Top 14 Preview: Racing Metro

The History

Racing Metro 92 was originally founded as an athletics club in 1882. Their list of honours includes five French championships (1892, 1900, 1902, 1959 and 1990), a Pro D2 title (2009), and one Coupe de l’Espérance (1918). For more on the club’s history, including the legendary Le Show Bizz generation, have a read of this article which featured on The Touchline back in February.

The Setting

Part of Jacky Lorenzetti’s ambitious plans for Racing include the building of a brand new stadium in Paris. However, construction work on the 40,000-seater Arena 92 has been continually delayed due to protests and funding issues. It now looks like work will start early in 2014, with the aim of being complete in late 2016. Racing’s current home is the 14,000-capacity Stade Olympique Yves-du-Manoir, known simply as Colombes to local supporters.

While there’s lots of history at Colombes, it is not the most attractive of stadiums, with the running track around the pitch an unwelcome feature. Lorenzetti likes to relocate some of les ciels et blancs home games, their first fixture of this Top 14 season being a prime example. With many Parisians still on holiday in mid-August, the home tie against Brive will be played in La Rochelle. Additionally, Racing’s H Cup fixture against Harlequins in round three will take place in Nantes’ Stade de la Beaujoire.

Last Season

A nine-game winning streak in the second half of the season helped Racing to sixth place in the Top 14 regular season table, before they lost to Toulouse in the play-offs. (c) Emilie Manchon.

Under Gonzalo Quesada les Racingmen had a rocky start to last season, before finishing strongly in sixth to qualify for the barrages phase of the play-offs. The return of outhalf Jonathan Wisniewski at the turn of the year launched Racing on a nine-game winning streak. In the play-off game Racing never truly looked like beating Toulouse, losing 33-19. The Parisians had trouble scoring tries all season, with their total of 32 the third-lowest in the league. The sheer firepower they have brought on board should be enough to remedy that.

Realistically, making assumptions about Racing based on last season would be foolish with so many new players involved, as well as the new coaching team.

Ambitions

Trophies, trophies, trophies. After six years of building the club into Top 14 mainstays under Pierre Berbizier and Quesada, it is time for Racing to start competing for silverware. The Parisians’ budget is now in line with the likes of Toulon and Clermont in the region of €27 million, allowing them to recruit spectacularly this summer. Lorenzetti understands that les deux Laurents need time to combine the ingredients into a championship-winning side, but he will also expect the club to compete in the Top 14 and Heineken Cup this season.

The Coaches

Travers (left) and Labit have not encountered anything approaching failure in their shared coaching career so far. (c) Emilie Manchon.

Laurent Travers was a hooker with Brive when they won the Heineken Cup in 1997, while Laurent Labit was a fullback for Castres’ championship-winning side in 1993. The pair first came together at Montauban in 2004, leading the club from the Pro D2 to H Cup qualification in just four seasons. Castres signed them in 2009 after finishing in 12th the season before. Toto and Lolo‘s impact was superb as they made the play-offs in each of the fours years since, culminating in their shock Top 14 win last season.

The two Laurents have a reputation as being technically excellent and working closely with their players on specific rugby skills rather than simply selecting and motivating the team. Labit and Travers feel they work better as a duo as it allows them to interact with more of the squad on a day-to-day basis, while also giving the players two channels to communicate through. The new Racing coaches are very focused on the power of a strong group, which should work well with such a large number of new players.

Transfer Activity

La Star. (c) Emilie Manchon.

Racing have 15 new players in their squad this season, which is well balanced by the departure of 20. Jonny Sexton is obviously the star signing, but fellow Lions Jamie Roberts and Dan Lydiate aren’t far behind. Northampton’s propping duo of Brian Mujati and Sione Tonga’uiha are also part of the influx and may be the most important additions of all in a league where the scrum has a near-religious importance. Springbok second-row Juandré Kruger makes up the group of truly high-profile newcomers.

