The waiting is over as the Rugby World Cup kicks off in Auckland this morning with New Zealand v Tonga.
Closer to home, Ireland have announced the team to face the USA and the good news is that Tony Buckles is on the bench with Tom Court starting!
The team sees four current Ulster players involved, with Court, Rory Best and Stephen Ferris all starting and Andrew Trimble to come of the bench. Bowe boosts the Ulster contingent with the Ospreys player appearing on the wing.
The selection looks, pretty much like what Kidney wants for his first choice back line, with the exception of Kearney for Murphy, and the big worry is that, even after all the evidence of the last month, Earls is still involved in that lineout!
Pack is also looking pretty good and it’ll be interesting to see how Court gets on, but he’d probably need to score at least four tries to even begin to displace Healy in Kidney’s mind. O’Brien for Jennings and you would have pretty much the best available set of forwards out there in my opinion.
So, unless some of the “Golden Generation” have a stinker, and D’Arcy springs immediately to mind, it looks as though the talking points are going to be Trimble or Earls, Sexton or O’Gara, Flannery or Best and Murray or Reddan. (I’m assuming Kearney and Healy will return once fully fit.)
I just hope whoever wins out on those personal battles does so on current performance and not on some pre-conceived ideas of a couple of years ago!
IRELAND Team & Replacements
15 - Geordan Murphy (Leicester Tigers)
14 - Tommy Bowe (Ospreys) *
13 - Brian O’Driscoll (Leinster) (capt)
12 - Gordon D’Arcy (Leinster)
11 - Keith Earls (Munster) *
10 - Jonathan Sexton (Leinster) *
9 - Conor Murray (Munster) *
1 - Tom Court (Ulster) *
2 - Rory Best (Ulster)
3 - Mike Ross (Leinster) *
4 - Donncha O’Callaghan (Munster)
5 - Paul O’Connell (Munster)
6 - Stephen Ferris (Ulster) *
7 - Shane Jennings (Leinster) *
8 - Jamie Heaslip (Leinster) *
Replacements:
16 - Jerry Flannery (Munster)
17 - Tony Buckley (Sale Sharks)*
18 - Donnacha Ryan (Munster)*
19 - Denis Leamy (Munster)
20 - Eoin Reddan (Leinster)
21 - Ronan O’Gara (Munster)
22 - Andrew Trimble (Ulster)
* Congratulations to the lads indicated on making their first World Cup appearance.
The match will be shown live tomorrow morning in The Erigle Inn, Ormeau Road with a full breakfast menu available. Click here for details.
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One Response to “RWC 2011: Ireland v USA”
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Do Trimble and Bowe play on the same wing ? If so it could explain Earls inclusion in the side . Earls may also be quicker over the first 10 metres than Trimble. Then there is the possiblity that DK recognises that Earls is not a centre and has Trimble on the bench to cover the centres because between Bowe Earls and Trimble Trimble would definitely be the most experienced playing in the centre. Unless he wants to go with two outhalfs !! which might be dangerous in the first match if one or both got injured.
With the exclusion of S O’Brien this week he looks like a certain for next week. But who will make way for him Jennings or Ferris ?
The heart warming aspect is the absence of Cullen from the bench.
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