Madigan and Keatley’s versatility rewarded

The race may be on to challenge Jonathan Sexton and Ronan O’Gara for the Ireland No 10 shirt, but versatility is the name of the game for two of the three contenders included yesterday in the Irish Wolfhounds squad for the clash with the English Saxons in Galway on Friday.

Provincial form has been rewarded with the inclusion of Paddy Jackson, Ian Madigan and Ian Keatley, making for an interesting twist to the final selection process.

Madigan and Keatley are well versed with the requirements for different positions — full-back, centre and wing — and Ireland’s assistant coach, Les Kiss, suggested either one or both could be utilised somewhere other than the pivotal No 10 position.

At Ireland’s press conference in Carton House yesterday Kiss pointed out: “The more competitive your squad is, it’s better for the whole team. If you have three or even four players going for the one position it just brings the best out in terms of being competitive.

“The rationale there is we just want to recognise that they have done well.

“Paddy is probably the only one starting in that squad on a regular basis. The other two have shown signs they can do the job. We know what Ian [Madigan] has done when he’s had to stand up to the plate; he has done a good job. And Ian [Keatley] also had to step up to the breach at the weekend for Munster in a huge match and did a very fine job.

“Their flexibility also helps. Paddy we know did well against Fiji. Overall it’s the right mix to have at this stage. How they start and how they finish will be two different things but we’ll be keeping an eye on the whole thing.”

James Coughlan, Munster’s heartbeat, got just reward with his inclusion in the 23-man squad, while up-and-coming back-rower Iain Henderson offers more potential for flexibility. Ireland’s U20 World Cup star has already been capped in the November series and Kiss suggests his rise won’t end there.

“In Ulster, he had to step into the breach once Dan Tuohy had a few injuries and Johann Muller; that stretched their resources a little bit,” said Kiss.

“It’s always a little bit tough when you’ve got to move yourself into the row and push yourself behind the props and make sure these guys are comfortable up front. He’s stepped into that role nicely.

“We’d probably look at him more as a flanker, but I think it’s important we’ve seen him perform at the second row. It’s an opportunity for us there to explore that further and how we mix the team might be a chance for us.”

It has been tough going too for Darren Cave, given the unrivalled competition from established stars Brian O’Driscoll and Gordon D’Arcy, but the Ulster centre is delighted to get another opportunity to impress.

“It’s [competition] all healthy, the players want to be in camp and to have 15 on 15, not knocking lumps out of each other but competitive. That’s healthy,” he said.

“For us preparing for the Wolfhounds this week, we want good opposition in front of us and vice versa for the boys who are now starting to look to next week.”

WOLFHOUNDS squad: L Fitzgerald, R Henshaw, D Cave, D McSharry, A Trimble, P Jackson, I Madigan, I Keatley, I Boss, P Marshall, T Court, D Kilcoyne, M Sherry, D Varley, M Bent, D Fitzpatrick, I Henderson, D Toner, L Stevenson, J Coughlan, K McLaughlin, R Ruddock, T O’Donnell.