Beyond that, Racing have a new trio of French internationals in Adrien Planté, Marc Andreu and Wenceslas Lauret. Planté won his first two caps in June at the age of 28 after a slow-burning career on the wing for USAP. Andreu may not be the biggest winger, but his low centre of gravity and footwork make him a real try-scoring threat. He was part of Castres’ Top 14 success last season and has scored two tries in six French caps. Lauret joins from Biarritz, where the flanker had lost momentum after winning three international caps.

The remaining six new faces include back-up players like Georgian loosehead prop Davit Khinchagishvili from Brive and fullback Benjamin Lapeyre from Toulon, as well as some youthful promise in scrumhalf Laurent Magnaval.

Key Players

Le Capitaine. (c) Emilie Manchon.

Dimitri Szarzewski is Racing’s captain despite only having joined at the start of last season from neighbours Stade Français. The 30-year-old hooker took over the leadership from Jacques Cronjé during the campaign after impressing with his work-rate and magnificent hair. At fullback, Juan Martín Hernández (31) is not the athlete he once was but ‘El Mago’ still has the vision and creativity that gave him that nickname. He will certainly look forward to playing outside the excellent passing of Sexton.

Scrumhalf Maxime Machenaud had a poor tour for France in New Zealand this summer, but remains important to Racing. The 24-year-old is surprisingly powerful for his size and at his best provides unfussy service to his outhalf. Perhaps the most impressive thing about les ciels et blancs‘ squad this season is its depth, giving the two Laurents the possibility to rotate their team and choose different players for varying tactical approaches.

Fijian no. 8 Sakiusa Matadigo is an intelligent player, whereas ex-captain Cronjé is all brawn. In midfield, Jamie Roberts’ explosiveness can be combined with the defensive leadership of Fabrice Estabenez or the energy of Henry Chavancy. Out wide, Andreu and Planté must compete with the magic feet of Juan Imhoff, the power of Benjamin Fall and the flair of Virimi Vakatawa. Behind Mujati and Tonga’uiha in the propping depth charts are French internationals Eddy Ben Arous and Luc Ducalcon, the experienced Khinchagishvili and one-time Munster man Julian Brugnaut.

Irish Connection

The two lads have this one well under control. Allez Racing! (c) Emilie Manchon.

Sexton is the star attraction at Racing, and he looks made for the challenge. While it is true that French clubs approach play-off games conservatively, the regular season games are generally quite open. That will suit the Irish outhalf, who has so many talented players around him to conduct. As with any high-profile foreign player in France, the expectations on Sexton will be hugely demanding but the 28-year-old’s mental strength will allow him to overcome any teething problems.

Ronan O’Gara appears to be settling into his first coaching job with ease. His primary role is to work on kicking with Racing’s first team, but it is likely that he will also aid Labit in organising the backline. Kicking from hand is one of the weakest skills in the French game currently and O’Gara’s work in Paris will be closely followed by the other Top 14 clubs. For both Irishmen, an exciting and challenging season lies ahead.

Possible Starting XV

15. Hernandez, 14. Fall, 13. Chavancy, 12. Roberts, 11. Andreu, 10. Sexton, 9. Machenaud, 8. Matadigo, 7. Le Roux, 6. Lydiate, 5. Kruger, 4. Van der Merwe, 3. Mujati/Ducalcon, 2. Szarzewski, 1. Tonga’uiha/Ben Arous

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The excellent photos used with this article are all the copyrighted work of Emilie Manchon. You can see more of her photos of Racing on her Flickr page.

Same Again for Ireland

The Ireland squad shows no changes from the Italy game. (c) Ken Bohane.

Declan Kidney has selected the exact same match day 22  as that chosen for last weekend’s 42-10 win over Italy. Despite some impressive cameos off the bench, particularly from Leinster’s Eoin Reddan, the Irish management team have kept faith with the likes of Conor Murray and Donncha O’Callaghan ahead of Sunday’s clash with France in Paris, with no changes to the starting 15.

Kidney’s team selection for this rescheduled fixture will almost certainly be greeted with accusations of conservatism and over-loyalty by many fans. Do you think Kidney should have made changes? If so, in what positions? Do you think Reddan and Donnacha Ryan deserved to be starting? Would you have made more than just two changes? Comment below with your opinion on Kidney’s decisions.

