Ireland's Jack Crowley has come a long way since asking Santa for a France jersey

'I wanted the French kit, the away one, it was just something I remember writing down, France and New Zealand, and wanting the two away kits. And I got neither!'

HO HO HO: Jack Crowley during an Ireland rugby captain's run at Parc des Sports Jean Dauger in Bayonne, France. Pic: Harry Murphy/Sportsfile

Jack Crowley has come a long way since he asked Santa for a France jersey ahead of the 2007 World Cup and had to settle for an Ireland one.

Saturday evening at Stade Jean Dauger he will pull on the Irish number 10 for real, with the intention of taking a step further towards a more intense World Cup dream.