Ireland Team Talk XII: Farrell's First Fifteen

Kelleher injured, Tom Stewart called up to Ireland squad. Richly deserved.

Fingers crossed Stewart being called up is precautionary and Kelleher is fit for the Wales game. Herring is very reliable and I definitely wouldn't worry if he's involved, but he just doesn't possess the explosive quality of the other too. Having the Kelleher/Sheehan duo in the 23, with one doing 50 minutes and the other doing 30, and having that level of impact in the hooker position over 80 minutes is a massive weapon in our armoury, and losing that would be a big loss.

Likewise, it's been a long time since we've had the locking trio of Ryan/Beirne/Henderson all fit at once, which will massively strengthen our match day 23. We could be in a position where we're bringing Kelleher, Henderson, Conan and Aki off the bench in the 2nd half and really finishing games strongly as opposed to hanging on for dear life.

Yea! He's frequently injured. Stewart is deserving. I think he'll be in the 23 within a couple of years. Kelleher is pretty vulnerable, imo.

And we’re off, BB gets angry at opinions he doesn’t agree with.

Suggesting that the starting hooker for the number one team in the world, might be the best hooker in the world, isn't completely crazy. Id have Marx myself but the rate at which Sheehan is progressing could see that change. They are definitely a lot closer in ability than they were 12 months ago.

Always angry. It’s an odd way to be.

Since it looks like the Marx isn't coming to Munster, I agree that Dan Sheehan is the best hooker in the world.

This place is crazy, ridiculous and offers absolutely nothing. And yet he still can’t help himself but come back and absolutely can’t help himself but reply. It must be awful to have so little in your life that you choose to spend it somewhere you don’t like and don’t rate just so you can hate post. Poor fella.

I would say that Marx is probably the best. But, Sheehan will get by him.

If we're taking all bias out of it, I think it's pretty hard to argue against Marchand being the best hooker in the world currently. He's been unbelievable for France over the last year. He's an absolute unit, unbelievable on the deck, great darts and carries very well. Malcolm Marx would be no.2 as Marchand's darts are a bit better.

In terms of footwork, speed and ball playing ability, nobody comes close to Sheehan. Dane Coles at the peak of his powers is who I'd compare him to the most. I suppose it depends what you want. If you want someone who'll stand out in the 15-metre channels and get the ball in space, you want Sheehan. But Marchand and Marx probably give you more in the scrum and more raw power in the tight exchanges, but they couldn't do some of the things Sheehan can do with ball in hand. I absolutely believe Sheehan would be a world class no.8.