Ireland team to face France:

1. Cian Healy (Leinster)

2. Rory Best (Ulster)

3. Mike Ross (Leinster)

4. Donnacha O’Callaghan (Munster)

5. Paul O’Connell (Munster, capt.)

6. Stephen Ferris (Ulster)

7. Sean O’Brien (Leinster)

8. Jamie Heaslip (Leinster)

9. Conor Murray (Munster)

10. Jonathan Sexton (Leinster)

11. Andrew Trimble (Ulster)

12. Gordon D’Arcy (Leinster)

13. Keith Earls (Munster)

14. Tommy Bowe (Ospreys)

15. Rob Kearney (Leinster)

Subs:

16. Sean Cronin (Leinster), 17. Tom Court (Ulster), 18. Donnacha Ryan (Munster), 19. Peter O’Mahony (Munster), 20. Eoin Reddan (Leinster),21. Ronan O’Gara (Munster), 22. Fergus McFadden (Leinster).

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Photo courtesy: Ken Bohane.

RaboDirect Round-Up

Blues 21-14 Ulster

Friday 17th February @ Cardiff Arms Park

Ulster failed to open up the Blues defence in the second half. (c) Simon Williams.

Despite leading at the break following a dominant first half, Ulster collected their 7th loss of the PRO12 season in Cardiff. A Robbie Diack try and two penalties from Ruan Pienaar gave Ulster an 11-6 half-time advantage. But second half tries from Dan Parks and Tom James plus a total of 11 points from Parks’ boot gave the home side a win that sees them jump above Ulster in the table. Brian McLaughlin will be disappointed with his side’s second-half effort.

That said, Ulster are still in contention for a play-off spot. Their losing bonus point leaves them 4 points off Glasgow Warriors in 4th. The Blues sit in 5th, 2 points ahead of Ulster, but crucially with a game in hand. That fixture will see them as favourites away to the Newport Gwent-Dragons. All Ulster can do is get back to winning ways, starting with a huge game on Friday when the Ospreys visit Ravenhill. That looks like a must-win if Ulster are to stay in the hunt.

Here’s Diack’s score from the Blues game. Decent turn of pace for his 3rd try in 4 games:

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Leinster 16-13 Scarlets

Friday 17th February @ The RDS

McFadden on his way to scoring Leinster's only try. (c) Ken Bohane.

Fergus McFadden was the hero for Leinster as he slotted a penalty with the last kick of the game to earn his side a win.  It looked like ending all square at the RDS until Nigel Owens pinged Scarlets’ replacement prop Phil John for stupidly playing the ball in a ruck. McFadden confidently slotted the kick from over 40 metres out. The inside centre scored all of Leinster’s points on the night, converting his own try as well as adding three penalties.

The Scarlets were impressive, particularly with their aggressive defence. They limited the amount of chances Leinster created and held a 10-3 half-time lead. Dan Newton scored a try and a penalty for the Welsh side, while Stephen Jones converted the try and added a penalty of his own. The wet conditions contributed to a less sparkling Leinster showing than we have become used to. However, Joe Schmidt will surely be pleased that his side still ground out the victory. Leinster remain 10 points clear of the Ospreys after this narrow win. Next up, Schmidt’s men face a trip to Firhill to take on the Warriors this Saturday.

Here’s the highlights of the Scarlets game:

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Treviso 14-35 Munster 

Saturday 18th February @ Stadio di Monigo

Zebo scored two tries as well as spending 10 minutes in the sin-bin. (c) Ivan O'Riordan.

A late Simon Zebo try ensured a crucial bonus point win for Munster despite a sluggish performance. The opening thirty minutes were extremely positive from Munster as they raced into a 24-0 lead thanks to tries from Danny Barnes, Zebo and Johne Murphy as well as the boot of ROG. But from that point, Munster relinquished their control of the game and allowed a poor Treviso team back in. The yellow cards to Mick O’Driscoll and Zebo didn’t help Munster. In the end though, Tony McGahan will be content with the five points.

