Ireland Tour: Australia may have been considered the pivotal test match in Ireland's summer schedule but Saturday's encounter with Tonga at the Teufaiva stadium in Nuku'alofa is fundamental to the aspirations of fringe players hoping to figure in coach Eddie O'Sullivan's World Cup plans later in the year.
There are only four survivors from the 15 that started in the 45-16 defeat to Australia at the Subiaco Oval in Perth: full back Girvan Dempsey, John Kelly, who switches from left to right wing, Reggie Corrigan and Shane Byrne. Leinster captain Corrigan will lead the side against Tonga.
It is a great honour for the Greystones prop, who did assume captaincy for a brief period in Perth, as he explained following the team's announcement.
"At half-time when Humphs went off, I took over. It was quite short-lived as they (the Irish management) made a change after 15 minutes to get fresh legs on, basically. It was a bit of a chance to get a go at it but I'm looking forward to Saturday."
The format of the tour with a host of front-line players - nine as it transpired - returning home after the Australia game, suggested Corrigan would be a strong contender to lead Ireland in the Islands, a scenario aired by several team-mates.
"It wasn't something I thought about initially. It was more that everyone kept saying it to me and that put the idea into my head. You're going to think about it a little bit no matter. I know that it is a temporary thing. I'll enjoy it for this game."
O'Sullivan has selected his strongest side from the players available, acknowledging that not everyone in the remaining 30 may get a game over the next fortnight. "It's a full test game so we want to win it. We've gone with a pretty strong side given the circumstances and the players available to us. There is obviously a little bit of experimentation in the back row, where we have a lot of options, and a little bit in the front row because we have to get possible combinations together."
The three-quarter line sees Kelly joined by a new midfield pairing of Mike Mullins and Jonathan Bell with Tyrone Howe on the left wing. Ronan O'Gara starts at outhalf, partnered by Peter Stringer's long-time deputy Guy Easterby.
The back five in the pack is a combination of youth, experience and sheer athletic ability. Paul O'Connell and Leo Cullen are named in the second row aware that Donncha O'Callaghan may be given a start there in the final game of the tour, against Samoa.
Simon Easterby, who missed the entire Six Nations, returns at blindside flanker while London Irish openside Kieron Dawson returns for only his second cap in 18 months. Eric Miller gets an opportunity in his preferred role at number eight.
O'Sullivan believes Ireland must monopolise possession and play to the 25-degree heat and hard surface. "If we're going to control the game, we'll be able to set the tempo. Tonga would prefer a quick pace to the match in that heat."
Although there has been no video analysis of Tonga, the minutiae from the Perth game have been pored over. "There has to be less errors and also we need to be more clinical. We could have been more clinical against Australia than we were. A couple of good opportunities went awry.
"We need to be very strong in the tackle here because they are a very physical team. If we're not, we'll struggle and they'll offload in the tackle. That's their game.
"Most of the guys who are playing this weekend have been out of the loop all year in terms of the Six Nations and stuff, either through injury or not being selected. They should be very focused. It's an opportunity for them to throw down a marker for the World Cup. If guys come up short on Saturday, it'll make life more difficult for them in the longer term."
The coach acknowledged last Saturday's shortcomings in the lineout: "We weren't as slick as we could have been and picked some wrong options. We sorted it out eventually."
He then went on to draw upon statistics that illustrated Ireland won more on the Australian throw than they did on Ireland's and that his team had less turnovers than the Aussies. In the context of losing 45-16 it's a questionable positive - if anything, it seems to reinforce the shortcomings that littered the Irish effort.
O'Sullivan, though, preferred to dwell on Australia's good fortune. "Three of the tries they got, they wouldn't bank on getting any Saturday. One was a lucky bounce, one was a penalty try and one was an intercept."
Unfortunately, the record books allow only room for the result, not for mitigating circumstances. Ireland would do well to bear that in mind come Saturday.
Tonga name their team today. Ireland expect to confirm replacements after training today, again at Tupou College.
IRELAND: G Dempsey - age 27, caps 34, points 45 points (9 tries); J Kelly - 29, 10, 15 (3 tries); M Mullins - 32, 14, 15 (3 tries); J Bell - 29, 33, 35 (7 tries); T Howe 32 8 20 (4 tries); R O'Gara - 26, 30, 278 (3 tries, 52 pens, 52 cons, 1 dr gl); G Easterby - 32, 14, 15 (3 tries); J Fitzpatrick - 29, 23, 0; S Byrne - 31, 17, 0; R Corrigan - 32, 21, 0; P O'Connell - 23, 6, 5 (1 try); L Cullen - 25, 11, 0; S Easterby - 27, 19, 20 (4 tries); K Dawson - 28, 18, 5 (1 try); E Miller - 27, 30, 10 (2 tries). Replacements: to be named.
