Ireland's James Ryan: how Joe Schmidt bulked up my 'mind gym'

Ryan says Ireland won’t be taking the Wallabies lightly despite winning their past five Tests over their great rivals.

NO ORDINARY JOE: James Ryan poses for a portrait after an Ireland rugby media conference at the Intercontinental Hotel in Sydney, Australia. Pic: Brendan Moran/Sportsfile.

Amongst the growing list of firsts for Ireland over the past decade, experienced lock James Ryan believes beating Australia down under in 2018 was the moment the rugby powerhouse nation truly believed they could beat anyone.

“We won the Grand Slam that season, but it's probably a different challenge coming down here,” the 29-year-old lock told reporters in Sydney, eight years after playing a key role in the side that came from behind to beat the Wallabies 2-1 on Australian shores.