Ronan O’Gara was flawless from the tee while Peter O’Mahony and Dave O’Callaghan showed their potential in the back-row. This win sees Munster up into 3rd, thanks in part to Connacht’s draw with Glasgow. The Ospreys in 2nd are just 4 points ahead, and Munster have a game in hand as well as a better points difference. Thomond Park is the venue for the visit of the Cardiff Blues on Friday as Munster continue to push for a home play-off.

If you missed the Munster vs. Treviso game, watch the whole thing here on the RTE Player!

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Connacht 13-13 Warriors

Saturday 18th February @ The Sportsground

Connacht captain Gavin Duffy couldn't help his side to a win. (c) Andy Scrutton.

Niall O’Connor salvaged a draw for Connacht with a penalty at the death in Galway on Saturday evening. It’s impossible not to be repetitive about Connacht’s performances this season, but once again this was a match they could have won. Handling errors and silly penalties were Connacht’s downfall again. O’Connor’s late score did allow Eric Elwood’s side to end their 10-game losing run in the PRO12, but it could have been more than just 2 points.

Connacht’s only try of the game came from the prolific Tiernan O’Halloran, as he collected O’Connor’s cross-kick to score. O’Conner converted as well as notching two penalties. The Warriors’ try came from prop Jon Welsh, with Ruaridh Jackson kicking 5 points. Duncan Weir came off the bench to slot what looked like the match-winning penalty before a John Muldoon try-saving tackle prevented the Warriors from wrapping things up. O’Connor then took his late chance. Connacht drop back to 11th in the table after the Dragons beat Edinburgh. Elwood and his men welcome the Scottish side to Galway on Friday and will hope to emulate the Dragons’ feat.

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Here’s the latest PRO12 table:

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Photos courtesy:  Simon Williams, Ken Bohane, Ivan O’Riordan, Andy Scrutton.

PRO12 Previews

Blues vs. Ulster @ Cardiff Arms Park

Friday 17th February, 19.05 (BBC NI)

Henson returns from international duty to start for the Blues. (c) Mauro Quercia.

Ulster go to Cardiff looking to continue their push for a play-off spot. Sitting 5th in the table, Ulster are just a point ahead of the Blues. The Welsh side do have a game in hand over Ulster, so a win for the Irish province becomes even more important. Brian McLaughlin welcomes back three Irish internationals this weekend, as Paddy Wallace, Chris Henry and Tom Court have all been released from the Irish camp for this fixture.

In total there are four personnel changes to the side that earned a bonus point win over the Dragons last time out. Wallace replaces Adam D’Arcy, Henry is in for Mike McComish, Court starts ahead of Callum Black and Nigel Brady is preferred to Andy Kyriacou at hooker. Johann Muller is sidelined with a calf injury, so Henry takes the captaincy. Elsewhere, Ian Whitten moves from the centre out to the wing, with Stefan Terblanche shifting to fullback.

Cardiff welcome back three international players of their own. Scrumhalf Lloyd Williams, centre Gavin Henson and prop Scott Andrews have all been released from Welsh duty. Dan Parks starts at outhalf following his international retirement. Recently announced Munster signing Casey Laulala is out with hamstring trouble. This is not the most formidable Blues team, and Ulster come into the fixture with confidence and momentum. They are the more settled side. Verdict: Ulster by 5-7 points.

Cardiff Blues: 15 Ben Blair, 14 Richard Mustoe, 13 Gavin Evans, 12 Gavin Henson, 11 Tom James, 10 Dan Parks, 9 Lloyd Williams, 8 Xavier Rush, 7 Josh Navidi, 6 Michael Paterson, 5 Paul Tito (capt.), 4 Cory Hill, 3 Scott Andrews, 2 Ryan Tyrell, 1 John Yapp.
Subs: 16 T Rhys Thomas, 17 Nathan Trevett, 18 Ryan Harford, 19 Maama Molitika, 20 Martyn Williams, 21 Richie Rees, 22 Ceri Sweeney, 23 Chris Czekaj.

