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As the countdown to Paris reaches it’s final week, Ireland have pitched up in Quinta do Lago, Portugal for their annual pre-tournament warm weather training camp.
Yet the unexpected rainfall won’t be Andy Farrell’s biggest frustration, it will be the selection headache keeping him up at night. After an abysmal Autumn and an uninspiring 2025 Six Nations, the Lions head coach needs to find some answers before Tuesday.
With that in mind, here are our five biggest selection areas for Farrell and his coaching staff to mull over.
Out-Half
The ‘culture war’ that plagued last season has not gone away, and arguably could get worse. Sam Prendergast and Jack Crowley’s form has dipped compared to January 2025 while the re-emergence of Harry Byrne adds another layer of complexity to the decision.
Byrne appears to be the pundit’s choice this season, but horses for courses should apply. Sam Prendergast’s tactical kicking can help Ireland negate a power imbalance, while Crowley is the most defensively solid and versatile of the three, especially on a 6/2 bench.
Loosehead Prop
From self-inflicted question marks to an injury-forced one; Ireland’s prop depth chart is starting to feel thin on the ground. Andrew Porter, Paddy McCarthy and Jack Boyle are all sidelined, meaning a fresh face will get the nod in round one.
Munster duo Jeremy Loughman and Michael Milne should be the front runners, given their experience; but Farrell could chuck a grenade again too with Tom O’Toole (normally a tighthead) and Billy Bohan believed to be in contention.
The French love to say ‘no scrum, no win’ so get this call wrong, and Ireland could face a repeat of the set-piece embarrassment delivered by the Boks last time out.
Full-Back
The other area of concern for Ireland is the full-back position, where two sidelined Lions and another still recovering account for most of the caps handed out in recent years.
Hugo Keenan, Mack Hansen and Jamie Osborne could all be ruled out by the time Tuesday’s squad announcement comes, and if they are, then a relative rookie will be asked to direct the backfield against a French attack that could chop a bus in two with their razor-like potency.
Ulster’s Jacob Stockdale, a former star of this championship, should be next man up given his provincial form. But again, Farrell often lean towards familiarity over the best fit; so Ciarán Frawley and Jack Crowley might be deployed, but it would be a risk.
Centre Partnership
An Ireland squad without Bundee Aki or Robbie Henshaw is as unfamiliar feeling. Two old reliables, sidelined for different reasons, but again an absence that asks questions of Ireland’s evolution process. Who will wear the #12 shirt, and will they stick with having a centre on the bench, as Ireland so often do?
Ulster’s Stuart McCloskey is poised to step up as starter beside Garry Ringrose, but after that it gets complex. Like full-back, the versatile options could be next up, be it Jamie Osborne, Ciarán Frawley or Jack Crowley.
Jude Postlethwaite should get rewarded with a test debut this spring, given his form across the last two seasons, but that remains unlikely for now.
Bench Make-up
The final call, one which is not solely an Ireland issue, is how Ireland configure the bench. A decision now as important as the starting fifteen, it’s one Ireland need to nail the execution of.
In the 2024 and 2025 meetings with Les Bleus, Ireland elected for a 6/2 split, with Ryan Baird covering second and back row. You would imagine Cormac Izuchukwu is primed to fill this role so, in Baird’s absence, while Munster phenom Edwin Edogbo may also get the nod for a test debut in the #19 shirt.
Jack Crowley’s aforementioned reliability to cover across the backline would then help him make the matchday squad, meaning a likely call between the two Leinster prospects, Byrne and Prendergast.
Our Predicted 23:
Jacob Stockdale; Tommy O’Brien, Garry Ringrose, Stuart McCloskey, James Lowe; Sam Prendergast, Jamison Gibson-Park; Jeremy Loughman, Dan Sheehan, Tadhg Furlong; Joe McCarthy, James Ryan; Tadhg Beirne, Josh van der Flier, Caelan Doris (capt.)
Ronan Kelleher, Michael Milne, Tom Clarkson, Edwin Edogbo, Cormac Izuchukwu, Jack Conan, Craig Casey, Jack Crowley.
