Sharp Johnny Sexton has got his swagger back, reckons Richie Murphy

Sharp in mind, body and tone of voice, the Ireland management are convinced Johnny Sexton is back in business and primed to face France on Saturday, despite his 12-week layoff. 

Given clearance last week by a French neurosurgeon to return to contact training three months after being stood down after a series of concussions, Ireland’s first-choice fly-half is in line to face his Top 14 contemporaries at the Aviva Stadium and looking focused as he prepares for a first taste of RBS 6 Nations action in 2015.

That’s according to Ireland assistant coach Richie Murphy, who oversees Sexton’s kicking practice in Ireland camp and will resume that role at provincial level when the Dubliner rejoins Leinster from Racing Metro next season.

If Ireland’s ring-rustiness in their initially laboured opening-round victory over Italy in Rome is any guide, then home fans should perhaps not expect a vintage performance from Europe’s best fly-half this weekend.

Yet Murphy has been impressed with every aspect of Sexton’s return to the fray, including his renowned practice-ground crankiness, which the rest of the squad have been reintroduced to at Carton House this week.

“He looks sharp, he looks fit, he looks very lean, so he looks in a really good place,” Murphy said yesterday. “He looks very sharp for a guy who has been out for a while and that comes down to the fact that, although he was out, he was able to train and do a lot of non-contact stuff. He doesn’t look like he’s been away for three months.

“He seems very, very focused as he always does at this time of the year. I haven’t asked him, but he seems to be in a good place.”

As for the 29-year-old’s impact on the squad, Murphy joked: “I suppose there’s someone bitching on the training pitch again! He’s been driving the lads, driving himself. It’s the subtle touches that he has that make him that bit special.

He has massive confidence in his own ability, today we trained and the intensity in the session probably went up a bit from where it was last week. That wasn’t only Johnny, everyone was a bit more focused and probably looking for a bigger challenge in France.”

The lack of contact training has not prevented Sexton from going through his goal-kicking drills on a regular basis over his enforced absence from competitive rugby and Murphy is optimistic the accuracy of his boot will be up to the requirements of Test rugby.

“I don’t think it will (have an effect). He’s obviously done it for a very long time now, he’s been training and he’s kicked very well this week.

“It’s a slight bit different, going in for your first match back in the international arena but it’s a kick like any other kick and he just needs to focus on the process and, if he does that, he’ll be fine.”

Ireland appear to be at an almost full complement heading into their showdown with a French side which got its campaign up and running with a less- than-fluent 15-9 victory over Scotland at Stade de France on Saturday night.

Only hooker Rory Best failed to take a full part in training yesterday as he goes through the return to play protocols required of concussion cases, with the Ulster man unable to participate until Thursday.

A similar inability to train early in the week prompted head coach Joe Schmidt to exclude No.8 Jamie Heaslip from selection consideration last weekend as he finalised his matchday squad for the trip to Rome.

However, Murphy said that did not necessarily mean Best would not be considered for the France game were he to successfully pass the necessary Head Injury Assessment criteria.

“We won’t know more about Rory until probably about Wednesday evening, so I think it’ll just be a case of see where that is and go from there.”

Heaslip, as well as scrum-half Eoin Reddan and wing Dave Kearney, all took a full part in training yesterday as they continue their comebacks from injury, as did back-rower Sean O’Brien, a late withdrawal on Saturday after tweaking a hamstring in the pre-match warm-up at Stadio Olimpico, minutes before he was set to make a first Irish appearance in 15 months.

“Sean trained fully today,” Murphy said, “he took a full part in training today, as did Jamie, Eoin Reddan, Dave Kearney... any of those guys who are carrying knocks.”