PUSHING ON

And so begin my mutterings and musings for a new season of rugby today. A new laptop to pen my mindless wanderings and a new season to look ahead to makes me happy, although looking at the clock and realising I am wide awake at 5:30am on a Saturday morning is not the most reassuring thing for my metabolism. Nevertheless I plough on into a fresh new start full of ideas that spring forth from my mind onto the page.

Last season is dead and buried, we shall dwell on it but momentarily as we consider what could have been rather than what came to pass. As we entered April confidence was booming and the team were beginning to take shape again following a particularly rough injury spell. Alas the clumsy Jared Payne tackle in the quarter-final against Sarries, and then Anscombe’s decision to play the aforementioned full-back at outside centre in the Pro12 semi-final, ultimately cost us a trophy (well, not just those two reasons but you know what I mean).

I’m not saying we would’ve necessarily won anything come the end of May given the insurmountable strength of Jonny Wilkinson’s Toulon (what’ll the English media call it now he’s departed one wonders) and the prospect of a daunting trip to Celtic Park to play the in-form Glasgow Warriors in the Pro12 final, however you cannot deny that we had two trophies placed on the table in front of us and we somehow managed to fail to look after both of them. Daylight robbery by all accounts.

And so it is with a burden on their shoulders that Johann Muller and Tom Court depart Ravenhill (or should that be the Kingspan Stadium?) without any silverware to show for their valiant efforts. It would take me more than the 750 words I try to limit myself to every week to try and explain just what Muller has brought to Ulster, not just in terms of on the field leadership, but off the field growth too. We may never see the likes of him in Belfast again.

John Afoa arrives in Gloucester trophyless too, but the less said about that the better perhaps.

But now we look to the future. A shiny new stadium with a shiny new name (more on that next week) shows signs of things to come as Ulster Rugby move into the modern era of rugby, boasting marquee signings this season of Franco van der Merwe and Louis Ludik. Okay, they aren’t quite in the Pienaar, Afoa, Muller mould, but in a pre-World Cup year you are asking a lot to find good players who are willing to move north – although Leinster seem to have done just that with the coup of underrated Wallaby lock Kane Douglas. Kudos to them.

Alarm bells ring loud and clear with the dawn of a new season though, for several reasons. First and foremost is the coach – Mark Anscombe. My opinion is worth nothing so I won’t give it, but what is worth pointing out is that he’s only on a one-year deal. It’s no secret that he was talking to Gloucester and Cardiff last season while he was in negotiations with us, and while he eventually agreed to another year at the helm, it does not bode well. Is this his last year, full stop? Or is it simply in a competitive climate, one year is simply all we can afford to offer, with his future in Belfast dependent on whether there’s something for the cleaners to polish next June? Time will tell.

All I’m saying is that if he knows this will be his last year with his hands on the rudder of the good ship Ulster, then there isn’t much motivation to push his team to glory. Sure, he could go out with a bang yadda yadda yadda, but in truth this is a dog eat dog world and regardless of how he does in 2014/15 it could be a case of David Humphreys and Shane Logan giving him a pat on the back, shaking his hand and saying, “Thanks for the memories” as he jets back off to New Zealand, regardless of the medals he may or may not carry in his hand luggage.

I’m speculating of course but it is a genuine fear of mine.

The second fear is the talent on the pitch. While I have no doubt every single player in the Ulster team bleeds white and red for their province, there’s only so far that dedication can go – that alone will not win you trophies. Just ask Leinster, they’ve been there and done it and they will confirm to you that in order to get over the line, sometimes other lines must be crossed.

Competing with the likes of Toulon, Saracens and Clermont Auvergne will prove difficult as it always has done. The money they are able to flaunt at players is, to be quite frank, ridiculous, and how the IRB do not step in and place some sort of regulations on them is beyond me because it is ruining the game to a certain degree and leading rugby down the road of wendyball (football for those who don’t know).  But where I worry for Ulster is in the nitty gritty games.

