CREDIT WHERE IT’S due.
We didn’t expect Declan Kidney to wake us up in the dead of night with a team selection that made us think twice about cheese before bedtime, but he did.
With New Zealand opting to field no less than Sonny Bill Williams and Conrad Smith in midfield we fully expected to see the old dogs for the hard road, but Keith Earls is in.
The Munster dynamo will play with 12 on his back, but his selection brings to mind Gordon D’Arcy’s early foray into the limelight. A utility back, named at inside centre, it was presumed he would actually play outside O’Driscoll.
For a time, he did, the switching in positions was seamless during most games. It will be intriguing to see if Earls and the captain can dovetail just as well.
Unlike D’Arcy, Earls can lay a long-term claim on O’Driscoll’s shirt. His passing has undergone a marked improvement in the past year as he enjoyed more game-time in the centre for Munster. And in the Six Nations with Ireland, he was a terrific understudy for BOD. All in all, it is refreshing to see some change in the engine room before we find the centre partnership to take us to England in 2015.
There is a strong case that Fergus McFadden is the man to fill that role, but being pitted against the raw and powerful, Julian Savea should do him no harm at all. The biggest surprise (well, the selection most difficult to understand) is Simon Zebo’s inclusion from the start on the wing.
Neither D’Arcy or Andrew Trimble have been included as utility cover in the back-line, so it looks as though Zebo will enjoy the full 80 minutes on the left wing. Just as McFadden is required to meet the power of Savea, Zebo will have his thighs burning to keep up with the mercurial Zac Guildford – or maybe it will be vice versa.
Credit Kidney on his second row selections too, this is the combination the country was crying out for when Paul O’Connell was injured in the spring. Ireland will be missing the three essential components of our pack - O’Connell, Mike Ross and Stephen Ferris – so including eager and hungry talent in the tight encounters can only aid the cause.
Gripe
The one gripe we can pick at is the back row. Peter O’Mahony appeared ready (if ever so slightly unwilling) to be moulded into an open side, but he is included here as a replacement for Ferris. At the best of times, you wouldn’t expect much change out of the Kiwi back row, but even with a rusty Richie McCaw and an in-form Sean O’Brien; the breakdown could prove an area of damage limitation.
As we drifted off to sleep with whispers of ‘big surprises afoot’ we dreamed of a new-look back row with Chris Henry, Mike McCarthy was the second row cover, maybe Conor Murray would be relegated on the basis of form and… well, the back line selection is Kidney at his boldest.
Credit where it’s due, Saturday morning has suddenly become exciting and not just worrying. But why has Kidney changed his tune so suddenly?
