Craig Casey is set to join Ross Byrne at halfback in what could be a first Six Nations start for either player when the Irish side to face Italy next Saturday in Rome’s Stadio Olimpico is unveiled at around 12.30 on Thursday.
The 23-year-old Casey made his international debut in the corresponding round three game in the Eternal City two years ago, when the match was played behind closed doors, and has won nine caps, although his only start to date was in the win over the USA in July 2021 when a restricted crowd of 3,000 was permitted.
Byrne is sure to start at outhalf in the injury enforced absence of Johnny Sexton, having usurped Joey Carbery when being recalled to the initial 37-man squad for this year’s Six Nations.
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He was then named on the bench to replace Sexton and steer the Irish ship home for the last 11 minutes in the win over Wales, and the last 33 minutes or so in the epic victory over France when the world’s top sides met in the second round last Saturday week.
It’s been quite the redemption story for the 27-year-old Leinster outhalf since his clutch penalty sealed the dramatic win over Australia last November. While Byrne has won 16 caps, this will only be his third Test start, the previous two both having come against England: at Twickenham in the 2019 World Cup warm-up game and in the Autumn Nations Cup in November 2020.
This is the third year running of this itinerary, whereby Ireland played Wales and France in the opening two rounds before meeting Italy in the third round either side of the two down weeks.
With the latter factor in mind, Andy Farrell had again spoken of the need to maintain some degree of cohesion. And while the make-up of the matchday squad is again likely to be unchanged, allowing for injuries, previously the Irish head coach has tended to rotate a little from within the 23.
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He and his assistants will also be mindful of the need to freshen things up with the six-day turnaround between the final two game away to Scotland and at home to England in mind.
Two years ago, Farrell made seven changes to the starting line-up which lost 15-13 to France for the ensuing 48-10 win in Rome a fortnight later, when promoting four players from the bench.
At this juncture 12 months ago, the Irish head coach made six changes in personnel and a couple of positional switches following the 30-24 loss in Paris for the 57-6 win at home to Italy a fortnight later in Dublin.
Admittedly, some of these were injury related, and as with the change at outhalf for this Saturday’s game, Farrell and co will have to find a new secondrow partner for the captain James Ryan in light of the ankle injury Tadhg Beirne suffered against France which ended his run of 14 consecutive Test starts.
In all likelihood, this seems sure to result in a recall for Iain Henderson, who was a replacement in both of the Welsh and French games, when replacing Beirne in the 46th minute, and so be reunited with Ryan. If so, it will be the Ulster captain’s first Test start since last season’s Six Nations.
When all four of their frontline flankers have been fit, Farrell has shown a tendency to utilise Caelan Doris’s ability to play at both blindside and number eight by rotating Peter O’Mahony and Jack Conan. This is what the Irish coaches did between the same two games last season, when O’Mahony came in for Conan and Doris switched to number eight, and it could be that this will apply the other way around this week, with Conan recalled at eight and Doris switching to six.
The pecking order at hooker is compounded by Dan Sheehan being ruled out of the French game with a hamstring issue before returning to training this week, and the unlucky Rob Herring having been restricted to limited training since due to him undergoing the Return to Play protocols. Rónan Kelleher impressively bridged a gap of exactly one year from Test rugby with his performance off the bench against France and may be best placed to start.
Maintaining this theme, it might also be that in addition to Kelleher, Henderson, Conan, Casey and Byrne, a sixth replacement in the victory over France will also be rewarded with a start against Italy in the shape of Bundee Aki.
The Connacht centre has had the desired effect in Ireland’s last three Tests as an impact replacement, and it might make sense to have an exchange of roles between him and Stuart McCloskey.
Ryan Baird is evidently in line for a call-up to the replacements given the squad selections for last week’s two-day camp and this week’s training.
By the same token, Jack Crowley would also appear to be ahead of the recalled Carbery in the pecking order, with the latter to be among those in the travelling party to Rome, which will also include the non-playing captain.
IRELAND (possible v Italy): Hugo Keenan (Leinster); Mack Hansen (Connacht), Garry Ringrose (Leinster), Bundee Aki (Connacht), James Lowe (Leinster); Ross Byrne (Leinster), Craig Casey (Munster); Andrew Porter (Leinster), Rónan Kelleher (Leinster), Finlay Bealham (Connacht); Iain Henderson (Ulster), James Ryan (Leinster, capt); Caelan Doris (Leinster), Josh van der Flier (Leinster), Jack Conan (Leinster).
Replacements: Dan Sheehan (Leinster), David Kilcoyne (Munster)/Cian Healy (Leinster), Tom O’Toole (Ulster), Ryan Baird (Leinster), Peter O’Mahony (Munster), Conor Murray (Munster), Jack Crowley (Munster), Stuart McCloskey (Ulster).
