Ireland make 10 changes for US game

Ireland's mood on the tour of the Americas needed spicing up after the demoralising Buenos Aires defeat and, as was always the intention, a couple of fresh faces have been thrown into the mix for this Saturday's Test against the USA Eagles.

That said, the 10 changes probably stopped short of what was originally intended. For, mindful of the increased need for a good result, half the pack has been retained from the defeat to Argentina.

Hence, almost as eye-catching as the 10 changes and the new caps for the 29-year-old Ebbe Vale scrum-half Guy Easterby and Dungannon winger Tyrone Howe, is the retention of Keith Wood, Malcolm O'Kelly, Rob Henderson and both flankers, Simon Easterby and David Wallace.

A quirky consequence of those wing-forwards being picked again, along with a debut for the elder Easterby and a recall for Paul Wallace, means that Ireland will field two sets of brothers for the first time in three-quarters of a century. The Stephensons, George and Harry, and the Hewitts, Tom and Frank, played four successive games for Ireland that season, culminating in the 14-8 defeat to Scotland on February 28th, 1925.

There could also be a third new cap come kick-off at Singer Family Park on Saturday as the management remain undecided between Geordan Murphy, whose heavily strapped ankle didn't appear to hinder him yesterday, or Dominic Crotty, who was scheduled to arrive here last night.

Unlike Guy Easterby, who wins his first cap after five stints on the bench, Frankie Sheahan is obliged to sit on the bench for a seventh successive Test (to go along with the 15 times he has understudied Wood for Munster this season).

It's mildly surprising that Wood and O'Kelly have been re-selected - although beside providing leadership to a younger, more inexperienced side Wood's presence will add more lustre to the day given his world record four-try salvo against the Eagles in the World Cup - and manager Brian O'Brien conceded that the defeat to the Pumas prompted a change of thought about resting more players.

"There are 10 changes since the last game and I suppose if things went as we expected them to go against Argentina it's possible we would have made more changes. I'd say that was the intention of Warren and Eddie, to give as many guys a go as possible. What was the point in bringing them out unless they got a game?

"It's not belittling caps or anything like that," O'Brien stressed, "because the whole idea was to strengthen the squad and hopefully it will have that desired effect."

Peter McKenna was effectively ruled out of contention with a thigh injury and the management want to observe Murphy and Crotty in training before deciding on the full-back slot. Both John Hayes and Anthony Foley are both responding well to treatment and could yet come back into the reckoning for the final Test of the tour in Toronto on Saturday week.

Significantly or not, the four players rested from the pack are all Munster forwards, who have carried the biggest load of any Irish players this 10-month-long season.

A video of the Argentinean defeat showed that Mick Galwey had not knocked on the ball when laying it back on the Puma line in the pivotal moment of the game with Ireland leading 15-11 nearing the hour mark. That, coupled with Andre Watson's apology to Peter Clohessy after the game for wrongly adjudging the Irish prop offside for the Gonzalo Quesada penalty which put the Pumas two scores ahead at 27-18, did little to assuage the Irish sense of wrong-doing.