Andy Farrell looking to unearth 'three, four or five gems' against USA

The eight newbies aside, there are another eight in the 23 clutching eight caps or fewer. The starting XV has just 171 appearances — and 96 starts — between them. A dozen are aged 25 or younger.

Ireland coach Andy Farrell addresses his team ahead of the Summer Series match against Japan at the Aviva Stadium last weekend.

Andy Farrell doesn’t do nuance, but he has rarely been more forthright than yesterday when chucking eight uncapped players into the matchday squad for tomorrow’s season-ender against the USA and then challenging them to impress.

The callow nature of this selection is breathtaking, regardless of the opposition.