Dan Sheehan is set to be named as the latest Ireland captain for Saturday’s Six Nations match against Wales in Cardiff when the team is announced on Thursday morning.
Both regular captain Caelan Doris and Rónan Kelleher have been ruled out of the round three tie, and the signs are that Sheehan has been asked to lead the side in what will be his first start since rupturing his ACL in the first Test against South Africa in Pretoria last July.
The 26-year-old hooker made a man-of-the-match return for Leinster, scoring two tries, in their win over the Stormers a week before the Six Nations and has played 30 and 40 minutes off the bench for Ireland in the bonus-point victories against England and Scotland.
Who has been added to Ireland’s Six Nations squad and why?
As with Doris, the choice of Sheehan as captain, in what will be his 30th Test, is somewhat typical of this Irish management. A product of Clongowes Wood College and Dublin University, Sheehan is widely respected in the squad, has shown real leadership potential, is a world-class performer and has a good age profile with a view to being Doris’s understudy, vice-captain or stand-in captain.
Doris has played in each of Ireland’s last 41 Tests since missing the 2021 Six Nations, starting all but the World Cup warm-up against England in that time. But Ireland need the best version of Doris against France in a fortnight’s time.
Besides, the other relatively automatic change in the absence of Kelleher and Doris should see Jack Conan named to start at number eight, for these are the two positions where Ireland are blessed with strong Lions candidates.
Akin to Sheehan, Conan missed the South African tour and the November series through injuries but has also returned to Test rugby off the bench in the last two games. Rejuvenated, fresh and highly motivated, Conan has been playing to his Lions level of four years ago, albeit this will be his first Test start since the round two win over Italy in last year’s Six Nations.
Recent history has taught us that this is the type of Six Nations fixture in which the Irish management use a degree of rotation and it seems plausible that several others on the bench or the fringes of the match-day squad might see some game time in the Principality Stadium.
Uppermost among these is Jamie Osborne, a rare and versatile talent who performed more than admirably under the Springboks’ aerial bombardment in both of last summer’s Tests at fullback in the absence of the Olympics-bound Hugo Keenan.
Osborne has since played off the bench against New Zealand and Argentina, before starting against Fiji, again at fullback, last November. Given his form has also been strong in restricted appearances with Leinster, Osborne seems likely to be involved against Wales and if the gifted 23-year-old from Naas is to start any game in the Six Nations it is likely to be this one.
Simon Easterby has indicated that the coaching ticket have a pre-designed strategy of rotation in midfield, in which case it could be the turn of Robbie Henshaw and Garry Ringrose to renew their Leinster midfield partnership, with the latter restored and the former shifting to the number 12 shirt.
Henshaw was in front of the media on Tuesday and having lost on all three of his previous Six Nations appearances in Cardiff, will bring a healthy dose of respect for the Welsh, while Ringrose is due a recall after being named on the bench last time out in Murrayfield.
Easterby and Co may resist the temptation to rotate at outhalf, thus furthering their investment in Sam Prendergast ahead of the round four meeting with France. The 21-year-old was, after all, man-of-the-match in Murrayfield.
Akin to Osborne, if Thomas Clarkson is to start any games in this Six Nations and afford Finlay Bealham some respite, then you’d imagine this round three game would be the likeliest in which to do so. Clarkson has made a strong impression at scrum time and around the pitch in his four appearances off the bench and a full Test debut would be a nice birthday present, as he turns 25 on Saturday.
Joe McCarthy has been back training for the last fortnight with Leinster and Ireland after his unfortunate head knock in a non-contact drill two days out from the opener against England, and he seems sure to feature against Wales, be it starting or off the bench.
Either way, while retaining the core of a relatively settled and experienced side, there could still be up to half a dozen changes in the starting XV, as well as Sheehan as captain.
Furthermore, like Clarkson, if Ireland are to grow their depth chart at prop and if the uncapped 22-year-old Jack Boyle is to be exposed to international rugby in this year’s Six Nations, then this would surely be the game to do so.
IRELAND (possible v Wales): Jamie Osborne (Leinster); Mack Hansen (Connacht), Garry Ringrose (Leinster), Robbie Henshaw (Leinster), James Lowe (Leinster); Sam Prendergast (Leinster), Jamison Gibson-Park (Leinster); Andrew Porter (Leinster), Dan Sheehan (Leinster, capt), Thomas Clarkson (Leinster); Joe McCarthy (Leinster), Tadhg Beirne (Munster); Peter O’Mahony (Munster), Josh van der Flier (Leinster), Jack Conan (Leinster).
Replacements: Gus McCarthy (Leinster), Jack Boyle (Leinster), Finlay Bealham (Connacht), James Ryan (Leinster), Ryan Baird (Leinster), Conor Murray (Munster), Jack Crowley (Munster), Bundee Aki (Connacht).
