Ireland A v England Saxons:INTERNATIONALS at A level traditionally offer a dichotomy for a player of trying to enhance his reputation as an individual while being subservient to a team's needs. Winning softens the critical glare.
Ireland A coach Michael Bradley is well acquainted with the imposition of inheriting a team selected by others and trying to instil coherent patterns in a short period of time.
It’s a difficult balancing act but for the Connacht coach it is a familiar one at which he is adept. Tonight represents a huge opportunity for players to jostle for position in the selection pecking order.
Ireland play only two games at this level during the Six Nations Championship – the other is against Scotland A – elevating the importance of grabbing opportunities.
The Churchill Cup is a useful competition for evaluating potential and aptitude but coming at the end of a season it lacks the feeling of immediacy for players.
No matter how well they perform, there is no sudden promotion. That is not the case tonight as injury or loss of form on the senior side over the next two months guarantees a fast-track promotion.
The Ireland senior team management will be present in Donnybrook and coach Declan Kidney will have a wide-ranging interest to see how players fare, from tyros like Ulster centre Darren Cave, Connacht hooker Seán Cronin and Leinster prop Cian Healy, to more seasoned campaigners who have acquitted themselves capably in the Test arena before.
Kidney will also have a keen interest in the unit skills, particularly the tight five. The Saxons boast a powerful scrum so this match will be a stern proving ground for Healy and Harlequins’ Cork-born tighthead Mike Ross.
Bob Casey’s experience and leadership qualities should help young Cronin at lineout time and then there is the streetwise nous of Shane Jennings and Neil Best. Ulster’s Ryan Caldwell gets a chance to prove he’s heading in the right direction while Connacht’s Johnny Muldoon is rewarded for consistent excellence.
Eoin Reddan knows he was unfortunate to miss out on making the squad but should look to react positively on the only proving ground that matters; the pitch. Jonathan Sexton is another who would relish a performance that reacquaints the powers that be of his ability, given limited game time recently at provincial level.
The selection of Danny Cipriani has been the central conversation point of most discussion regarding the visiting Saxons team and he’ll be on an obvious mission to produce a display that will quickly repatriate him to the senior England squad.
There is plenty of pace in the English backline, aligned with the power of Jordan Turner Hall and Bath’s gargantuan wing, the 6ft 6in Matt Banahan. Paul Hodson replaces Leicester’s Harry Ellis who was called up to the senior squad. The fact that David Strettle is only among the replacements underlines the quality of the starting backs.
England have an abundance of props, Matthew Mullan and David Wilson the chosen twin pillars while David Paice is a mobile and athletic hooker. Jordan Crane normally plays at number eight for Leicester Tigers but is included here in the secondrow as England opt for a backrow triumvirate, all drawn from the Harlequins club.
IRELAND A: G Duffy (Connacht); A Trimble (Ulster), D Cave (Ulster), K Matthews (Connacht), M McCrea (Ulster); J Sexton (Leinster), E Reddan (Wasps); C Healy (Leinster), S Cronin (Connacht), M Ross (Harlequins); B Casey (London Irish, capt), R Caldwell (Ulster); N Best (Northampton), S Jennings (Leinster), J Muldoon (Connacht). Replacements: J Fogarty (Leinster), J Andress (Exeter), D Ryan (Munster), S O’Brien (Leinster), I Boss (Ulster), I Humphreys (Ulster), B Murphy (Munster).
ENGLAND SAXONS: N Abendanon (Bath); T Ojo (London Irish), D Waldouck (London Wasps), J Turner-Hall (Harlequins), M Banahan (Bath); D Cipriani (London Wasps), P Hodgson (London Irish); M Mullan (Worcester Warriors), D Paice (London Irish), D Wilson (Newcastle Falcons); J Crane (Leicester Tigers), G Skivington (London Wasps, capt); C Robshaw (Harlequins), W Skinner (Harlequins), T Guest (Harlequins). Replacements: R Webber (London Wasps), D Cole (Leicester Tigers), S Hooper (Bath), P Dowson (Newcastle Falcons), J Simpson (London Wasps), S Myler (Northampton Saints), D Strettle (Harlequins).
