Donal Lenihan: Is Andy Farrell tempted to take another look at burgeoning talent  Prendergast?

The challenge for the Irish head coach is to minimise the pressure on his two key playmakers by reminding Jack Crowley he has nothing to prove to either him or his teammates.

MAIN MAN: Jack Crowley should get the nod to start against the Wallabies on Saturday in Dublin. Pic: Tom Maher Inpho

A shocking weekend weather-wise offered the perfect excuse to cozy up in front of the fire with six high quality test matches to absorb from Friday night’s Paris opener between France and Argentina to England’s final November outing against a Japanese side led by former head honcho Eddie Jones.

Danny Care’s recent expose of the draconian regime presided over by Jones in his time with England, revealing an environment where the head coach ruled not only his players but his management team by fear, added another layer of intrigue to this fixture. Interesting that Jones refused to put himself up for before the media all week. It’s not like Eddie to be camera-shy.