We saw last season when we had Leinster on the ropes in the semi-final we could not find that killer try to win the game – had we got it we were home dry and in a second successive Pro12 final. Too many times last season we simply stood back and let teams pick us apart at will – Scarlets, Dragons and Cardiff away to name but three. That’s where I worry nothing has changed. Our new signings are not the kinds of players who will get in there and do the dirty work for us. As much as we despise how he played, Ulster need someone like Leo Cullen (happy retirement to him, a good player on his day) who will just get under the skin of the opposition and rile them.

Those are my initial thoughts on what needs amended for next season. I worry every season about how we will compete with other teams and every year the lads always make sure to throw something in that blows us all away – not necessarily good every time. All I know is we’re in for yet another cracking season of rugby, be that in the hideously named Rugby Champions’ Cup, or the Pro12 (whoever it will be sponsored by). And whatever you do, do not expect the path to be smooth along the way.

It’s a dog eat dog world out there y’know.

DOMESTIC STRUGGLES

With just three games of the regular season left to go for Ulster, Friday night was the perfect remedy to the previous week’s disappointment.

Eight tries in a dominant display against Connacht was exactly what the doctor ordered, and although the crowd that was at Ravenhill did not total that of the one that watched them play Saracens, they were as loud as ever, and the demons of the quarter-final were banished. It was slightly disappointing that Connacht did not really live up to their billing as a side chasing the final European spot, but even so the Ulstermen were tremendously ruthless and disposed of their Irish rivals with the efficiency required over the next four weeks, and hopefully beyond.

It sets up Ulster beautifully heading into May. With the five points it means that Mark Anscombe’s side are highly likely to make it into the end of season play-offs, probably at the expense of the Ospreys, for the second year running, although that is the least of Ulster’s aims – they are now into second place in the league, and with games against Glasgow, Leinster and Munster still to come, there is still an outside chance that they could top the league after the regular season again.

But the one player that stood out for everyone was Andrew Trimble.

The rise of Trimble has been monumental. We all knew how good he was before this season, and how he has been overlooked for Ireland for so long is beyond me. But even this season he has improved immensely and Friday night was testament to that – three tries, two assists and what was pretty much a flawless performance. On a night when Joe Schmidt was in attendance at Ravenhill, and international rivals Robbie Henshaw, Tommy Bowe and Craig Gilroy were also on showcase, Trimble was by far the best player on the pitch and will have done his chances of holding onto the Ireland wing berth no harm.

It is rather ironic that in the year that Trimble is recalled to the Ireland team they win the Six Nations. Now obviously I am not advocating that he was the sole reason, there were plenty of other factors that were at play, but it’s also true that Trimble played a massive role in helping Ireland to their first Six Nations triumph for five years. He displayed a wide range of skills that he was never allowed to show during the Kidney era and now he can look forward to an extended (and deserved) run in his international team.

As for Ulster we are now looking at probably our three toughest games of the year in four weeks, and right at the business end of the season too. Whoever creates the fixture lists for the Pro12 would have some questions to answer if I was let at them, but as it is we must plough on in our quest for the top four. With the injuries we have if we can come out of our final three games with two or even all three victories then it will be a credit to our team and it will be a huge motivational boost heading into the play-offs. One win will get them into the final four, three will probably get them the top seeding.

This week it’s Glasgow who are fresh off their incredibly controlled victory at Thomond Park on Saturday night. Possibly an extra day’s rest will be very beneficial for the Ulstermen, but it’s extremely hard to get away from the fact that this is going to be a very tough test for us. We’ve already lost to Glasgow once this season (and no-one needs reminded of that train wreck) and even though they sit in fourth, their league position belittles how good they are – Glasgow are one of the most consistent sides in the Pro12, and but for a few unlucky results they would be above us and more than likely above Leinster too. In my opinion, they are our second biggest challengers for the Pro12 title.

