Farrell: 'We expect a fantastic performance at the weekend to kick us off in the right manner'
FULL STEAM AHEAD: Captain Jonathan Sexton, right, and Head Coach Andy Farrell during an Ireland are ready to go full steam ahead in their opening RWC game against Romania on Saturday. Pic:Brendan Moran/Sportsfile
Andy Farrell has selected an Ireland team to go “full steam ahead” when the Six Nations champions get their World Cup campaign underway on Saturday.
The head coach on Thursday named a strong starting XV to face Pool B minnows Romania that marks a return from suspension for captain Johnny Sexton at fly-half and six World Cup debutants including 22-year-old second row Joe McCarthy.
In doing so he also dismissed the notion of “mix and match” Ireland teams as he backed the strength in depth of his 33-man World Cup squad.
McCarthy is one of six World Cup debutants in the Ireland starting line-up alongside Gibson-Park, full-back Hugo Keenan, wing James Lowe, hooker Rob Herring and No.8 Caelan Doris. It will be the lock’s fourth Test cap having made his debut off the bench against Australia last November. Two further caps have followed this summer with a start in the opening warm-up game against Italy and another replacements’ appearance against England on August 19.
“If you can give people game time that's not had game time it would help,” Farrell said on Thursday. “But, at the same time, our mindset at this stage is full steam ahead. Whatever team we put out is going to be strong and we expect a fantastic performance at the weekend to kick us off in the right manner.
"There's no mix and match really now. We've got a squad of 33 that we totally believe in and whatever side we put out is going to be a good side. That side is going to be the one that represents the group. I think no matter what side we pick at this stage, it's going to be one that's threatening and a determined one at that.
“We've got lots of experience and a nice blend of youth within our squad, so when we get down to this stage we've got a group of 33. We've got a pretty good squad so therefore it's always going to be a strong team."
McCarthy is surrounded by experienced forward pack operators, starting alongside James Ryan, with Herring, Andrew Porter and Tadhg Furlong the front row, while behind them the locks will be Tadhg Beirne at openside flanker, Peter O’Mahony on the blindside and Doris at No.8 as World Rugby Player of the Year Josh van der Flier offers back-row back-up off the bench.
Asked about handing McCarthy his starting place, Farrell said: "Well, because he deserves it with the form that he's shown, not just in the games that he's played but also in his preparation over the last 10, 11 weeks.
“He's really progressed his game and he gets an opportunity to start in the first game of the World Cup."
Captain Sexton, 38, will be playing his first game since the Grand Slam-clinching Six Nations victory at home to England on March 18. The veteran fly-half sustained a groin injury towards the end of that match and missed the rest of the season with Leinster, prematurely ending a lengthy provincial career and then picking up a three-match suspension form he game he was unavailable for, having confronted the match officials following Leinster’s Champions Cup final loss to La Rochelle.
"I'm delighted to be back,” Sexton said. “Playing for Ireland is always special, extra special when it comes to World Cups so I'm very, very happy to be back in the team. I'm really looking forward to it now."
Having missed Ireland’s three pre-tournament warm-up Tests due to the suspension, Sexton will end his six-month absence on Saturday and he said: “Getting back fit from the injury was the first challenge and then once I got back from that then being able to reintegrate with the team and getting back to speed.
“When you're a little bit behind at the start, you've got to work harder to stay fit and improve your fitness, so that's what I've tried to do over the last couple of months. How we've trained will help me hopefully, we've trained hard and we've trained very much like you'd expect us to. Hopefully it will pay off on Saturday.
“Hopefully I can go out and play well and have a good performance. I expect that of myself. There are no excuses in that regard. Once I got over the injury came the three games off and once I knew I was there I've just been focused on this game for the last couple of months. Looking forward to it now and finally getting back out on the pitch.”
Sexton and Jamison Gibson-Park anchor a formidable Irish backline with Bundee Aki partnering Garry Ringrose at centre and a back-three of wings Keith Earls and Lowe and full-back Keenan.
The bench will see Jack Crowley get the nod as covering fly-half ahead of Ross Byrne while there is plenty of backline experience also as Conor Murray is named as the back-up number nine and Robbie Henshaw the outside back replacement.
Crowley is another potential World Cup debutant, as are fellow replacements Ronan Kelleher, Jeremy Loughman and Tom O’Toole.
: H Keenan; K Earls, G Ringrose, B Aki, J Lowe; J Sexton – captain, J Gibson-Park; A Porter, R Herring, T Furlong; J McCarthy, J Ryan; T Beirne, P O’Mahony, C Doris
: R Kelleher, J Loughman, T O’Toole, I Henderson, J van der Flier, C Murray, J Crowley, R Henshaw.
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