Tony Ward: Earls has the edge to fill huge void left by O’Driscoll
Events in Exeter last Saturday were never likely to have any great impact on tomorrow's announcement of the Ireland team to play Wales -- it would have taken a sensational individual performance to sway Declan Kidney.
Like the head coach, I wish there were more Wolfhounds matches. Seeing players out of their provincial comfort zone is immensely informative.
Quite apart from the obvious skill-set required for this level of competition, what Kidney is looking out for is how players adapt to an alien environment, how they cope against a higher standard of opposition and how their temperament stands up on that stage.
Sure, Wolfhounds coaches Eric Elwood and Anthony Foley would have liked to have won at Sandy Park, but in the wider scheme of things the defeat matters not a jot. 'A' international rugby is about player development -- the nursing of the individual rather than the unit.
Even in this ultra-professional age, shadow Test rugby is of immense benefit to players in terms of bridging the gap between playing at club level and becoming an established international.
The Heineken Cup continues to narrow that divide, but the importance of Wolfhounds games cannot be emphasised enough.
For Kidney, it is part of the process of integrating new players into the system leading, in time, to full involvement at the highest level.
As much as we'd like to see an Irish presence on the IRB Sevens circuit, when it comes to utilising scarce resources in the current financial climate, shadow Test rugby is at another, higher, level of importance.
Much like the U-20 series currently in operation, I would like to see a return to an 'A' tournament involving all the Six Nations sides, with matches to be staged on the eve of the main event.
Think back to the days when crowds thronged to Donnybrook for the 'A' game (or 'B' game as it was then known) on the Friday night before the full international. It added to the Dublin atmosphere.
I do not believe there is a Six Nations head coach who would not give his full support to a return to the pre-Test 'A' games of yore.
More to the point, if an individual or individuals deliver the type of performance the head coach craves and, conversely, if standards fall short in the main event, then the system is in place to immediately reward form players.
Back in the mid-70s when shadow Test rugby came into being, you could not be picked for the then 'B' side if you had been capped at full international level.
A different time, I know, but that 'B' team incentive certainly fuelled the representative desire and made for a pre-season goal.
Now things are very different, but 'A' internationals are still hugely beneficial -- they feature a few more experienced players, and playing alongside them helps the younger ones advance towards Test level.
So, what did Kidney learn from Saturday's showdown with the England Saxons?
For starters, just because the Irish provinces are faring well in both the Pro12 and Heineken Cup does not mean the national sides are invincible.
The Saxons were the better team: stronger in the scrum and with a marginally sharper edge, they fully deserved their victory.
From an Irish perspective, it was much more about the individual than the collective.
In general play, prop Brett Wilkinson was particularly conspicuous, as were second-row Dan Tuohy and back-rows John Muldoon and Rhys Ruddock.
The versatile Ruddock is a player of immense potential and while nowhere near as dynamic a No 8 as Jamie Heaslip, he has that go-forward ability that's so important in the modern game. Right now he is more Foley than Victor Costello, whereas Heaslip embodies the best of both.
The task is in identifying Ruddock's most effective position. As of now, it looks like it could well be on the blindside flank.
Beyond that, Eoin O'Malley and Simon Zebo had their moments, with the Munster wing again showing that willingness to give it a crack.
Between Tommy Bowe, Andrew Trimble, Keith Earls and Luke Fitzgerald, Kidney is well covered on the wings, but with Fitzgerald lame and Earls perhaps moving to No 13, Zebo should already be occupying the coach's mind for inclusion in his Six Nations plans.
If you're good enough you're old enough, and for sure Zebo is good enough. Yes, he might have off-loaded inside for a possible first-half try, but only by playing and learning at this level will he fulfil the attacking potential that is clearly there.
But if pushed to pick out one individual from Saturday's match, it would have to be David Kearney.
And, while I accept the back three positions are more inter-changeable than ever before, I see him as a genuine challenger to his older sibling Rob for the full-back slot with Leinster and Ireland.
This time last year, with Rob Kearney injured, we were in a mess at No 15. But now Kidney has, in the two Kearney brothers, substantial propositions at full-back.
The head coach faces tricky decisions at lock, out-half and outside-centre to face the Welsh on Sunday; my preferences would be for Donnacha Ryan, Jonathan Sexton and Earls.
The choice of Sexton and Earls on either side of Gordon D'Arcy will be the most contentious. I know a bit has been made of Sexton and Ronan O'Gara starting at 12 and 10 respectively.
Equally D'Arcy could move out one with Paddy Wallace inside, but that would represent an unnecessary gamble.
I would give Sexton the nod to be the playmaker in chief from the start, with O'Gara there to close the game off if needed -- a role he performs off the bench better than anyone.
The replacement for Brian O'Driscoll is a massive call, with precious little to choose between Fergus McFadden and Earls. I have no issue what way Kidney leans, as McFadden has all the skills needed to meet the task. There is also the obvious advantage of him training and playing with O'Driscoll at Leinster.
Earls still has that innate ability to create space at pace in midfield. On the evidence of the Northampton game, where the improved accuracy in his off-loading was noticeable, I would hand him the great man's shirt.
- Tony Ward
Irish Independent
