Farrell’s chance to gauge how much Ireland have to do

Kicking Coach Jonathan Sexton and Head Coach Andy Farrell. Pic ©INPHO/Ben Brady

With the 2027 World Cup now so clearly occupying the mind of Andy Farrell, this month’s Nations Championship campaign offers him an ideal opportunity to assess just how much improvement his Ireland squad will have to make before over the next 11 months.

What’s more, Friday night’s visit of Argentina to Dublin presents a welcome jump-off point for the head coach to begin honing his player pool down to the 33 men he will travel with to Australia next autumn.

Felipe Contepomi’s Pumas are potential quarter-final opponents for Ireland in Melbourne, 50 weeks hence, and having bested Farrell’s British & Irish Lions at Aviva Stadium in June 2025 ahead of a series-winning tour over the Wallabies, they will return to the same venue with little to fear as they bid for a first victory over their hosts in 11 years.

The prospect of a maiden win over Ireland on Irish soil is also in Argentina’s sights and though it has been a season of disappointing inconsistency, both in this past summer’s Nations and Rugby Championships, Farrell knows this a proper examination of a playing group he wants to see prove its worthiness to be considered contenders for the Webb Ellis Cup.

That Lions loss 17 months ago featured five Irishmen and 11 Argentines but has not been referenced in the home camp this week. Contepomi suggested the result had little relevance this weekend but Farrell said: "It's certainly referenced in my mind because they're a blood good team.

“And certainly, I'm sure it registered in the players who were involved minds as well because the game tells its own story really because the Lions played some good rugby that day.

“It just goes to show that if you make too many errors against a side that's got so many fantastic athletes, they'll hit you on the break and you'll be under your posts before you know it. There's a lesson in that obviously.” 

At the start of a month which will also see Fiji, now under Jake White’s leadership, and then back-to-back world champions South Africa return to the Aviva on successive Saturdays ahead of a finals weekend at Twickenham, the Ireland head coach described Ireland’s opening encounter as a high-level Test match, with Argentina boosted by the addition of former Wales and France defence coach Shaun Edwards.

"This is top of the bus. It is. They're always unbelievably hard to beat. On any given day, they can beat anyone in the world. They've proven that time and again so I think Felipe, I've got a lot of time for him, I think he's doing a fantastic job and the coaching staff. Obviously they'll get a bounce from Shaun coming in as well.

“A few players coming back into the squad because they were rested over the season so they've grown a little bit of depth and competition there as well so this is top-drawer side coming on Friday night.”

Edwards has only been in Pumas camp a week but Farrell expects his former Wigan Rugby League team-mate to have made an immediate impact.

"He'll certainly bring a bit of steel. I don't know how he'll get on with the lingo, but he certainly managed that very well in France, very quickly. You saw the bounce that he got there.

“It's the same as Jake going into Fiji. The Fiji win in Japan a couple of weeks ago with half a squad, you saw the reaction - that's what good coaches do.

"I've no doubt Shaun will make sure that he simplifies things early on so that they stand for something on Friday night.

"I suppose they won't quite know as players how he works and that puts a little bit of jeopardy in the back of their minds. They want to impress him and all of that. He's that type of character anyway."

The Ireland boss suggested his own players may be experiencing doubts in their own minds on Wednesday when he said he did not feel they were convinced they could make history and lift the Webb Ellis Cup next year, and added the next 11 months were “about getting to the crescendo of getting onto the plane with rock-solid belief”.

A World Cup-style format to this November will certainly help focus the minds with four Tests on successive weekends part of the learning curve for this Ireland squad.

“We know that this is going to be an unbelievably tough start to an international season but so is the week after and so is the week and so is the week after that. So, it's something that we're mindful of because that's the way of the world.

“In the Six Nations now with the one fallow week (rather than two previously), that's even more taxing but that gets everyone ready really for what's coming in 12 months with no break in the World Cup and right the way through. That's a bit different for everyone so it's way it is and we've got to be better at becoming more consistent week in, week out in big games when it really matters.” Farrell sends out a strong side to face Argentina, albeit with some unfamiliar faces to a regular starting line-up, with Craig Casey starting ahead of Jamison Gibson-Park at scrum-half, and Nick Timoney rather than Josh van der Flier at openside flanker.

There are first appearances in a year for fit-again trio Mack Hansen, on the left wing, blindside flanker Ryan Baird and loosehead prop Andrew Porter while Sean Jansen makes his home debut at No.8 in his third appearance and in the absence of more experienced duo Caelan Doris and Jack Conan.

They in particular must grasp their opportunities but in truth, with just nine competitive Tests between now and next summer’s World Cup preparations, all 23 of each of those matchday squads have something to prove and they must hit the ground running on Friday night.

IRELAND: Hugo Keenan (Leinster); Robert Baloucoune (Ulster), Robbie Henshaw (Leinster), Stuart McCloskey (Ulster), Mack Hansen (Connacht); Sam Prendergast (Leinster), Craig Casey (Munster); Andrew Porter (Leinster), Dan Sheehan (Leinster) - captain, Tadhg Furlong (Leinster); Joe McCarthy (Leinster), Tadhg Beirne (Munster); Ryan Baird (Leinster), Nick Timoney (Ulster), Sean Jansen (Connacht).

Replacements: Ronan Kelleher (Leinster), Tom O’Toole (Ulster), Sam Illo (Connacht), James Ryan (Leinster), Josh van der Flier (Leinster), Jamison Gibson-Park (Leinster), Ciaran Frawley (Connacht), Bundee Aki (Connacht).

ARGENTINA: Juan Cruz Mallía (Toulouse); Bautista Delguy (Clermont), Justo Piccardo (Montpellier), Santiago Chocobares (Toulouse), Mateo Carreras (Bayonne); Tomás Albornoz (Toulon), Gonzalo Garcia (Pau); Boris Wenger (Harlequins), Julián Montoya (Pau) - captain, Francisco Moreno (Newcastle); Guido Petti (Harlequins), Pedro Rubiolo (Bristol Bears); Juan Martín González (Saracens), Marcos Kremer (Clermont), Pablo Matera (Honda Heat).

Replacements: Leonel Oviedo (Western Force), Mayco Vivas (Oyonnax), Joel Sclavi (Leicester Tigers), Efrain Elias (Toulouse), Juan Martin Scelzo (Stade Francais), Simón Benítez Cruz (Newcastle), Gerónimo Prisciantelli (Racing), Lucio Cinti (Saracens).

Referee: Luke Pearce (England).