Ulster: 15 Stefan Terblanche, 14 Craig Gilroy, 13 Nevin Spence, 12 Paddy Wallace, 11 Ian Whitten, 10 Ian Humphreys, 9 Ruan Pienaar, 8 Robbie Diack, 7 Willie Faloon, 6 Chris Henry (capt.), 5 Dan Tuohy, 4 Lewis Stevenson, 3 John Afoa, 2 Nigel Brady, 1 Tom Court.
Subs: 16 Andi Kyriacou, 17 Paddy McAllister, 18 Adam Macklin, 19 Tim Barker, 20 Mike McComish, 21 Paul Marshall, 22 Simon Danielli, 23 Adam D’Arcy.

Referee: George Clancy

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Leinster vs. Scarlets @ The RDS

Friday 17th February, 19.35 (TG4)

Isa Nacewa and Fergus McFadden (kicking) are both in the Leinster team. (c) Ken Bohane.

Joe Schmidt’s team includes four players who were involved in Ireland’s loss to Wales in the opening round of the Six Nations. Sean Cronin, Eoin Reddan, Fergus McFadden and Dave Kearney all return to the Leinster starting fifteen. Jack McGrath gets his second start of the season at loosehead, while Rhys Ruddock comes in at No.8. In the backline, Eoin O’Malley joins McFadden in the centre.

Scarlets’ coach Nigel Davies also received the boost of returning international players. Veteran outhalf Stephen Jones and wing Liam Williams are joined in the backline by centre Scott Williams, who made a brief appearance against Scotland last weekend. Up front, prop Rhodri Jones has been released from the Welsh camp to start at loosehead. England international Ben Morgan will surely be sprung from the Scarlets’ bench at some stage.

Leinster come into this weekend 10 points clear of the 2nd-placed Ospreys. With the Welsh region at home to Aironi tonight, they will expect a bonus point win and hope to close that gap. However, Leinster are on an 11 game winning-streak and have named a strong side for this clash with the Scarlets. They should maintain their dominance of the PRO12 with another win. Verdict: Leinster bonus point win.

Leinster: 15 Isa Nacewa, 14 David Kearney, 13 Eoin O’Malley, 12 Fergus McFadden, 11 Fionn Carr, 10 Ian Madigan, 9 Eoin Reddan, 8 Rhys Ruddock, 7 Shane Jennings, 6 Kevin McLaughlin (capt.), 5 Devin Toner, 4 Damian Browne, 3 Jamie Hagan, 2 Sean Cronin, 1 Jack McGrath.
Subs: 16 Richardt Strauss, 17 Heinke van der Merwe, 18 Nathan White, 19 Leo Auva’a, 20 Dominic Ryan, 21 Isaac Boss, 22 Noel Reid, 23 Brendan Macken.

Scarlets: 15 Dan Newton, 14 Liam Williams, 13 Gareth Maule (capt.), 12 Scott Williams, 11 Andy Fenby, 10 Stephen Jones, 1 Rhodri Jones, 2 Emyr Phillips, 3 Deacon Manu, 4 Sione Timani, 5 Dominic Day, 6 Josh Turnbull, 7 Johnathan Edwards, 8 Kieran Murphy.
Subs: 16 Craig Hawkins, 17 Phil John, 18 Peter Edwards, 19 Damian Welch, 20 Ben Morgan, 21 Liam Davies, 22 Adam Warren, 23 Viliame Iongi.

Referee: Nigel Owens

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Treviso vs. Munster @ Stadio di Monigo

Saturday 18th February, 15.15 (RTE2)

Munster's last game was the 51-36 win over the Saints. Botha, O'Mahony and Horan all return for this one. (c) Ivan O'Riordan.

Munster’s match with Aironi last weekend was called off due to the snowy conditions in Italy, but this one will be completely unaffected. Without a game, Munster dropped to 4th in the league. Still, they are only one point behind the Warriors in 3rd and have a game in hand. Munster will be hoping for a favour from Connacht in their clash with the Warriors. Tony McGahan will be eager to keep the pressure on the Ospreys, sitting in 2nd. A home semi-final in the play-offs is a realistic expectation for Munster.