It’s unavoidable to think that Friday’s game is a must win. It is a perfect chance for us to solidify our position in the play-off places and knock one of our rivals down a peg too. If we lose that crucial home semi-final could be beyond our grasp and I fancy our chances a lot more at Scotstoun than at Thomond Park due to its hostile atmosphere. No pressure on the guys, but if we lose this Friday night, we may be looking at travelling down south for a play-off game. Again.

Hopefully it’s a Good Friday for us anyway.

END OF THE LINE

To put Saturday into context I will recall my recent golf trip to Hilton Templepatrick. I started off quite well with two pars on the first two holes and I thought I was going quite well. Then I came to the par 5 third hole and walked off the green with a disappointing triple bogey 8 having duffed a chip up at the green. It was hard to come back from that and in the end I posted a disappointing +12 (off a handicap of 6). Similarly, once Ulster found themselves behind in the number of players they had on the field, it was very hard for them to compete with their opponents.

So, where to begin?

Saturday’s game will go down as a classic in Heineken Cup history. A red card, two sides going at it hammer and tongs, and a final assault that ultimately came up short. While the game may have been effectively over as a contest by the fourth minute with the dismissal of Jared Payne, nobody told Johann Muller and his Ulster players that it was and but for a few inches, Paddy Jackson’s kick might have sneaked over the posts and Ulster would be heading to Dublin in two weeks’ time to take on the might of Clermont.

It was a game of incredibly fine margins and sadly it was one that ended up being decided by who had more players. Maybe the red card would have blown over had Saracens then run away with the game but the sheer commitment and desire shown by the Ulster players made sure that there were only two points in it by the final whistle. As it is, the sending off will be a massive talking point for the next few weeks and Ulster have every right to feel slightly aggrieved that they won’t be at the Aviva on the 26^th.

We could debate the red card for the next month if we wanted, there are so many ifs and buts surrounding it, but all that’s left to say is that it was reckless and Payne can’t have too many complaints over it: he effectively made Garces’ case for him. Maybe a red card was a little harsh but you can see why the Frenchman elected to send off the Kiwi full-back altogether.

Moving on though, and you can’t underestimate how much of a boost this will give Ulster. To be down to fourteen men for seventy-six minutes yet still be within a penalty or drop goal at the end of the game is incredible. But that is what Ulster have created within this squad: a belief and a resilience. They may have lost on Saturday night, but this loss will do a lot for the squad’s confidence.

On the other hand though it is a bit worrying that the best that the PRL can offer could only just about see off the fourteen men of Ulster. Whether it was down to the brilliance of the home side or not, Saracens did not cover themselves in any glory whatsoever. The usually reliable Owen Farrell was uncharacteristically off-form and they could only score their three tries by exploiting the space left by Payne’s absence, although to be fair that was very tactically astute and their defence at the end was exemplary.

But even so, it is evident that if they play the same way against Clermont in the semi-finals they will be in for a tough time. Good luck to them nevertheless and that will be a cracking semi-final, as will be Toulon vs. Munster – c’mon you Munstermen!

As for Ulster it is back to the Pro12, although it will be without two influential players in Ruan Pienaar and Rory Best. It will be a very tough ask to even get to the final of the league without them let alone win it so for the rest of the season it looks like Ulster will have their backs up against the wall if they didn’t already. With games to come against Glasgow (away), Leinster (home) and Munster (away) to come, finishing in the top four may be a difficulty too.

The season isn’t over, but it’s looking likely it will be another trophyless season for Ulster. It’s hard to see us winning in Thomond Park without Pienaar and Best and presuming we go away to either there again or the RDS Arena in the semi-finals then it’s looking even more unlikely that we’ll be back in the Grand Final in May.

End of the line. Maybe in more ways than one.

THE BIG ONE

We’ve been waiting a long time, but after three long months, the big game is finally here!

