six Nations table heading into Super Saturday – can clinch back-to-back Championship titles with victory over Scotland in Dublin.
Farrell has named an unchanged starting XV for the Round 5 clash, as Hugo Keenan, Calvin Nash and James Lowe continue in the Ireland back three. Robbie Henshaw and Bundee Aki are once again selected in midfield, with Jack Crowley and Jamison Gibson-Park the starting half-backs.
Andrew Porter, Dan Sheehan and Tadhg Furlong pack down in the front row, with Joe McCarthy partnering Tadhg Beirne – who is set to win his 50th Test cap for Ireland – in the engine room.
Captain Peter O’Mahony is at blindside flanker, Josh van der Flier is at openside and Caelan Doris completes the starting XV at number eight.
The Ireland Coaching Team have opted for a 5-3 split on the bench, with Rónan Kelleher, Cian Healy, Finlay Bealham, Ryan Baird and Jack Conan providing the reinforcements up front, and Conor Murray, Harry Byrne and the fit-again Garry Ringrose the backline options.
Saturday’s match is live on Virgin Media One and ITV, with live radio coverage available on RTE Radio 1.
Ireland Team & Replacements (v Scotland, Guinness Men’s Six Nations, Saturday, March 16, 4.45pm)
15. Hugo Keenan (UCD/Leinster)(39)
14. Calvin Nash (Young Munster/Munster)(5)
13. Robbie Henshaw (Buccaneers/Leinster)(71)
12. Bundee Aki (Galwegians/Connacht)(55)
11. James Lowe (Leinster)(30)
10. Jack Crowley (Cork Constitution/Munster)(13)
9. Jamison Gibson-Park (Leinster)(34)
1. Andrew Porter (UCD/Leinster)(63)
2. Dan Sheehan (Lansdowne/Leinster)(25)
3. Tadhg Furlong (Clontarf/Leinster)(75)
4. Joe McCarthy (Dublin University/Leinster)(9)
5. Tadhg Beirne (Lansdowne/Munster)(49)
6. Peter O’Mahony (Cork Constitution/Munster)(captain)(104)
7. Josh van der Flier (UCD/Leinster)(61)
8. Caelan Doris (St Mary’s College/Leinster)(40)
Replacements:
16. Rónan Kelleher (Lansdowne/Leinster)(30)
17. Cian Healy (Clontarf/Leinster)(128)
18. Finlay Bealham (Buccaneers/Connacht)(39)
19. Ryan Baird (Dublin University/Leinster)(19)
20. Jack Conan (Old Belvedere/Leinster)(45)
21. Conor Murray (Garryowen/Munster)(115)
22. Harry Byrne (UCD/Leinster)(3)
23. Garry Ringrose (UCD/Leinster)(57).
Images & Content from Irish Rugby & Images © Inpho Photography
Head Coach Andy Farrell has named his Ireland Match Day Squad for Saturday’s Guinness Men’s Six Nations clash against England at Twickenham (Kick-off 4.45pm).
Peter O’Mahony captains Ireland for the Round 4 visit to London, with Hugo Keenan returning to the starting XV after recovering from injury.
Keenan joins Calvin Nash and James Lowe in the Ireland back three, with Bundee Aki and Robbie Henshaw continuing their midfield partnership.
Jack Crowley and Jamison Gibson-Park are retained as the half-back pairing.
In the pack, Andrew Porter, Dan Sheehan and Tadhg Furlong are in the front row, with Joe McCarthy and Tadhg Beirne named in the engine room. Captain O’Mahony is at blindside flanker, Josh van der Flier is at openside and Caelan Doris completes the starting XV at number eight.
The Ireland Coaching Team have selected a 6-2 split on the bench, as Ronan Kelleher, Cian Healy, Finlay Bealham, Iain Henderson, Ryan Baird and Jack Conan provide the reinforcements in the pack.
Backs Conor Murray and Ciaran Frawley complete Ireland’s Match Day 23 to face England.
Saturday’s match is live on RTÉ2 and ITV.
Ireland:
15. Hugo Keenan (UCD/Leinster)(38)
14. Calvin Nash (Young Munster/Munster)(4)
13. Robbie Henshaw (Buccaneers/Leinster)(70)
12. Bundee Aki (Galwegians/Connacht)(54)
11. James Lowe (Leinster)(29)
10. Jack Crowley (Cork Constitution/Munster)(12)
9. Jamison Gibson-Park (Leinster)(33)
1. Andrew Porter (UCD/Leinster)(62)
2. Dan Sheehan (Lansdowne/Leinster)(24)
3. Tadhg Furlong (Clontarf/Leinster)(74)
4. Joe McCarthy (Dublin University/Leinster)(8)
5. Tadhg Beirne (Lansdowne/Munster)(48)
6. Peter O’Mahony (Cork Constitution/Munster)(captain)(103)
7. Josh van der Flier (UCD/Leinster)(60)
8. Caelan Doris (St Mary’s College/Leinster)(39)
Replacements:
16. Ronan Kelleher (Lansdowne/Leinster)(29)
17. Cian Healy (Clontarf/Leinster)(127)
18. Finlay Bealham (Buccaneers/Connacht)(38)
19. Iain Henderson (Academy/Ulster)(80)
20. Ryan Baird (Dublin University/Leinster)(18)
21. Jack Conan (Old Belvedere/Leinster)(44)
22. Conor Murray (Garryowen/Munster)(114)
23. Ciaran Frawley (UCD/Leinster)(3)
Images & Content from Irish Rugby & Images © Inpho Photography
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