Ireland Team Talk XII: Farrell's First Fifteen

Japan made 3 changes to the side that faced Australia so it was a very, very similar side. And Australia had a few of the guys who were missing in the game against Scotland, e.g. Quade Cooper.

I have almost no idea at all what to expect from this weekend. And I’m all the better for it I reckon. NZ will be the favourites but just how much we can trouble them is the big thing for me. We know what they can do. We know that if we’re focused we can deal with their threats as well as anyone. But what can we bring to the party on our ball? That’s what I don’t know.

Will this new style give us better platforms to attack from or will we be dependent on quick ruck ball, time and space that we won’t be able to get? Will we need to tie players down to the rucks and limit our attacking options? And if so (because let’s face it, that will happen) how does that affect how we approach the game overall? We will almost certainly need to be somewhat more conservative. But how much so and what happens if things don’t work? Do we retreat into our shells and revert to type? What about how we’re equipped to deal with counter attack if our attack breaks down? We know NZ can be ruthless there. Are we prepared for that?

I don’t actually care about the result tbh. I’m just fascinated to see how the whole thing pans out and where it leaves us going into next year.

All the more reason for JGP and Lowe to start. Get Keenan and Lowe to take a few at first receiver early on and tell JGP to consider a snipe or two as well. If they want to focus on Sexton then we can use that. If they want to go down Lowes wing then (a) they have to get there and (b) it lets us all get a good look at whether Lowe has made improvements there.

We’re giving ourselves options in attack now that we haven’t before. No doubt they’ll have seen that. If we can bring that at the weekend then NZ will have to really consider whether to focus on Sexton or not. Japan did that in the run up to Lowes try and drove us back. But then Ringrose stepped in and we didn’t need Sexton for the score.

The way this place goes from highs to lowes and back again is hilarious!

Eh, cough, cough

Knacker drinking in Darty Park with the lads would be good craic

Lowe has a skill set which no other back three in the country possesses. I've watched him a lot for Leinster and in the last couple of years we've seen him step in as first receiver more often. It causes a lot of doubt in opposition defences as he's a very big carrying and offloading threat. But he's also developed into a good passer which makes him an even bigger threat. Murray Kinsella also noted that he slotted in at 15 on a number of occasions to attack from deep.

It's very understandable that Farrell is giving him as many opportunities as possible in order to integrate him into the team. We're a far more difficult side to prepare for when a back as skilled as Lowe is in the side.

I don't know if his defensive game is up to snuff for test rugby and it may be the case that it never will. But for now he's worth persisting with.

As a Leinster fan and also a Lowe fan, I'm still saying Lowe is unproven against big sides.

If we play the style we played at the weekend, which I hope we do and New Zealand turn over and counter attack, which we know they will at some stage, Lowe's channel is the one they'll be heading down.

That said, he deserves to retain the shirt and Earls is the best bench cover for the back five anyone could ask for.

I'm not expecting us to win on Saturday. I think if we can keep the score within 20 points we'll be doing well. What I want to see though, is a continuation of the more heads up style of attacking play we've been developing towards.

That is going to be very difficult as New Zealand have a far better pack than Japan and they won't allow us to the quick ruck ball we won last weekend. Really the game is in the hands of our forwards. I think we're developing a very strong and mobile pack. But the likes of Porter, Kelleher and Doris have never started a game against NZ. It's the biggest test of their careers to date. Hope it goes well for them.

It's going to be extremely difficult to play those tip on passes and offloads with New Zealand's forwards running straight at you. But if we try and fail at it I'll still be happier than if we reverted to a more pedestrian, kick based strategy.