Kearney must be automatic choice

AN hour of Six Nations rugby was enough to convince Irish supporters that Rob Kearney should be an automatic choice when Eddie O’Sullivan hatches his plans for the game against France in Paris next Saturday.

Kearney’s enthusiasm after arriving as a first-half replacement for Gordon D’Arcy was one of the few highlights to emerge from a difficult afternoon at Croke Park.

From the moment he set foot on the pitch as a replacement for the injured D’Arcy and crucially fielded an up and under, to the end of the game, when he and Andrew Trimble blew Italian winger Kaine Robertson into touch to bring the show to an end, Kearney enjoyed a high star rating.