Stephen Ferris: Joe Schmidt has got it wrong on Simon Zebo and Tadhg Beirne

Former Ireland flanker Stephen Ferris has hit out at the hardline stance taken by Joe Schmidt and the IRFU which has resulted in both Simon Zebo and Tadhg Beirne being omitted from the coach’s Six Nations squad.

Zebo, despite being in excellent form, was first left out of the panel for the November internationals at the end of 2017 after news broke that he was leaving Munster to take up a contract offer with Racing 92 as of this summer.

Though widely criticised, it is a policy perfectly in line with the union’s attempts to dilute the lure of lucrative offers from France and England and keep the leading Irish players at home under the one umbrella.