LONG READ Ireland look to Caelan Doris for big fix as former captain chides 'hysterical' fans

Andy Farrell and the IRFU sought to control the narrative, this week, and spare the feelings of some of their senior players. Tight as a drum when they need to be, the union announced, on Monday, that Garry Ringrose and Josh van der Flier were ‘both nursing slight hamstring strains’.

Such a generous dollop of fitness news from inside the camp then braces us for the team news to come. It also pardons Ringrose and van der Flier of headlines or broadcast segments that include the words ‘dropped’ or ‘axed’. In Andy Farrell’s Ireland set-up, no player that has delivered the goods for him, in the past, is cast aside.

A similar situation occurred in February 2024 when word got out, a few days from the team announcement, that captain Peter O’Mahony was ‘nursing a calf injury’. That paved the way for Caelan Doris to lead Ireland for the first time, against Italy. It was the same, one year on, as the union got advance word out that Doris had a knee niggle and would miss a Six Nations game against Scotland (Dan Sheehan would captain Ireland for the first time).

So it transpired, on Thursday, that flagged injury concerns, Ringrose and van der Flier, missed out on the Australia game. Many were surprised to see Mack Hansen return to the Ireland XV for the first time in eight month, and starting at fullback. This will be the Connacht star’s first time wearing No.15 in Test rugby. Anyone tracking the post-match musings of Farrell would have seen this coming.

Farrell was queried, following Ireland’s 41-10 win over Japan, if Jacob Stockdale and Jimmy O’Brien were leading candidates to replace the injured Jamie Osborne. “Mack is making progress,” the Ireland coach replied, “so we’ll see how he is. I don’t know what the full story is, but he’s progressing.” He added that Stockdale ‘loved playing fullback’ and that O’Brien was certainly an option. His immediate pivot to Hansen, though, was as big a tell that Farrell could offer.

Van der Flier missing out on the Wallabies game, after featuring in the loss to New Zealand and sitting out the Japan game, is a big blow to the 2022 World Rugby Player of the Year. This Test window was supposed to be about the Leinster flanker proving to Farrell, and any doubters, that he is still a world-class openside. He made his first British & Irish Lions squad, last summer, and looked decent in warm-up outings, only to miss out on the 7 jersey to England’s Tom Curry. With it came to picking replacements for the Test Series, Farrell opted for Ben Earl, then Jac Morgan. Van der Flier was crushed.

Over the past two decades, Ireland have been able to call on opensides such as Leavy, Sean O’Brien, David Wallace, Shane Jennings, Jordi Murphy and Denis Leamy. Van der Flier is still a class operator but he will be 34 when the World Cup rolls around, in 2027.

Whereas Steve Borthwick is flush with openside options, Farrell has mainly called on van der Flier to wear No.7 (he has started 47 of his 59 Test matches as head coach). Will Connors was the main competition, for a while, before injuries held him back. Dan Leavy was forced to retire aged just 27. Nick Timoney does a fine job for Ulster but his five caps have been spread over five seasons and against not of Test rugby’s behemoths.

Over the past two decades, Ireland have been able to call on opensides such as Leavy, Sean O’Brien, David Wallace, Shane Jennings, Jordi Murphy and Denis Leamy. Van der Flier is still a class operator but he will be 34 when the World Cup rolls around, in 2027. Doris may well revert to No.8 for the majority of his Test outings, next year, but Farrell wants to see his captain at openside against some top sides. Doris has three career starts at openside, with two of them coming for Ireland (both against Italy) and in the Champions Cup for Leinster, against Leicester, in 2023.

Asked about Doris playing the final 30 minutes of the win over Japan in that position, Farrell commented, “Caelan has obviously played there for us a few times and is a good option there. So, yeah, having a look at a few different options that might happen down the track is always important.”

Farrell is well aware he has an ageing squad. 18 of his current player group will be over 30 by the time the next World Cup kicks off, in Australia. Some in Irish rugby circles want a host of prospects called in, but Farrell has never worked like that. While many on these shores fret about sending a rake of players in their mid-30s Down Under, the South Africans seem to be going fine with their ageing-like-a-fine-wine squad. Farrell has been living in Ireland just shy of a decade so should be well used to how much we collectively worry about World Cup campaigns. “Well,” he mused, “it is what is. You’ve got what you’ve got and you plan for what you think you’re going to have. The rest of it is just noise, isn’t it?”

