James Ryan has described his promotion to captain Ireland as “pretty cool” after it was confirmed that that the 26-year-old will lead the team in the absence of Johnny Sexton against Italy in the Guinness Six Nations encounter at the Stadio Olimpico next Saturday (kick-off 3.15pm local time/2.15pm Irish).
Sexton suffered a groin injury in the victory over France 11 days ago and despite his own optimism that he could shake off the injury, it was announced on Wednesday afternoon that Ryan would captain the side on Saturday.
“It’s obviously a huge honour, it’s very cool, it’s a great moment for me and my family to captain my country this week. It still hasn’t sunk in,” he said when filling his captain’s media duties on Wednesday at the IRFU’s High Performance Centre.
Ryan last captained Ireland in the away defeat by France in the 2022 Six Nations, his one previous Championship game in the role, having previously done so on five occasions.
He led Ireland for the first time in their Autumn Nations Cup defeat by England in November 2020, and again in the win over Georgia a week later, as well as the July 2021 wins at home to Japan and the USA, and the November 2021 win over Argentina.
In readily admitting that he will be leaning on the leadership group, Ryan added in reference to Sexton: “I have big shoes to fill. He will be travelling over with us this weekend, so it’s great to have him around. I’ll be able to lean on guys like Garry [Ringrose] and Peter O’Mahony as well.”
As for own captaincy approach, Ryan said: “You’d have to ask some of the other guys but I suppose I just try to lead by example, which is a boring answer but hopefully leading by actions this weekend.
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“Being named captain is a huge honour but I’ve still got to bring the best version of myself, my best game, so maybe [being] quiet and focused on my game is as important.”
In this he would also be trying to emulate Sexton. “Probably the leading by actions things is the big one, the way he sets the standards in games but also every day, how competitive he is on the training pitch and the difference he makes when he’s training and when he’s not. I’m probably looking at his competitive instincts and the way he leads with his actions would be the main thing.”
In beating Wales away and France at home and accumulating a maximum 10 points in the process to lead the table after two rounds, Ireland have demonstrated their ability to withstand losses to frontline players. And Ryan believes this team is better equipped to cope without the talismanic Sexton nowadays.
“That’s one of the things that Faz [Andy Farrell] is brilliant at, it’s not 15 or 23; it’s all about the group, so I think the squad depth is one thing that has come on the last couple of years.
“Tadhg Furlong is one example. He’s a big player for us that’s injured but how well Finlay Bealham has gone. He’s just an example. If there’s an injury or someone pulls out late there’s a no-excuse mentality in the group. Everyone has to be ready to play and fill that void so that’s just the mentality of the team at the moment. Everyone’s got to be ready to play and to fill that void.
Italy sit fifth with one losing bonus point but performed credibly away to England and especially against France, when not far away from winning before suffering a 29-24 defeat in the Stadio Olimpico in round one.
“They are at home so they will play with plenty of emotion. They are obviously an improved team, particularly in attack,” said Ryan. “They seem to be playing with a lot of ambition. We saw them against England playing from deep in their own 22 so they want to play.
“They’ve got some genuinely world-class players there. Capuzzo sticks out, Garbisi could be back, playing at 10, he makes a big difference. They are a very dangerous side with ball in hand. They are also strong up front, they’ve a good set-piece. We saw they drove the England pack back a few times at scrum-time, which is no easy task so I think it will be a big challenge for us.”
Partly for this reason Ryan maintained there had not been much talk of Grand Slams or titles within the squad so far.
“No, not much to be honest. We didn’t talk about Grand Slams or titles before the campaign started and it’s the same this week, we’re just focused on Italy.
“We’ve had two weeks since the French game to prepare for Italy, so the expectation for us is that this has to be our best performance so far. We’ve had a long time to prepare together, so we have to get it right.”
Ryan, whose family is steeped in Irish political history dating back to the Easter Rising, found particular resonance in the visit of former Irish centre Davy Irwin to the squad’s base, along with Brian O’Driscoll and Craig Doyle, on the Monday of the French game.
For Ryan, the visit highlighted “the sacrifices that people like him made during the Troubles, those eras of sectarian violence in the 1970s and 80s. The sacrifices that men like him made to wear the green jersey.
“It was great hearing from him, a great opportunity to listen as a group. I knew a little bit about it, because I’d read about it. It was still fascinating to hear about it.”
