Mike Catt preferred to focus on those that would take the field in the Stadio Olimpico this afternoon rather than absent friends. Garry Ringrose became the latest casualty his withdrawal confirmed on Friday morning and while the in-form Leinster centre will be missed, the coaching group didn’t turn it into a keening lament.
One thing that Ireland have already demonstrated in this season’s Six Nations Championship is an ability to absorb an injury profile that in times past might have destabilised them. The message from the coaching group led by Andy Farrell has been as one player steps out, another steps up.
Ireland’s backs’ coach Catt, speaking after the captain’s run, stayed on message. Stuart McCloskey’s late reintroduction to the run-on team comes after he played in Ireland’s first two matches of the campaign.
Catt said: “We do expect your Bundees, your Stus, irrespective of how quiet they might be, might seem, they need know their detail like Garry would. What we expect from the players is for them to know their detail anyway.”
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Although it wasn’t a direct correlation to his previous statement Catt spoke about how starting scrumhalf Craig Casey has improved aspects of his game since being drafted into the Irish squad. “His kicking game has come on hugely, so he’s got a much wider range of kicks. Kicking in the right areas of the pitch as well, which comes down to your game management.
“It’s something we’ve been quite guilty of, playing a lot of the time in and around that halfway area, where we play too much rugby [especially if] you make an error or you’re kicking on slow ball. Craig has really developed that ability to see that space in the backfield and kick into that.
“I think he’s [Casey] learned massively off Jamison in terms of his speed. His speed around the park is exceptional and then his pass accuracy has just gone to another level, purely because he throws however many passes a week. He’s just relentless with it. And he’s a hell of a guy among the boys too, so he thoroughly deserves his shot and it’s up to him whether he takes it or not.”
“He fits in seamlessly now. Whether it’s Mur [Conor Murray], whether it’s Jamison [Gibson- Park], whether it’s Craig, they all understand what it’s about. So, it’s them just putting their hands up and performing on the day. We know they’re capable of doing it, it’s then performing on the day that matters.”
Ross Byrne faces a similar test of his game governance to Casey, earning the chance to run the game from the start, to put Ireland in the right places and to manage the attacking tempo and rhythm. The Leinster pivot was given a “to-do” list and he’s returned with many of the boxes ticked according to Catt.
The Ireland backs’ coach said: “He [Byrne] has gone away, he’s taken his medicine, and he’s fixed it; he’s fixed what we needed him to do, or what we needed him to do to get in the team. I think staying with Leinster, they play some brilliant rugby and Ross has really got his confidence back.
“He’s an exceptionally good speaker, so he controls the room when he speaks, he’s an exceptionally good leader, he understands the game. That authority that Ross gives you, a little like Johnny [Sexton] is something that Jack [Crowley] could learn still, that’s his process he’s going through. It’s making sure that Ross implements that.
“You can’t argue that Ross has played exceptionally well this year and he deserves a shot, and he’s taken it. That’s what we love as a group of coaches. He’s been down, chucked away and back in, and he’s performing and he’s going to make sure he stays there.”
One man’s misfortune is another’s opportunity has been a theme for Ireland’s Six Nations campaign to date. It’s developed resilience while winning, an important attribute for the weeks and months ahead.