Farrell wants the experienced guard to be on hand while a handful of younger men are drafted in to undergo trial by fire. If they can stand the heat, they stick around. If not, it is back to their province.

Farrell wants the experienced guard to be on hand while a handful of younger men are drafted in to undergo trial by fire. If they can stand the heat, they stick around. If not, it is back to their province. It was notable that Farrell, when praising his namesake, Tom Farrell, told reporters, “Six years ago, when Tom came in, he was a shadow of himself.” Farrell was assistant coach to Joe Schmidt, back then, but made a mental note that the Connacht centre (now with Munster) was not ready.

Tom Farrell ended up forcing himself back into the international picture off the back of a brilliant run of form with Munster. Andy Farrell was asked, on Saturday, if the 32-year-old centre’s performance had forced him to reassess other players that have found themselves, in recent years, on the outside, looking in. Farrell replied, ‘Who would you be talking about?’ and the first name fired back was Gavin Coombes. He nodded at this before saying, “Or Robert Baloucoune or John Hodnett. Obviously you can judge them as much as you want but performance is what matters. Tom has been consistently performing well so he deserves his shot. (I’m) keeping open minded with everyone in Ireland. The pool is small enough anyway so we have to do that.”

‘Irish rugby fans can be hysterical at times’

Peter O’Mahony was an Ireland captain that made his name, and career, in another position but who was sometimes drafted in at openside. His best performance in that role came in 2018 when he was selected there to help neutralise the dual breakdown threats of David Pocock and Michael Hooper.

O’Mahony hung up his boots at the end of last season and, right now, is doing a podcast circuit, reliving old memories and sharing hot takes. There was an interesting exchange O’Mahony had with Conor Murray, his old teammate, and Gavin Andrews on the BBC’s Irish Rugby Social pod, when discussing a growing sense of pessimism around Andy Farrell’s side.

O’Mahony pointed to what he felt was overly negative coverage, and fan reactions, to Ireland losing 26-13 to New Zealand, in Chicago. “It’s funny,” he stated, “the state of mind of an Irish rugby supporter has gone from me starting my career, or say even five or six years before that, to now saying there must be something big wrong with Ireland if we’ve lost to the All Blacks.
“I think it should be a bit of perspective from Irish rugby fans in general,” he added. “Calm down a bit.

“They can be hysterical at times, you know what I mean? Part of that is the media. Ireland are a very good group, so they’ll be fine. Give them a break.”

One wonders how long O’Mahony held such an opinion on these hysterical fans that travel the world over to support Ireland, and shell out €130 for the price of a ticket alone for a home game? If he thought as much when he was Ireland captain, he certainly kept it to himself. With good reason.

Millions upon millions – much of which comes from the fan’s own pockets – have been pumped into building up the resources, staffing and facilities of the national side. This is a game that currently has eight nations that can truly be called elite, with another handful of half-decent sides that can pull off a shock, on their day. In Chicago, world number two New Zealand beat Ireland, the world number three.

Since Joe Schmidt took over Leinster, then Ireland, supporters and the media have been told to expect more from this nation and the players it produces. From having not won a Six Nations Grand Slam in 61 years, Ireland have won three more in the past 16 years. Heading into the 2023 World Cup, Andy Farrell insisted, “There’s no point in turning up for a World Cup if we don’t believe that we can win it.”

Against New Zealand, Ireland fielded a team that was stacked with British & Irish Lions, just off a winning tour to Australia. Their coach and captain, Dan Sheehan, insisted lack of game-time for key players would not be a factor. New Zealand are one of the top teams in world rugby, but nowhere near the peak of their 2004-06 and 2010-2015 sides. They were beatable. Ireland proved as much for the first 60 minutes before completely gassing out. For the second November in a row, it was an opportunity lost.

It was frustrating and annoying. When fans expressed frustration and annoyance, they are told to calm down. Told they are being hysterical by one former legend, as his old teammate giggles away, beside him. The sense of entitlement was jarring.