Ireland Team Talk XII: Farrell's First Fifteen

Stop indulging him.

He clearly hasn't got a clue.

Oh my God, SSSSSSSSTTTTTTOOOOOOPPPPPPPP!

For the love if God just stop. We get it. So can we please move on!?

Having Murray or others in the team for kicking doesn't necessarily mean you can carry burns.

In around 90 international caps Murray has kicked just 10 goals. He doesn't kick full time for his club. A bit of a risk to give him the reigns at this stage at international level and no guarantee he will be starter in 2 or 3 years. Doak might be a different story if he keeps progressing he might be first choice kicker regardless of who starts 10.

Burns is a good club player, solid, but never has been and never will be a top quality international standard 10. If he was or showed that potential he wouldn't be playing for Ireland. The fact his own team have given the kicking tee to a 19 year old ( a gifted one) tells its own story.

How Andy farrell and cat picked him last year to start in 6 nations is actually beyond me.. you'd nearly wonder are they watching him play and kick.

I think carberry deserves a place in the irish panel for November. He did reasonably well( against poor opposition) in the summer and while he has missed a number of tackles having the tiny Craig casey one side of you and Dan goggin the other with little protection and very low tackle numbers from your back row is not ideal. If we allowed Murray and sexton time to try play back into form then the same could be afforded to carberry.

I think the 3rd 10 will be Harry byrne. The fact Ross wasn't in the 50 man group that met up last month or put in ahead of burns tells its own story. Farrell and cat simply underrate him.

While Harry is not spectacular he is more than capable and has shown great potential at times. He will be used to playing and training with about 10 of the starting team for the ireland games too. If he is not given his head now.. then when. These are basically challange matches with no bearing on RWC pool draws and all the games are going to sell out.

What I would love to see personally is Frawley named in squad. I just wonder would a second playmaker at 12 take some focus off the 10 inside him.. be that sexton carberry or one of the byrnes..

I dont think we will see too many uncapped players named tomorrow given the numbers of caps handed out in the summer. But hopefully we see 2 or 3 in the likes of Doak and Frawley. And maybe some of the deadwood cut loose.

Carberry. Play him in his best position.

Irish fans are far too harsh on our options at 10. Joey, Burns, Carty and Ross are all internationally capable options but desperately in need to be backed for a run of games.

I'd love nothing more than for one of them to start all 3 tests and see Sexton moved into more of a bench finisher role for the last season or two of his career.

Please stop feeding him.

He can't be reasoned with. It's futile.

The 10 debate has been exhausted.

I've skipped the last four pages of posts, can't remember the last time I did that on an Ireland thread, but it appears the topic is the same.

Would we as Irish fans love for their to be someone else other than an ageing Sexton stepping up and taking the mantle? Yes.

Are any of the other options available doing so? No.

Have they been given the opportunity? Yes, though not as much as we'd like.

Is Carbery the answer? No. I (and others) have long since said we don't think he's the answer, and his form at Munster backs that up.

Who would I pick that isn't Sexton? All things being equal as regards fitness, Burns.

Do Harry Byrne and Ben Healy have a shot at it? Yeah, for sure. Some good game time and runs in the Leinster/Munster jerseys at top level and then some games for Ireland and they're 100% in the mix.

Do I think it'll make a difference as regards 2023?

Nah.

Then again I'm a pessimistic bastard.

Gerry Thornley's The Irish squad might, or might not, look something like this:

Hookers: Kelleher, Herring, Sheahan.

Props: Porter, Kilcoyne, Healy, Furlong, O’Toole, Bealham.

Locks: Ryan, Henderson, Beirne, Baird, Wycherley.

Backrows: Doris, Conan, Van der Flier, O’Mahony, Coombes, Timoney.

Scrumhalves: Murray, Casey, Gibson-Park.

Outhalves: Sexton, Carbery, H Byrne.

Centres: Aki, Henshaw, Ringrose, McCloskey, Hume.

Back three: Keenan, Earls, Larmour, Lowe, Stockdale, Conway, Zebo.

Would feel bad for Baloucoune if Zebo is thrown straight in ahead of him

I don't think Carty will feature either way, Burns will be ahead of him for the third OH spot.

Think that squad would be OK, overall it's pretty progressive.

Poor ruddock if that's the case what does the guy gotta do to nail down a place he's consistently good and does alot of work.

Whycherley would be an interesting inclusion if Thornley is correct.

Would be happy with that squad if announced apart maybe 3 positions.

fcrumhalfves are not picked on form or ability. 2 are provincial subs.

Think zebo got in as cover for FB when Addison pulled up.

Id be more wondering what Conway has done to stay ahead of Robert Baloucoune.

Also I'd have frawley in ahead of mcloskey As he could offer us something different from 12 then bash it up Or chasing box kicks

Yeah true Lowe hasn't done alot to deserve his selection either.

I'm a fan of Conway. Defensively he is very solid and maybe his ability to chase a conor murray box kick gets him in ahead of Baloucoune.