JOHNNY SEXTON WON’T be on the pitch with Ireland tomorrow but he is in Paris this weekend in his role as the leader of Andy Farrell’s squad.
The 36-year-old’s hamstring injury is only expected to be a short-term one, keeping him out for up to 10 days, so Sexton remains with the group as they tackle what like the biggest challenge of the Farrell era so far.
Home wins over England and New Zealand have been high points since Farrell took over after the 2019 World Cup and Ireland are currently on a nine-game unbeaten run, but to win in Paris against this ever-improving France side would be some statement.
Particularly if they can do it without Sexton, who is replaced at number 10 by Joey Carbery – the Munster man featuring on the front page of today’s Midi Olympique rugby newspaper along with France out-half Romain Ntamack and the headline ‘Fight Club.’
“Johnny will have a presence,” said Ireland assistant coach John Fogarty just before their captain’s run at Stade de France, where James Ryan will captain the team tomorrow.
“I’m sure he’ll be helping out what he needs to in the backline. There’s usually a quiet few words and a focus on understanding our game plan, understanding the challenges, and trying to gain a sense of calm before we get on the bus to the stadium.
“That’s sort of the theme we’ve tried to develop through Faz over the last two years, trying to develop that calmness of mind so we can play the game in front of us.
“Without a doubt, you’re away from home, there’s going to be excitement and levels of emotion. They’re going to be there for all to see tomorrow, but the focus is on calmness.”
From Fogarty’s point of view, Carbery “looks very ready” for the task at hand tomorrow in Paris.
As ever, so much of what Carbery and the rest of Ireland’s backs are able to do will be directly related to how the Irish pack goes against a beefy French forwards unit.
“They like to build momentum in their maul and in their scrum, so in a scrum they will certainly be looking for nice space so they can slam in and generate momentum and that’s how they use their weight,” said Fogarty, who is Ireland’s scrum coach.
“It’s a great challenge for us. We’re learning the whole time, that’s the exciting thing. It’s a different challenge away from home as a forward pack. We have prepped really well for it.”
Yesterday’s news about Sexton’s injury swung the favoritism further towards France. Not that outside expectations are something Ireland have spent any time pondering.
However, they do have a sense that they are better prepared for the challenge at Stade de France than the last time they visited in 2020 when they lost 35-27
“We’re not thinking of where we sit in the minds of everybody else,” said Fogarty. “We’re very clear in where we’re sitting at the moment in how we’ve developed our game, how we’re playing the game.
“I’m thinking now for a second… are we underdogs? Are we favourites? It’s something I haven’t thought about and something we don’t think about too much.
“We have played France twice over the last two years and when we came here last time out, we didn’t feel as ready as we do now.
“We feel that we’ve taken the learnings from the games we’ve played in and we’re in a better place.
“Win, lose, or draw, we’re going to take the learnings from this one and we’re going to improve and get better. That’s the mindset for us.”
– First published 11.55, 11 February