Let’s leave last Saturday in the past. For whatever reason we simply didn’t show up against Cardiff, and I guarantee that won’t happen again, especially not this week. If our mindset isn’t in the right place for a Heineken Cup quarter-final then to be quite frank we don’t deserve to go through, and if we aren’t near top form on Saturday then Saracens will steamroll over us – they are a top quality side.

In fact, Saturday will be by far the toughest test we will have faced all season. Saracens are a team that ooze quality all over the park and they deserve the respect they get – top of the Aviva Premiership, putting in some formidable performances recently and boasting eight current internationals, they are a team that will test us in every area of the pitch. Anybody else remember their 64-6 humiliation of Connacht back in January?

Look no further than an incredibly talented back line for where their biggest threats will come from. Chris Ashton and his “Ash Splash” we know all too well after last season’s quarter-final, Owen Farrell is lethal off the kicking tee, and Alex Goode is one of the best counter-attacking full backs in European rugby. Add in the attacking potency of Charlie Hodgson off the bench and that is one lethal back line.

Where we can compete is up front. In the two games they lost against Toulouse, Saracens were outmuscled and battered about by the French side at the breakdown, and with Rory Best, Dan Tuohy and Chris Henry on the field, we have more than enough to actively compete with them at the breakdown this Saturday. The reintroduction of Namibian openside Jacques Burger will help Saracens’ plight but it is an area they definitely struggle in.

Don’t forget, we are still the only team unbeaten in the competition, we are at home in front of a sell-out 18,100 capacity Ravenhill crowd, and therefore the expectation will be fully upon us. And rightly so, with 75% of quarter-finals being won by the home team, and with our stellar record in the competition so far, strictly speaking this should be the game that will be won by the home team!

Of course it’s anything but that. Ask Munster last year who took down Harlequins at the Stoop, or even us a couple of years ago in our smash-and-grab effort at Thomond Park – winning away from home in the quarter-finals is far from impossible. Improbable yes, impossible no. Therefore, you wouldn’t blame Saracens for coming over with high expectations, especially after last season’s clash.

I won’t remind you of it. But needless to say, things appear to be lining up slightly in their favour: they have the advantage of winning last season, they carry the better result into the game from last week, and effectively they have nothing to lose as they are the side expected to be knocked out. They can come to Ravenhill and give it a good go knowing if they lose they’re simply sticking to the status quo.

Mark McCall knows exactly what a Ravenhill crowd can be like and therefore he will concentrate on making sure his side get off to a quick start and silence the Ulster faithful. That will put them at a huge advantage, and if the crowd goes silent then Saracens will very much have the upper hand.

But still, Ulster have the players and the belief to do it. The Cardiff result will have slapped some sense into them and they will be determined to exact revenge on the English side after last season’s humiliation at Twickenham. With a 6 from 6 record to maintain too, you can guarantee that Mark Anscombe’s men won’t go down without a fight either – how sweet would it be if in the final season of the Heineken Cup we could be the first team to go win every single game.

So wherever you are, however you watch it, make sure you stand up, sing loud, and sing proud for your Ulstermen this Saturday night!

This is the time of champions.

Super Eight

No, I’m not referring to the cricket, although how sweet was it to see England capitulate against the Netherlands!

There are eight super teams left in the Heineken Cup and three other cracking ties to watch this weekend, and I’ll take a brief look at the other three ties.

Munster v Toulouse: Irish allegiance shines through here and I’d like to see Munster put away the French giants with relative ease. Toulouse haven’t been brilliant this season and if they are missing Louis Picamoles then I don’t fancy them storming Thomond Park and leaving with the win, especially with Munster in decent form. If the Limerick men can play their usual game and maintain the same clinical finishing that they have so far this season then they should be just fine.

