rossie wrote: with respect i think it was SOB who was the lucky one in this selection.

Ah here Rossie, take off the red-tinted glasses. Comparing O'Mahoney and SOB is like comparing a Dacia with an Audi. One's value for money but the other's the real thing.

It was always going to come down to a choice between Henry and O'Mahoney. Henry might be the closest to a real 7 we have, but if it gets into a scrap about who has the best openside they'll have 2 better than ours and we're dead. So Yoda et al picked the lineout option and look for an advantage there.

There's very little to give out about in the selections, Bent(lase) isn't on the bench, there's nothing to choose between Earls and McFadden for the bench, in fact the only dodgy selection might be ROG. Wales filleted him in the WC and he's gone downhill fast in the 18 months since. God help us if Sexton takes a knock, but barring that I reckon we'll steam home.

with respect i think it was SOB who was the lucky one in this selection. he has played very little rugby this season while POM and Henry have done very well for club and country. if a backrow player was to be dropped based on performance it would be heaslip with SOB going to 8 but hes now captain so was never going to happen.

the rest of the team is as expected including bench. bent could not have been selected after living up to his name last friday.

Yeah he wasn't used at all it was mainly ryan and pom with some heaslip. It is irritating because many commentators said in the build up to the team announcement pom would be a fourth lineout option but he only counts as a fourth if mccarthy is actively used as one. I'm not sure its the best reason for him to be in the team either although it is a reason.

Do you think we'll make any use out of McCarthy in the lineout this time around.
My memory may be hazy on the matter, but I dont think he's utilized at all for Ireland

Backs pretty much as expected, toss up for Henry & O'Mahony.

Better ground work by Henry, even-stevens for carrying and general mobility, O'Mahony possibly marginally ahead as a line-out option...

But I'd have Henry starting, to make an absolute mess of Welsh ball...

Really wanted Henry at 7 and Court should be ahead of Kilcoyne apart from that a good team selection.

Glad Earls was not put on the wing but I would still have question marks over both those wingers ability to stand up to the Welsh. I hope I'm wrong. In one sense I would like to see Henry have a chance but if SOB is our 7 then he should be our 7 regardless of an injured Ferris, let him stick with that position. I just hope POM cuts back on the handbags, its getting very boring... (munster fans seem to love it though :whistle: )

A central contract to a 22-23 year old who realistically has only just broken into the Ireland squad is ridiculous and just stupid imo. For a start assuming all goes well for him he has at least 10 years of earning to do, so the IRFU have basically committed to a 10 year central contract. Meanwhile Sexton has to fight to reach parity with other key players, and Ross our only good tighthead is supposedly being offered a cut. POM could easily be out of the first team if Ferris was back or if there was a change in coaching personal.

I don't begrudge him a living but especially after the IRFU cut back the number of central contracts they are something that needs to be valued and really earned. There doesn't seem to be any criteria to it but a player should be the number one choice in their position for a start that just seems reasonable. They should also have proven themselves internationally, preferably over more than one season. Some may say POM has proven himself at heiny level but Munster have won nothing since he's been there (not his fault) so that experience is very limited proof.

salmson wrote: Now I'm usually a stern critic of the Munster bias in the Ireland setup and IRFU in general - you see the way that Reddan and Ross were treated in comparison to how O'Leary and Buckley were indulged, to give just a couple of examples - but I wouldn't quibble with this. After Heaslip and O'Brien he's the most experienced backrow in the squad (I'm ignoring Ferris as the chances of us getting him to the next World Cup are about as good as for Paul O'Connell), so there really is nobody I'd pick ahead of him.

I'd prefer to see Chris Henry along with O'Brien & Heaslip.

Even aside from that, what has he done to justify a central contract? It's not like Toulouse were going to whisk him away. And now that he has it, there is extra pressure on coaches to select him ahead of others. Makes no sense to me.

I'd prefer to see Trimble ahead of Gilroy too. Don't think he got the fair crack of the whip last Friday.

Creedence wrote: O'Mahony was a borderline call, and yet he gets a central contract announced on the same day? It is questionable whether he has done enough to get a place in the side so what has he done to deserve a central contract?

www.irishrugby.ie/ireland/28218.php

Wow if Carlsberg did PR exercises!

That's a real two fingers up to the Leinster boys with the timing of that.

Someone mentioned the other day that SOB is not even centrally contracted! Don't know how true that is at all.

Think everyone was in agreement about the make up of the team with 7, 11 and 14 being the only positions open for debate. Fair play to Kidney for sticking with Gilly, that is a very big call given how we fared the last couple of times out against Wales in terms of being beaten by their physicality.

Creedence wrote: O'Mahony was a borderline call, and yet he gets a central contract announced on the same day? It is questionable whether he has done enough to get a place in the side so what has he done to deserve a central contract?

www.irishrugby.ie/ireland/28218.php

Now I'm usually a stern critic of the Munster bias in the Ireland setup and IRFU in general - you see the way that Reddan and Ross were treated in comparison to how O'Leary and Buckley were indulged, to give just a couple of examples - but I wouldn't quibble with this. After Heaslip and O'Brien he's the most experienced backrow in the squad (I'm ignoring Ferris as the chances of us getting him to the next World Cup are about as good as for Paul O'Connell), so there really is nobody I'd pick ahead of him.

O'Mahony was a borderline call, and yet he gets a central contract announced on the same day? It is questionable whether he has done enough to get a place in the side so what has he done to deserve a central contract?

www.irishrugby.ie/ireland/28218.php

Was writing my post( with my possible 15) at the very same time as GTTC posted his.Didn't know team would be named this early.

As you'd expect really ,

Macca to start for sure.

My initial thought was that it's madness to even consider putting Henshaw on the bench.However, i do recall a certain game against Scotland years ago, whereby a bunch of young lads by the names of O'Driscoll,Stringer and o'Gara were thrown in at the deep end and never looked back !!!

Healey
Best
Ross
Ryan
McCarthy
O'Mahony
O'Brien
Heaslip
Reddan
Sexton
Fitzgerald (Gilroy)
D'Arcy
O'Driscoll
Zebo
Kearney

Henshaw wasn't in the 33.

Pulled out of the under 20s by Connacht as he's played too much rugby.

Ireland team to play Wales at Millennium Stadium, Saturday 2 February, kick-off 13:30:

15 Rob Kearney
14 Craig Gilroy
13 Brian O'Driscoll
12 Gordon D'Arcy
11 Simon Zebo
10 Jonathan Sexton
9 Conor Murray

1 Cian Healy
2 Rory Best
3 Mike Ross
4 Mike McCarthy
5 Donncha Ryan
6 Peter O'Mahony
7 Sean O'Brien
8 Jamie Heaslip.

Replacements: 16 Sean Cronin 17 David Kilcoyne 18 Declan Fitzpatrick 19 Donnacha O'Callaghan 20 Chris Henry 21 Eoin Reddan 22 Ronan O'Gara 23 Keith Earls

Macca to start, no mention of henshaw

Thoughts?