Two Ireland jerseys, 12 and 13, belong to Robbie Henshaw on the evidence of his form throughout the Six Nations Championship, the only debating point looking forward as to which he will wear.
The 27-year-old Athlone native had excelled at inside centre in the first four matches before ‘upgrading’ with a man-of-the-match performance wearing the green 13 in the victory over England. The accolade is a nice personal trinket but the context and content of his performance should give even greater satisfaction.
Separating Henshaw and Tadhg Beirne in deciding Ireland's outstanding performer in the tournament – they were both exceptional – would require a laboratory microscope to split hairs or an argument about cause and effect on a rugby pitch but for me the Leinster centre would just shade the notional award.
A lack of fluency and width in attack has been a recurring issue at times during the Six Nations but there was no such quibble following this victory. Oodles of component parts have to fire to ensure space for an outside centre but in such an eventuality it is then down to his effectiveness in selecting from the run/kick/pass menu option.
Henshaw’s decision making was excellent. He used his power and footwork to attack inside shoulders thereby preserving the space for those outside, the timing and accuracy of his passing was largely spot on as was his appreciation that others occasionally had a better chance to break the line while he even managed to demonstrate his kicking prowess.
It’ll be up to the Ireland coaching cadre to judge if it was coincidental or otherwise that Ireland’s most potent attacking performance – the Italy game notwithstanding – of the tournament was forged with Henshaw in the 13 jersey. At worst, he’s given them a nice selection headache.
This won't necessarily be to the exclusion of Garry Ringrose when he is fit again but what it does reinforce is that Henshaw is a more valuable asset than someone fated to largely truck up ball into a heavy body count.
It is interesting to note that he carried more ball (10) than any of his teammates, so there was no diminution in that responsibility from the task load he would have had in the 12 shirt. Ringrose and Henshaw can play together but their respective roles may be more interchangeable or nuanced.
The same would apply to Bundee Aki and current squad members like Chris Farrell and Stuart McCloskey if Ireland continue to evolve the midfield playmaking options. On Saturday there were a few early blips to the Irish display, the concession of a couple of penalties, lacklustre clearing out and some scrambling defence to stop Maro Itoje from dotting down.
Henshaw provided the spark to ignite the Irish display, two superb defensive reads led to turnovers and then despite being balked as he chased Johnny Sexton's towering kick, he was still first on hand to thunder into England fullback Elliot Daly; hooker Luke Cowan-Dickie transgressed at the ruck and Sexton ensured that Ireland were off and running on the scoreboard.
Ollie Lawrence then felt the weight of a Henshaw tackle, while the Leinster centre also gobbled up restart after restart. The fact that they continued to be directed his way said everything about England's scrambled mindset at the time. He carried with purpose, brought his wings into the game and continued to be imperious in his defensive reads.
Lions
Henshaw and his teammates dug in manfully, despite conceding a couple of late tries when initially reduced to 14 players and then 13; the outcome had been decided at that point. On a personal level the presence of Lions coach Warren Gatland at the Aviva stadium will merely copper fasten his inclusion if the series against South Africa goes ahead in some shape or form.
What he will be keen to do in the interim is add value in the blue of Leinster. Henshaw spoke in the aftermath about the emotion of the week and marking CJ Stander’s last game in an appropriate fashion to honour his popular teammate before offering a few thoughts on the tournament.
“As a collective we were unbelievably disappointed with the first two games. We were almost there, just a few different things cost us. For us it is all about showing the heights we can hit when we are on and show where we can go in the future.” That last statement is equally applicable to Henshaw on a personal level.