Clermont v Leicester: Probably the easiest tie to call, Leicester are not the force they were a few years ago and we all know about Clermont’s ridiculously long home record. With the Cyber Vulcans cheering them all the way and a full set to pick from, Vern Cotter and his team simply need to do the basics right and let the home advantage carry them through. Will Leicester break the record against all the odds? Don’t count on it.

Toulon v Leinster: The second best tie of the weekend (!) and what a tie it is. The defending champions at home to arguably the best team in Europe and it’s a very tough one to call. Toulon have been in and out of form this season yet still find themselves third in the Top14, while Leinster are hitting their usual end of season stride and are confident after dispatching Munster last weekend. You’re a brave man to bet against either of these teams, home advantage may be the clinical factor.

I’m going for four home wins this weekend. History states that there will be one away win this weekend, but I’m going to go against the grain and say home advantage will pay dividends for the top four seeds. Well, at least I hope it will.

OVERCOMING EDINBURGH

Maybe it was a blessing in disguise that Ulster’s game against Edinburgh was not broadcast live on TV on Friday night.

By all accounts the game was a dross affair with the rain-swept Scottish capital looking more like the trenches of Normandy than it did the usual grandeur of Murrayfield. A rather unfitting tribute to the iconic Murrayfield turf which is being removed and replaced in the next few days, and the planned invasion of the pitch was probably quite subdued considering the result.

The game itself mirrored the atrocious weather it was played in, a forwards-dominated, try-less encounter which turned out to be a battle of the boots with Paddy Jackson emerging the victor over his opposing number Carl Bezuidenhout. That was definitely one positive taken from the evening anyway: should Ruan Pienaar not make the Saracens game in two weeks (touch wood he does) at least Jackson seems to have his kicking boots polished and ready to go.

It was a game that was about getting the win and not getting anybody injured in the process – yes, I’m talking about a certain Stephen Ferris – and Ulster achieved that. Edinburgh can be a bit of a banana skin team, especially at Murrayfield, and on the other side it is rather relieving that the game is out of the way. Our record hasn’t exactly been stellar in Scotland either, so those are four welcome points in our bid to finish in the top four.

We’re not exactly setting the world alight with our rugby at the moment, but arguably we don’t need to. We’ve slowly climbed the table now, sitting in third place just three points behind Munster who were runaway leaders at one point, and we’ve got the winning momentum going ahead of Saracens next week. Certainly a home semi-final in the Pro12 isn’t beyond us, and with both Leinster and Munster to face us in our final two games of the season, I’m sure the management team haven’t given up on the possibility of top spot for the second season running.

In fact, Friday night may be a bigger win than many people realise. On a terrible night for rugby the game could easily have swung either way yet we managed to stand firm when up against it and leave with the four points we needed. That’s the hallmark of great teams: even when you’re playing badly you can grind out the results required. This season we’ve done that, and if we can get a few good performances together then who knows what’s achievable for this team?

Onwards and upwards I say!

Quarter-final quivers

I don’t exactly rate BT Sport’s coverage of rugby that highly (especially the top quality “analysis” from Austin Healey) but I was forced to watch Saracens against Harlequins on BT Sport, and unfortunately the home team (playing at Wembley) were very good. Very good indeed. Five tries they scored and five points they earned – they will be formidable opponents in the quarter-final.

Harlequins didn’t exactly put up much of a resistance, throwing two ridiculous passes for intercept tries and only really threatening from their driving maul when they had a man advantage, but even so, Saracens showed why they are leaders of the Premiership and even now you can tell that next week’s game will be a cracker.

I still think you’d be a brave man to bet against the home team though. Although Saracens will be a step above Leicester (who had an equally impressive win on Sunday), winning runs do a lot for confidence, and we still haven’t been defeated in 2014. Admittedly, we should definitely not be complacent as Saracens will pose us the most questions anybody has thus far this season, but by the same token, we should still win the game at the renovated Ravenhill with 18,000 Ulstermen behind the boys.

