Throughout Ireland’s unbeaten November campaign and Grand Slam, the trio of locks in a match-day squad looked like something of a closed shop.
But from the moment Tadhg Beirne’s relocation to Munster was confirmed it immediately became a real selection issue, and almost everything he has done since has confirmed as much.
For all their products now plying their trade elsewhere, one ventures Leinster regret letting Beirne go more than most. Also unwanted at the time by the other provinces, he has taken a admirably circuitous route to get here, via the Scarlets and now Munster, which shows his desire and adaptability.
Furthermore, the way he has responded to all the varied challenges which have come his way in rapid succession demonstrates a good temperament.
Pitched straight into the Australian tour, his performances off the bench in the second and third Tests were those of a Test match player. He admitted that he didn’t adapt to life at Munster as he would have liked initially, but that’s understandable, and his displays in their Heineken Champions Cup games against Exeter and Gloucester were his best to date.
That, he says, partly reflected the heightened intensity that invariably accompanies Munster in European weeks, but coupled with his two-try, full debut last Saturday, also points to a player with a big-match temperament.
His decision to come back to Ireland and join Munster had been vindicated even before kick-off, but to score within five minutes of his first Test start with the first of two strong close-range finishes was quite a way to mark his arrival.
“I don’t know how I managed to get over, to be honest,” he admitted afterwards. “I think Rhys helped me, he said he gave me a nice little push. I had to stretch to get it over the line in the end but, look, we got over and it counted and it was a great feeling.”
“I was a little bit nervous going out there for my first start. But we started well and to get over for the first try was nice on my behalf. It’s one of those where Jacob [Stockdale] set the tone by making that line break and we fed off that. Unfortunately for the rest of the half we didn’t really kick on as we would have liked to, we weren’t as accurate as we would have wanted and the pace of the game wasn’t where we wanted it to be.”
Impressive return
A modern-day, all-round dynamic lock with good hands and a good skill-set generally, Beirne’s willingness to take strong lines off Luke McGrath and truck it up were an eye-catching feature of his performance generally. He made 38 metres from his 11 carries, which given they were in the trenches, was an impressive return.
Although Beirne had called the lineouts in those European games for Munster, that duty was entrusted to Quinn Roux on Saturday, and Beirne was also a regular target in Ireland’s 100 per cent from their own nine throws, notably for the catch-and-drive which led to his first try.
Beirne would never have previously partnered Roux, who also put in a good shift, but again that is just another factor which demands adaptability.
“Look, you can’t say that because you never know who you’re going to be playing alongside in the Irish team because people put their hand up at provincial level and Joe is going to pick different teams all the time. So you can’t use that as an excuse because you’ve got to be able to play with whoever is alongside you.
“We have a system, we have a way of playing and you’ve just got to stick to that. It shouldn’t be a problem, whoever is playing alongside you.”
Rarely can a two-try full debut have been so overshadowed, but that was the case such was the sheer audacity of Jordan Larmour's hat-trick. Not in the least bothered, Beirne said: "We were saying that if the Chicago Bears lad is looking at him, he might be poaching him!
“But Jordan Larmour is a bit of a freak when it comes to his speed and his agility, and everything he brings and that last try just showed it. He just picks them off like it’s nothing and he’s a credit.”
“He’s just a naturally talent, isn’t he? He’s a gifted player, that’s what you’d call him, and he’s still not the finished article because he’s 21 and he’ll keep learning. So imagine how good he’ll be by the time he’s 27/28?”
It remains to be seen whether Beirne features against the Pumas, but either way he’ll keep his head down and work.
“Look, I’ll take one game at a time and I’m hoping to be involved next week and if I’m lucky enough to be starting or on the bench, hopefully I’ll be ready for it.
“Obviously Hendo is back over there in Ireland. Hopefully, I’ll be selected but whether I am or I amn’t, it will be a normal training week either way.”
And then the All Blacks.
“They are number one in the world, you grow up watching those Ireland and All Black games, especially the one in Chicago two years ago. It would be pretty cool to play them.”
The likelihood is that the established trio from last season might keep the door shut this week, but Beirne is banging on it loudly now.