McGahan has included returning Ireland squad members Ronan O’Gara, Donnacha Ryan and Peter O’Mahony in his side for this tie with Treviso. The other big news is that Felix Jones is named in the match day squad for the first time this season. He’s joined there by Tommy O’Donnell, also just back from injury. Mick O’Driscoll captains the side from second-row while Ian Keatley’s ankle injury means he is ruled out.

Treviso have made wholesale changes to the side beaten by Leinster last weekend. Fabio Semenzato and Willem de Waal form a new half-back partnership, while Tommaso Iannone comes in on the wing. There’s a new second-row of Corniel Van Zyl and Antonio Pavanello, while Paul Derbyshire is chosen at blindside. Munster lost 19-8 here last year so will certainly not be complacent. Having not played in just under a month, expect some rustiness from Munster. Verdict: Munster win by 10 points.

Benetton Treviso: 15 Ludovico Nitoglia, 14 Tommaso Iannone, 13 Ezio Galon, 12 Alberto Sgarbi, 11 Brendan Williams, 10 Willem De Waal, 9 Fabio Semenzato, 8 Marco Filippucci, 7 Benjamin Vermaak, 6 Paul Derbyshire, 5 Corniel Van Zyl, 4 Antonio Pavanello (cap.), 3 Pedro Di Santo, 2 Franco Sbaraglini, 1 Matteo Muccignat.
Subs: 16 Enrico Ceccato, 17 Augusto Allori, 18 Ignacio Fernandez Rouyet, 19 Valerio Bernabò, 20 Gonzalo Padrò, 21 Gonzalo Garcia, 22 Edoardo Gori, 23 Alberto Di Bernardo.

Munster: 15 Denis Hurley, 14 Johne Murphy, 13 Danny Barnes, 12 Lifeimi Mafi, 11 Simon Zebo, 10 Ronan O’Gara, 9 Tomas O’Leary, 1 Wian du Preez, 2 Damien Varley, 3 BJ Botha, 4 Donnacha Ryan, 5 Mick O’Driscoll (capt.), 6 Dave O’Callaghan, 7 Peter O’Mahony, 8 James Coughlan.                                                                                                            Subs: 16 Denis Fogarty, 17 Marcus Horan, 18 Stephen Archer, 19 Billy Holland, 20 Tommy O’Donnell, 21 Duncan Williams, 22 Scott Deasy, 23 Felix Jones.

Referee: Neil Hennessey

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Connacht vs. Warriors @ The Sportsground

Saturday 18th February, 17.30 (TG4)

Niall O'Connor continues at outhalf. (c) Sum_of_Marc.

Connacht’s losing bonus point against the Blues last weekend lifted them to 10th in the table, just a single point ahead of 11th-placed Newport-Gwent Dragons. As mentioned above, the Warriors come into this game looking to consolidate 3rd position, as well as hoping to close the gap on the Ospreys. Eric Elwood’s side haven’t won in the PRO12 since the 23rd of September, but with confidence boosted by the recent win over Harlequins, Connacht believe they can beat a weakened Warriors side.

Elwood makes just two changes to the team from last weekend’s defeat. Ray Ofisa is out with a knee injury so Eoghan Grace comes in at openside. Since joining from Exeter last summer, Grace has had limited opportunities, missing plenty of the season through injury. He will be out to prove himself capable at this level. The other change sees Henry Fa’afili come into the centre in place of Dave McSharry, with Eoin Griffin back on the bench.

Glasgow haven’t won in Connacht since 2007. Looking to reverse that trend, coach Sean Lineen has made just one change to the team that beat the Scarlets 19-9 last weekend, Pat MacArthur replacing Dougie Hall at hooker. Duncan Weir is on the bench after being an unused substitute in Scotland’s loss to Wales last Sunday. Scotland international Graeme Morrison captains the side from midfield. Glasgow will consider this a good chance to shake off their Galway hoodoo, but similarly, Connacht will see it as another chance to pick off a team missing their international players. Verdict: Connacht by 1-3 points.

