Jack Crowley
The Munster man finished this World Cup as Johnny Sexton’s back-up, coming off the bench for him three times, including in the big pool-stage game against South Africa. However, Crowley was an unused replacement in the quarter-final defeat to New Zealand.
Now capped nine times, he made his Ireland debut in the autumn of 2022 and has started just three Tests. 23-year-old Crowley has also only made 35 appearances for Munster, so he is not yet an experienced out-half.
That said, he has grown hugely in the past year and shone as he helped guide Munster to URC glory at the end of last season. An instinctive player with sharp footwork and a Sexton-esque desire to get involved physically, Crowley looks like he could become a complete out-half.
With the master having retired, there’s no doubt that Crowley will have big ambitions of taking over at number 10 and he is the current front-runner.
Ross Byrne
28-year-old Byrne only made one appearance at the World Cup, playing the second half of the win over Tonga as Sexton put his feet up.
The Leinster man has had to be patient at times in his career so far given the presence of such a brilliant player ahead of him, but Byrne will be planning to step up now for province and country.
In fairness, Leinster have always backed Byrne and given him chances to start big games, with 148 appearances worth of experience under his belt now.
Byrne’s prospects with Andy Farrell’s Ireland were dormant until a call-up due to injuries last autumn and he seized his chance by kicking a game-winning penalty against Australia. He then played five times in the Grand Slam campaign, coming off the bench on four occasions, but Crowley has pushed past him in recent months.
Ciarán Frawley
The 24-year-old Leinster man was the other out-half option in Ireland’s World Cup training squad over the summer months, although he can also play in the centre and at fullback.
Frawley impressed the Irish coaches at out-half in the midweek team during last year’s tour of New Zealand and he would have been capped at number 10 last autumn but for injury.
Instead, 25-year-old Frawley had to wait until the World Cup warm-up matches in August to finally win his first cap, playing 40 minutes at out-half against Italy.
While Farrell and co. clearly view him as a strong out-half option, Frawley’s chances to play there at Leinster have been few and far between, with just two starts at number 10 in the last two seasons. Frawley has started this season at fullback and it would be a huge leap to push on at out-half with Ireland if he’s not doing so at Leinster.
Joey Carbery
Now the most experienced Irish out-half available to Farrell, the 37-times capped Munster man is on a mission to get back into the mix at Test level.
Having featured prominently throughout 2022, making Six Nations starts against France and Italy, as well as being at number 10 for the November Test against Fiji, Carbery suddenly found himself on the outside in 2023 to the extent that he was not included in the wider World Cup training squad.
Carbery also lost his place with Munster last season as Crowley took over at out-half, with the Athy man not featuring in their run to URC success. It means that Carbery, who turns 28 next week, is starting afresh this season with a big point to prove.
Having previously been part of a Grand Slam success with Ireland, as well as a series victory in Australia and the first-ever wins over New Zealand, he has had some great experiences in Test rugby. But having previously been viewed as Sexton’s clear successor, he is now chasing others.
Harry Byrne
The 24-year-old has had a couple of injury-hit seasons but it’s not all that long ago that Harry Byrne was part of the Ireland set-up under Farrell, with his older brother Ross being overlooked despite being ahead in the Leinster pecking order.
Farrell and co. viewed Harry Byrne as a player of big potential at out-half and he made his international debut in a summer Test against the US in 2021 before playing 30 minutes in the November Test win over Argentina.
Byrne was in line to start the midweek games on the tour of New Zealand in 2022 when injury struck and he hasn’t featured for Ireland since. Having got himself injury-free towards the end of last season, his challenge now is to beat the competition at Leinster, including from his older brother, and fulfill all that potential Farrell saw.
Jack Carty
The Connacht captain has only been capped once in the Farrell era, playing a couple of minutes off the bench against France in the 2022 Six Nations when Sexton was injured, but had previously won 10 caps under Joe Schmidt, playing in the 2019 World Cup.
31-year-old Carty remains ambitious and would love another shot with Ireland, even if Farrell hasn’t included him in training squads recently.
A creative player with a strong tactical kicking game, Carty has clearly grown as a leader in Connacht in recent seasons and is close to earning his 200th cap for the province, underlining his experience. With out-half JJ Hanrahan, also 31, having joined over the summer, Carty will be looking to remind everyone of his quality in the coming months.
Sam Prendergast
Viewed as a big long-term prospect, Prendergast is still just 20 and will probably be focused on establishing himself at Leinster first.
He shone for the Ireland U20s last season, helping them to a Grand Slam and the World Cup final, so the pedigree is obvious. With the Byrne brothers also vying for minutes at number 10, the ambitious Prendergast might have to show some patience this season.
That said, he is clearly talented and Leinster are excellent at finding game time for young players. Prendergast is mature for his age and it will be intriguing to see if Farrell and co. have a closer look at him in an Ireland squad any time soon.
Billy Burns
The 29-year-old Ulster out-half hasn’t been in the Ireland mix for a few years now, having initially been involved in the early Farrell days.
Burns won seven Ireland caps in 2020 and 2021, starting a Six Nations game against France when Sexton was missing, but he last featured in a summer Test clash with Japan in 2021.
With 24-year-old out-half Jake Flannery aiming to kick on with Ulster this season, Burns will be planning to bring his best form over the course of this campaign as he also tries to catch Farrell’s eye again.