PRESUMING THAT ALL of Tom Stewart, Tom Farrell, and Nathan Doak make appearances off the bench against Wales tomorrow night, Ireland will have used 33 players in this Six Nations.

That would equal the most Farrell has used in a championship in his time as Ireland boss, having capped 33 players in the 2021 Six Nations.

It should be said that the figure of 33 isn’t much different from the other years.

Farrell used 32 players in the 2022, 2023, and 2024 campaigns, then 31 in last year’s Six Nations.

So even though the current Six Nations hasn’t veered far above the norm, there has still been a fresh feel to Farrell’s selections because there have been different faces getting big chances in the matchday 23.

Injuries to first-choice players like Hugo Keenan, Mack Hansen, Ryan Baird, and Andrew Porter have fed into that, while previous midfield regulars Robbie Henshaw and Bundee Aki have been injured and suspended, respectively, up until now. With a number of other multi-capped players unavailable, Farrell has had to cast the net wider.

Munster lock Edwin Edogbo won his first international cap against Italy, with Ulster scrum-half Doak in line to do the same against Wales.

Tommy O’Brien, Cian Prendergast, Nick Timoney, Michael Milne, Robert Baloucoune, and Cormac Izuchukwu got their Six Nations debuts in the first three games, with Stewart and Tom Farrell to follow in their footsteps tomorrow night.

While Ireland’s selection for this clash with the Welsh still includes most of their available frontliners and offers strong continuity from the win over England last time out, Farrell has also mixed things up a little.

He could have retained Dan Sheehan but the experienced hooker gets a rest, meaning Stewart gets his shot in the 23. Craig Casey is a more tried-and-tested back-up to Jamison Gibson-Park, but Doak is given a chance as the scrum-half cover.

Nick Timoney has earned a start for sure, but Farrell could have continued with Josh van der Flier as his starting openside after he went so well in Twickenham.

Andy Farrell at Ireland's training centre this week. Ben Brady / INPHO Ben Brady / INPHO / INPHO

It feels like a 23 that looks to the medium-term future and should help with the development of the Irish squad for next year’s World Cup, but Farrell obviously feels that this squad is good enough to get the job done against Wales without major drama.

“Honestly, nobody gets capped just for the sake of it; they’ve got to earn it,” said Farrell.

“That’s why I don’t like the word rotation, it’s not. You’ve got to earn it. You don’t just get a freebie at rotating just because that’s what we think needs to happen.

“We do those types of things because people have earned the right to do that, we think, and at the same time, we’re hoping that they’re able to deal with the occasion and the big game that it is for some of them coming in who are new to this type of level, that they’re able to flourish and therefore able to carry on competing.”

The most positive thing for Farrell is that so far, most of the players who have been asked to step up a level in the Six Nations have taken their chance.

The back three is a good example. Baloucoune has shown he can be a force at this level, Jamie Osborne has excelled at fullback, while O’Brien bounced back from the opening night in Paris by playing the house down in Twickenham.

Jacob Stockdale gets a shot to do something similar as he returns on the left wing tomorrow, so Farrell could end up in a place where Baloucoune, Osborne, O’Brien, and Stockdale are pressing for inclusion even when Hansen, Keenan, and James Lowe are fit.

The ideal scenario at hooker is that Rónan Kelleher has a brilliant game tomorrow and Stewart brings his Ulster form into the green jersey as Sheehan watches on.

“Every single player, whether you think they’re rested, injured or for whatever reason they’re watching in the stand, they’ll be jealous,” said Farrell.

“That’s just the nature of the beast. That’s the competitor that’s in them.

“Hugo Keenan was in camp last week for the fallow week for a few days, and he was giving his story of watching. There were a few laughs and jokes, but I was thinking to myself, ‘I bet he was chomping at the bit to get back out there,’ and of course he is.

“That’s how you want it to be, that lads want to come back in. We try and connect everyone that’s on the outside. Paddy McCarthy’s been in, Mack’s been in, just to keep the flame burning.”

Of course, there’s a scenario where the next two weekends go badly for Ireland and Farrell is pining for the previous incumbents to. be fit. But for now, the vibes from Irish camp speak of growing self-belief and excitement.

“This is only three games now, so we’re not saying that anything’s been mastered at all,” said Farrell.

Tom Stewart is set for his Six Nations debut off the bench. Ben Brady / INPHO Ben Brady / INPHO / INPHO

“We’ve started something and we need to make sure that we keep on pushing that forward. The biggest thing that I’ve seen, progression-wise over the three weeks, is we’ve got a bit more presence within the squad.

“That’s what you get when you lose 100-cappers: presence and people who make the room feel right. People are understanding that now and taking the mantle with that, and that helps the competition for places, for sure.”

As for the longer-term future, Farrell will speak with the IRFU after this Six Nations when it’s expected that the union will offer him a contract extension beyond the 2027 World Cup.

As he weighs things up, Farrell will probably think about how the pipeline in Irish rugby is looking. He will want to be sure that there is plenty of talent coming through for him to work with if he continues as Ireland boss.

He has spoken positively of the Ireland U20s recently, stating that they inspired the senior side by beating the England U20s the night before Farrell’s men stormed Twickenham.

But Farrell has been honest about the challenges for Irish rugby in the past. In November 2024, he said that Ireland “can’t pull a rabbit out of a hat and throw people in if they’re not ready.

“We’re not South Africa or England or New Zealand in terms of there being thousands of players out there that you can just throw in and see how it goes,” he added.

He pointed out that Irish rugby’s strength – how good players have to be to get provincial contracts when there are only four teams – can also be its weakness because young players don’t get as many chances to play at an early stage in their careers.

As flagged at that time, players from the talented Ireland U20s side that faced France in the World Championship final in 2023 had, relatively speaking, been struggling to get game time for their provinces.

France has 30 professional clubs, so there is more scope for talented young players to get exposure. And interestingly, Farrell returned to the example of that U20s final when asked whether things have improved in Irish rugby in recent years.

“Injuries force your hand a little bit but at the same time, you’ve got to keep finding a way,” said Farrell yesterday. “Sometimes it’s arse about face for us. Sometimes you’ve got to put players in and give them a shot.

“I suppose there’s a big difference in a stat that I saw and I don’t know the exact stat, but there’s a good few lads over the last few years in France['s senior squad] that have played U20s and we’ve got probably the same, but the difference is those lads in France have about 500 caps in the Top 14 between them. Our lads have 100.

“That says a lot really, that you’re not able to give them as much chance because of the nature of Irish rugby. So we’ve got to keep finding a way to give these lads exposure at the top level to be able to come through.”

The big picture stuff is put to one side now as Farrell hopes his selection for tomorrow can set Ireland up for a shot at the Triple Crown.