Confidence does a lot for a team – our confidence last season carried us through two matches away in Italy where we didn’t play well at all but we still escaped with the wins, and you could argue we’ve done the same thing recently against the Ospreys and Treviso too. Nevertheless, all the pressure is on us as the home team – we are expected to win, and if we don’t there will be questions asked.

Still, I’ll leave the in-depth build up for that game for next week’s blog, there’s a heck of a lot more I could talk about without even scratching the surface of what will be the biggest game of Ulster’s season so far, and will be the first of a huge run of games which will determine where and who we play in the latter stages of the season.

And of course, hopefully that includes a Heineken Cup semi in Dublin – sorry Sarries!

INCREDIBLE IRELAND

Let’s be honest, whenever France pushed over that scrum in the eightieth minute we all thought it was heading for a French drop goal that would break Irish hearts.

Luckily that did not happen and Ireland were able to hold on for a famous win in Paris which won the Six Nations for them and cemented their place in Irish rugby history, and to be honest they probably did deserve it overall considering the performances they put in over the last eight weeks. With a new coach in as well it’s a very impressive achievement too.

In fact, the majority of the credit has to go to Mr. Schmidt who has transformed Ireland from the misfiring outfit that we were so accustomed to under Declan Kidney to a formidable outfit that has delivered the first trophy they’ve played for, as well as turning them from a team to a squad with several top quality players competing for every shirt available – the promotions of the likes of Jack McGrath, Martin Moore and Iain Henderson to the bench is testament to that.

And when the final whistle went, not only did it win the Championship for Ireland, but it also denied the English, and after all the build up put on by the English media, I’m not gonna lie, it was good to see them finish second for a second year running. Now don’t get me wrong, I admire Stuart Lancaster for the work he is doing with the English team, and if you remember correctly I did predict England would get the Grand Slam at the start of the tournament. But from a fan’s point of view, this competition could not have gone better.

Actually I lie – the Grand Slam was one step too far for us this year. And unfortunately that’s probably the correct result because we were a bit too sloppy in Twickenham and we paid the price for it. In fact, there are many things to point at in that game as to why we didn’t get the Grand Slam, but that’s all in the past and considering the competitive nature of this year’s competition as well as the difficult fixture list, the Championship win is a great achievement alone.

That makes the win at the Stade de France all the more impressive. Ireland came up against probably the best French performance of the tournament and combined with their record in Paris, to come away with the win is a monumental achievement. You can single out individual players to praise from that game, Andrew Trimble and Paul O’Connell to name but two, but in actuality it was definitely a 23 man effort. Every player put their body on the line (in Jonny Sexton’s case literally) and they were rewarded for it with a winners’ medal.

And of course, it had to be an Irish win for BOD’s last game in an Ireland jersey. Had Damien Chouly’s last minute try stood then it would have been a case of the France not sticking to the script – in the legend’s final Six Nations it could only have been Ireland who could have won the tournament, couldn’t it? Of course, there’s no point in talking in “ifs” or “buts” anymore, BOD will go into Test retirement with another medal to put in his cabinet. Not a bad career.

One thing I will contend is many people saying this surpasses 2009. For the sheer drama that the final game that year produced, as well as the fact it was a Grand Slam winning year, this season’s isn’t just as good. From an Ulster perspective it possibly is considering how much of an influence we had on the squad as a whole with Rory Best, Chris Henry and Andrew Trimble starting all five games, but from an Irish perspective overall it probably ranks second.

Still, you can’t deny it will be a great St. Patrick’s Day for all Irish people. Even though attention will now switch back to the provincial side of Irish rugby and the hotly anticipated Heineken Cup quarter-finals to come in just three weeks’ time, this week will probably be dedicated to celebrating our first Championship win in five years, and let’s be honest, the rest of this season could be remembered for this moment alone.

