'It's all in front of us': Settled in to camp, Ireland now look forward with relish

The World Cup kicks off on Friday with Andy Farrell's side taking on Romania a day later. 

NEXT STOP...: Johnny Sexton arrives for the Ireland Rugby World Cup 2023 welcome ceremony at Le Grand Théâtre de Tours in France. Picture: Brendan Moran/Sportsfile

THE phony war is over, the pre-season preparations are complete and as Ireland begin their first World Cup match week at Stade de la Chambrerie today, Johnny Sexton is relieved his team-mates have negotiated a summer-long camp almost completely unscathed.

Ireland’s Pool B campaign at France 2023 gets underway this Saturday in Bordeaux against the group’s lowest-ranked nation, world number 19 Romania, with some injury concerns and having been forced to omit veteran front-rower Cian Healy at home following the calf injury that denied the loosehead prop a fourth World Cup finals appearance.

Dan Sheehan appears to be touch and go to feature when head coach Andy Farrell announces his team and bench on Thursday. The first-choice hooker was on Saturday reported by the Irish boss as “flying it” and “well ahead of schedule” in his rehab from the foot injury he sustained against England on August 19 having begun running again but the 24-year-old’s availability to return to training remains a “wait and see” situation.

So too back rower Jack Conan. The 2021 British & Irish Lions Test starter sustained a foot injury two weeks earlier against Italy and has been training with the squad but is being assessed after each session for any adverse reaction. Farrell, though, said loosehead Dave Kilcoyne (hamstring) and hooker Ronan Kelleher (hamstring) were fit again and available.

Having served a three-match suspension during Ireland’s summer series of Tests and recovered from the groin injury he picked up in the Grand Slam win over England on March 18, Sexton, too, is ready to go and delighted to be so close to his fourth World Cup.

“Even the last few weeks, you’re watching the games, you’re trying to get match fitness for the guys that were playing; they’re difficult games sometimes, you’re thinking ’an injury here and I’m gone’,” the Ireland skipper said.

“So they’re difficult games to manoeuvre through and I think there’s a relief suddenly when you get here and you’re ‘right, we’re here now, let’s get on with business and try to get the best out of ourselves’.

“That’s always been the attitude, that’s what we’ve spoken about all the last few days, making sure we give the best version of ourselves.” 

August’s clean sweep of Italy, England and Samoa extended Ireland’s winning run national-record 13 consecutive victories that started with a landmark first Test win over the All Blacks in Dunedin in July 2022 and has continued through that subsequent historic series success in New Zealand, November victories over world champions South Africa, Fiji and Australia and the 2023 Six Nations title and Grand Slam. Ireland have now won 24 of their last 26 Tests but Sexton is wary of overplaying the significance of that impressive portfolio of achievement.

“It gives us a little bit of confidence that you’ve got that body of work that you’ve built well over the last four years but it was all to get us to this moment.

“Those things will never get taken away from us, the wins in New Zealand, the Grand Slam, but it was always with the World Cup in mind. We’re here now and this exactly where we want to be.

“We’ve lost Cian but in terms of getting the rest of the squad here, we’ve done a great job and now it’s all to do.” 

While Healy misses out, Sexton remains one of three Irishmen embarking on their fourth World Cup, a feat shared with fellow centurions Conor Murray and Keith Earls, the trio each having played in the 2011, 2015 and 2019 tournaments.

“I probably learned something at all of them but they’re all different,” Sexton said. “Each one, I learned different things along the way and this will be another different World Cup. It’s probably why it’s hard to get them right, you know, very rarely do you have the same carry over of players’ experiences.

“But I think the advantage of having the coaches involved in the last one and Paulie being there as a player, they know what works but the proof is in the pudding. When we get out and play, that will determine how good our prep has been. When we get the results that will determine how good it’s been.

“So it’s all to do, it’s all in front of us.”