With doubts remaining over whether Irish captain Brian O'Driscoll will feature in rugby's debut at Croke Park on Sunday, Paul O'Connell is readying himself for the challenge of leading Ireland out against France.
It's not a position he's entirely unfamiliar with, having captained Ireland twice before - once against France - and despite the historic occasion the giant Munster lock says that there "probably isn't much of a difference".
"I chat to the ref anyway because Brian is in the backs, so there probably wouldn't be a whole lot of difference, other than that I'm up here," he joked, referring to O'Driscoll's absence forcing him into the hot seat to face the media.
O'Connell seemed less than enthusiastic about his duties today, but come Sunday and an expectant 82,000 fans in headquarters, he will not be short of inspiration, while motivating his players will not be a problem.
"Playing there now is going to be great. If Brian is out it will be an easy game to captain because the motivation will look after itself.
"We trained there last week, it's an incredible stadium, with incredible facilities. It was great to get out there because the first time you do go out there your jaw really does drop, so we're looking forward to it."
The returning Shane Horgan will replace O'Driscoll in the centre if the captain doesn't make it. Horgan will go in at number 12 and shift Gordon D'Arcy to outside centre. Like the vice-captain, he's up for the challenge but would prefer if the Leinster centre was fit.
"Hopefully Brian will be right. If anyone can get back, in a week, from a hamstring strain it's him," said Horgan today. "I know how much the game means to him and how hard he's working right from the moment he came off the pitch last week.
Horgan, who once played for Meath minors, has not yet tested the Croke Park pitch because of injury, but was there as a Gaelic football player - aged eight.
"I played there when I was very young, when I was eight. My national school got to a Fingal league final there. And then I played in the All-Ireland Final, in the mini sevens they have at half time, I played that one year as well.
"I think the pitch may have changed a little bit since then, but, you know, it was an amazing time.
"I played Gaelic football when I was growing up, so my dream would have always been to have played in Croke Park and experience that, but as the path changed direction a little and I took the rugby route, the only time I was in Croke Park was watching Meath."
Another who took the rugby road was Geordan Murphy, who departed for Leicester in 1997, just around the time Kildare were mounting an assault on the GAA's big guns.
Murphy's inclusion this weekend hinges on whether the captain is fit. If he is not, the Leicester back will slot in on the wing instead of Horgan. When introduced in Cardiff his impact was instant. His up-and-under and offload brought Ireland into the Welsh 22. He then stepped in at outhalf to spray a wonderful pass to D'Arcy and ultimately set up the second try from O'Driscoll.
Horgan's return thwarted his claims for a first 15 place this weekend but he's saying all the right things and remains positive.
"It's tough. The coach has obviously got to pick the team and there is not much I can do about that. I think I only played for about nine minutes and then another four minutes at the end, so I probably wasn't on the field long enough to make an impression," said Murphy, with just a touch of modesty.