Connacht:15 Gavin Duffy (capt.), 14 Fetu’u Vainikolo, 13 Kyle Tonetti, 12 Henry Fa’afili, 11 Tiernan O’Halloran, 10 Niall O’Connor, 9 Paul O’Donohoe, 8 George Naoupu, 7 Eoghan Grace, 6 John Muldoon, 5 Mike McCarthy, 4 Michael Swift, 3 Ronan Loughney, 2 Adrian Flavin, 1 Brett Wilkinson.
Subs: 16 Ethienne Reynecke, 17 Denis Buckley, 18 Stewart Maguire, 19 Dave Gannon, 20 Mick Kearney, 21 Dave Moore, 22 Matthew Jarvis, 23 Eoin Griffin.

Glasgow: 15 Peter Murchie, 14 Tommy Seymour, 13 Troy Nathan, 12 Graeme Morrison (capt.), 11 David Lemi, 10 Ruaridh Jackson, 9 Henry Pyrgos, 8 Ryan Wilson, 7 Chris Fusaro, 6 Rob Harley, 5 Tom Ryder, 4 Rob Verbakel, 3 Jon Welsh, 2 Pat MacArthur, 1 Ryan Grant.
Subs: 16 Finlay Gillies, 17 Gordon Reid, 18 George Hunter, 19 Nick Campbell, 20 Duncan Weir, 21 Alex Dunbar, 22 Colin Shaw, 23 Calum Forrester.

Referee: Peter Allan

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Photos courtesy:  Ken Bohane, Mauro Quercia, Ivan O’Riordan, Sum_of_Marc.

Ireland Name Squad to Face Wales

Ireland will hope for a better result than last time against the Welsh, 22-10 at the World Cup. (c) Joslyn Layne.

Declan Kidney has named his team to take on Wales in Ireland’s Six Nations opener on Sunday. Here’s the team:

Ireland team for Wales match

1. Cian Healy

2. Rory Best

3. Mike Ross

4. Donncha O’Callaghan

5. Paul O’Connell

6. Stephen Ferris

7. Sean O’Brien

8. Jamie Heaslip

9. Conor Murray

10. Jonathan Sexton

11. Andrew Trimble

12. Gordon D’Arcy

13. Keith Earls

14. Tommy Bowe

15. Rob Kearney

Subs

16. Sean Cronin, 17. Tom Court, 18. Donnacha Ryan, 19. Peter O’Mahony, 20. Eoin Reddan, 21. Ronan O’Gara, 22. Fergus McFadden.

Ireland will be intent on avoiding this situation on Sunday. (c) Joslyn Layne.

So no shocks in the starting 15. Peter O’Mahony’s inclusion on the bench is the only selection that was not widely anticipated. However, his form and impact for Munster this season make it well deserved. As expected, Keith Earls takes the 13 jersey after an accomplished performance there for Munster in that big win over Northampton.

Donncha O’Callaghan’s inclusion from the start may draw the most criticism, but Kidney has always been loyal to the players who have served him well in the past. Donnacha Ryan will have to be content with making an impact off the bench. ROG won’t be happy acting as a replacement but there’s every chance he will have some part to play.

In the end, this is what everyone expected from Kidney. But that’s no criticism from The Touchline. Kidney has picked what he sees as the strongest available team to beat Wales at the Aviva on Sunday. He has no interest in testing youngsters in that environment. Take a second look at the team above. It is filled with quality. If it lacks excitement on paper, just remember the form players like Rob Kearney and Stephen Ferris are in. This is a team with the potential to win the Six Nations and that is Kidney’s only concern.

Wales name their team on Friday. Alun Wyn-Jones, Luke Charteris, Gethin Jenkins and Matthew Rees are all out injured. Rhys Priestland, Dan Lydiate and Jamie Roberts are hoping to be fit in time for Sunday’s game.

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Photos courtesy:  Joslyn Layne.