Johnny Watterson talks to the Llanelli-based Simon Easterby who knows a thing or two about Welsh players and is determined to make the most of a very close call

That Neil Best finds himself warming the bench after an autumn series in which he played a starring role indicates the type of decisions forced upon Ireland coach Eddie O'Sullivan over the composition of the Irish back row. Best made a menace of himself all around the park before Christmas and with the zeal of what one Sunday columnist called "an axe murderer", was one of the players who stood up and made people take notice.

But out of sight isn't always out of mind in Irish rugby and while there have been a few cases where people might think that playing abroad means that you are less likely to be in O'Sullivan's line of vision, Simon Easterby has always defied that belief. The Llanelli captain and flanker may not make the monster hits, so beloved of Best, but O'Sullivan has always liked what he's seen and a number of issues swung the tight call for blindside flanker going into Ireland's opener against Wales on Sunday.

"It was going on form, always form," said O'Sullivan yesterday. "Simon Easterby is a well established lineout jumper. He's captain of Llanelli. He knows the Welsh boys as well as they know themselves. It comes down to the minutiae.

"It was the other way around in the autumn series but Neil had the edge on Simon then. You could argue the toss between the two of them but I have to make a decision and at the moment I think Simon has the slight edge."

Easterby's leadership with Llanelli, and the way the side have been playing in the Heineken European Cup, has showcased the flanker's enduring ability, as has his 53 Irish caps. And let's not forget that it was Easterby who finished playing in the Irish backrow against the Pacific Islands last year. That Llanelli have surged and Ulster flatlined may not have helped Best's claims either.

"I knew that Neil had played particularly well for Ulster and there were others as well in the frame for the backrow spots," says Easterby. "You can't take anything for granted and I never have. I think I'm confident. I feel like I'd been playing well. I knew it would be a close call and I'll certainly be looking to justify my selection come the weekend."

Doubtlessly his familiarity with the opposition will bring something to the Irish party and the fact that Wales's coach Gareth Jenkins was formerly with Llanelli should give Easterby some insight to his thinking. That the likely Welsh outhalf, Stephen Jones, was also one of the best men at Easterby's wedding puts the blindside in a place where most Irish players haven't been.

"I know something about certain players, especially their halfbacks, depending on their selection. But we play each other regularly enough to know a lot about the Welsh team, their good points and their bad points. If I can add a little bit of inside knowledge to help Ireland's performance then obviously that will be a benefit.

"With Gareth Jenkins there's a huge amount of passion. Whenever you play under Gareth, whether for Llanelli or the Lions and now guys with Wales, he wears his heart on his sleeve. He's an intelligent rugby thinker as well but most of all he'll get the players on edge and when they get on the field they will know what is expected of them.

"With a pack coached by Gareth Jenkins, we are going to have to be at the top of our game to beat them. He has a lot of positive points and we saw in the autumn that Wales played a lot of good rugby."

Easterby's thoughts on the Welsh pack are respectful and while Ireland, given the quality of the back line, do not want the match to turn into a slog between two groups of forwards, inevitably it is the front eight who will lead the fight and establish the first principles of Ireland's game plan.

"They'll obviously look at our back line and see the threats there," says Easterby. "They may look at what was done in the European Cup. Leicester went to Thomond Park and outmuscled a few of the Munster players. They'll be in a different frame of mind now playing in an Irish jersey and we are not playing Leicester. There are none of those players in the Welsh pack.

"We're a different team to Munster and we're confident that we have the ability to beat anyone on our day."