With Grand Slam and Triple Crown hopes dashed by defeat against Wales in Caerphilly, Ireland no longer shoulder the burden of expectation. Instead, they will hope to preserve an impressive record against England in today's Under-21 international at Templeville Road which sees them pursue a fourth successive victory.
How this talented group resolve the disappointment after the Welsh reverse will reveal the depth of character within the squad. One suspects there will be a backlash in a positive manner, providing they address the lessons of their recent defeat. Even in victory over France, Ireland experienced problems at the scrum, but nothing akin to the devastation they suffered at the hands of the Welsh.
Shunted from pillar to post, they were denied a platform, particularly in the second half, and this ultimately led to their downfall. Terenure College prop John Campbell replaces Simon Best at tight head, a change that, if not coupled with some serious scrumagging practice in the interim, will be nothing more than cosmetic.
Ireland must also look to broaden their attacking options, making better use of Brian O'Driscoll and Geordan Murphy. The introduction of Jeremy Staunton at out-half should facilitate any such intentions, as will the introduction of Cormac Dowling to the replacements bench. His presence along with that of Dungannon flyer Jonathan Davis offer coach Brian McLaughlin genuine options.
Peter Smyth's general accuracy out of touch and Robert Casey's impressive ball-winning capabilities will be critical in establishing a platform up front. The pack harbours plenty of quality, but they need to discover the abrasiveness and focus of the French game. England traditionally offer a physically imposing eight and there is no reason to suspect that today's will differ.
They boast a number of players with first team experience in the league, notably full back Iain Balshaw, scrum-half Peter Richards (London Irish), blind side flanker and captain Alex Sanderson (Sale) and open side Lewis Moody (Leicester).
Ireland: G Murphy (Leicester); D Quinlan (Blackrock), K Hartigan (Garryowen), B O'Driscoll (UCD), T Keating (Blackrock); J Staunton (Garryowen), P Stringer (UCC); M Horan (Shannon), P Smyth (St Mary's), J Campbell (Terenure); M O'Driscoll (UCC), R Casey (Blackrock); P Neville (Old Crescent), L Cullen (Blackrock, capt), R Woods (Dublin University).
England: I Balshaw (Bath); R Thirlby (Saracens), B Johnston (Saracens), M Tindall (Bath), L Best (Richmond); D Walden (Durham University), P Richards (London Irish); D Flatman (Saracens), S Walter (Northampton), J Dawson (Saracens); S Borthwick (Bath), A Brown (Pontypool); A Sanderson (Sale, capt), A Balding (Leicester), L Moody (Leicester).