So next season Ireland will be the defending Six Nations champions. Nice to say, isn’t it? Obviously England will be out for revenge – they probably still have the best squad on paper and having come second the last two years they will be desperate to finally turn their consistency into trophies. In a World Cup year next season’s Six Nations will be of paramount importance to all six nations as preparations step up considerably.

One thing’s guaranteed: Ireland won’t give it up without a fight.

THE BAD SIDE OF BOD

Brian O’Driscoll bid farewell to the Aviva Stadium in style on Saturday and it was an emotional day for all involved. Sadly I was not there, and nor did I even watch the game live, but by all accounts it sounded like a fantastic day for the Irish legend, and based on how he played, it sounds like we will miss him badly.

And that’s the point I want to make this week. It’s all well and good celebrating BOD’s final game at Irish rugby headquarters, but whenever it comes down to it, you have to realise that Ireland don’t have a succession plan – although there are several contenders to play 13, none of them have sufficient experience at international level due to O’Driscoll’s dominance and it leaves Joe Schmidt caught between a rock and a hard place.

Unless the New Zealander can do the impossible and convince BOD to go for one more year again then he faces a lot of work to do, starting over the summer. With just a year to go until the Rugby World Cup, a successor (and a decent one) needs to be found as soon as possible, and to be honest, with few games to go until said World Cup, there isn’t much time to be mixing and matching and doing a bit of experimentation.

So while BOD may be God as far as Irish rugby is concerned, his absence will be badly felt by both Ireland and Leinster, and if Ireland are to be competitive at the World Cup next year then a new 13 has to be found – and fast.

Two of the options are Ireland stalwarts already – Leinster’s Fergus McFadden and Ulster’s Darren Cave. Although the former has more caps to his name than the latter, Cave is an out-and-out 13 while McFadden’s versatility means he can play across the back three or at outside centre, which makes him more of a bench option than a starter.

As many Ulster fans will tell you, Cave has been overlooked too many times by Eddie O’Sullivan and then his successor Declan Kidney, and he may have run out of time to get onto the Ireland team. However, if he keeps playing the way he is for Ulster then Schmidt will have no choice but to see what Cave can do in the green shirt of Ireland.

On the other hand, McFadden is already established in an Ireland shirt, and having already found favour with Schmidt (having him as coach at Leinster probably helped!) it wouldn’t be overly surprising to see him make the step up from the bench to the starting line-up. However, McFadden himself has said he thinks of himself as a winger, and that in itself may prevent him from starting at outside centre.

Therefore, the bookies’ favourite is Connacht youngster Robbie Henshaw, who is undoubtedly extremely talented and has a bright future ahead of him. A considerable upside to Henshaw is that he will get plenty of time at outside centre at Connacht, especially with Eoin Griffin departing for London Irish over the summer. At such a young age, he could be the next Irish 13 for a long time to come too, especially whenever he is showcasing all the skills required to do so.

But his immediate issue is his considerable lack of experience as he only has three caps to his name. With such a big tournament coming up, is Ireland’s best option to go for an inexperienced player who hasn’t really been tested at international level yet? There’s no doubt with experience, Henshaw will play for Ireland, but right now do we want him starting our biggest games with him at 13?

Arguably that’s the same argument for our own Jared Payne. Although he has proven himself as a very classy operator on the field, he obviously has never played international rugby, and again, while he is older than Henshaw, there’s still a step up from provincial level to international. Payne is also a better full-back than an outside centre, and even though Rob Kearney has the 15 jersey nailed down, it’s probably true in saying that Payne would be wasted at outside centre when he could be so much more effective at 15.

That said, he’s the best option of the four. Since his arrival on the island Payne has been a revelation for Ulster – and don’t forget he was missing for a season! All Ulster fans will know that he deserves to be playing for Ireland, and probably most rugby fans will realise that as well, so he would be the obvious choice for the shirt, but it all depends how Joe Schmidt sees it.

Forget trying to win a trophy, finding a replacement for O’Driscoll may be Schmidt’s toughest test as Ireland head coach.