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Who Ireland are likely to replace Robbie Henshaw with


Like most Irish players, Robbie Henshaw has endured heartache at World Cups (Photo by Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)
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Ireland head coach Andy Farrell admits absent prop Cian Healy is in the “forefront” of his thinking as he considers potential World Cup replacements for injured centre Robbie Henshaw.

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Henshaw has been ruled out of Saturday’s clash with Scotland and is expected to be sidelined until at least the semi-final stage of the tournament due to a hamstring issue sustained in training.

The 30-year-old will remain in France for the time being but could be replaced depending on the progress of his rehabilitation.

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Farrell would not necessarily opt for a “like for like” swap and is monitoring the situation of front-row forward Healy.

The veteran Leinster loosehead, whose 36th birthday coincides with Ireland’s Pool B finale against the Scots, suffered a calf issue on the eve of the competition but last week posted videos on social media of him back in training.

“It all depends in regards to if someone else goes down (against Scotland),” said Farrell.

“What does the squad need? What do we need to be able to prepare properly?

“It’s not always a replacement like for like, so Cian is obviously one of those players who’s at the forefront of our minds.”

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TL 1 hour ago
Joe Schmidt bows out on a high - but can the Wallabies escape 'the twilight zone'?

It’s hard to see how any coach could have done much better and that coaches can only shift the dial so much in Australia, we’ve had some of the best in the world and the trajectory has been the same. The win/loss record is obviously an important metric, but it is only one metric, and not necessarily the best to assess a team that is really still in a building phase (2024 was recovery!). You could look at something like average losing margin, and the trajectory there is much better, with the 2025/2026 results close to half the losing margin in 2024 and during Eddie’s reign (roughly 10, compared to closer to 20). Much has been made of the so called merry-go-round at 10 (really sick of that phrase but here I am using it), but losing Noah, Lygnah and Dono between Fiji and SA games in 2025, and Carter then Dono in 2026 had nothing to do with Joe. He consistently backed his first choices and backed youth at 10 when he could. The injuries led to a massive increase in uncertainty around whether to risk players who weren’t ready or back experience but lose the future benefit. In that situation I think we need to permit our coaches a greater degree of experimentation and error. Much has been made of the LSL situation, but what about how Joe’s selections at lock have led to some real depth of capability there, with players that weren’t as conspicuously impressive (e.g. Williams, Canham). Joe has made his mistakes, but he righted the trend that was heading sharply down, and I suspect that as with what he left in Ireland and as with Stuart Lancaster your old mate, the true test of his time will be what happens in the wake.

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