Ireland v England - Teams and Prediction
PREVIEW: The whole controversy surrounding Owen Farrell this week has taken some of the spotlight away from Saturday's big World Cup warm-up match between Ireland and England in Dublin.
Farrell is set to face another disciplinary hearing in the coming days after World Rugby decided to appeal against the decision to overturn his red card for a head-high tackle in a win over Wales at Twickenham last weekend.
With all the uncertainty, England head coach Steve Borthwick left Farrell out of the matchday squad for the Ireland clash.
Saturday will be a big day for Goerge Ford, who takes over the No.10 jersey. If Farrell does miss a few games in the World Cup due to a ban, England will need Ford to be at his best from the start and the clash against the Irish could be a vital start.
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Meanwhile, in the midfield, Manu Tuilagi, a member of the England team that lost the 2019 World Cup Final to South Africa, starts his first game of the warm-up campaign at inside centre.
"He [Ford] has got an incredible tactical brain and he thinks the game, he thinks really clearly through the game and has a fantastic skill set both with his distribution skills and his kicking – and I’m looking forward to seeing that partnership with Ben [Youngs] at No.9 and then the link with Manu at 12," said Borthwick
"It’s great to see Manu back out. I said to you he had a slight tweak, so it was delayed when he played his first game. I’m looking to seeing Manu there. These are players, Ben, George and Manu, who have played a lot of rugby together.
"It was a plan that George was always going to start one of the [four warm-up games] games at No.10," continued Borthwick. "Now it is brilliant to see Manu back on the pitch.
"What I see with Manu right now is someone who had slight disruption to his training just for a couple of weeks which delayed him getting onto the pitch in a match, but what I see is someone who is looking sharp, looking powerful, and he is raring to go.
"I have seen him in training this week and I feel he has taken another step forward in our training and that combination of players, the nine, 10, 12 that is playing, has spent a lot of time together through several years, not just in the international arena but club rugby as well."
Meanwhile, Ireland head coach Andy Farrell believes Saturday's warm-up match is big enough to be a "launch pad" for the World Cup in France.
"No doubt England will be seeing it like that as well which makes them unbelievably dangerous," said Farrell
"At the same time, we have a few weeks until we get to the Romania game [Ireland's opening game of the World Cup] so hopefully we will keep on improving within that time and use that time wisely.
"Winning matters. It matters massively to us, but winning well with a good performance matters even more."
Players to watch
For Ireland: A lot of the spotlight will be on Cian Prendergast. He will make his first Test start after being named at No 8. The Connacht loose forward's previous two caps have come off the bench but the forceful Caelan Doris was instead named among the replacements. In the ongoing absence of suspended captain Johnny Sexton, Leinster teammate Ross Byrne has another chance to impress at flyhalf. He will be partnered by scrumhalf Jamison Gibson-Park. Ireland will have some outstanding ball-runners out wide. One of them is James Lowe, who has the speed and power to torment the toughest of defences. In the midfield, Garry Ringrose will also look to hold onto that No.13 jersey and he will have a bruiser in the form of Bundee Aki on his inside.
For England: With all the uncertainty surrounding Owen Farrell, George Ford gets a chance to impress in the No.10 jersey. If Farrell gets a ban, getting Ford to get some momentum will be vital with the World Cup just three weeks away. Ford will have the experienced Manu Tuilagi next to him at No.12. It will be a combination that will be watched closely. In the pack, Billy Vunipola will bring the needed physicality and strength. However, head coach Steve Borthwick will hope that he gets the match unscathed as he is prone to injuries in big games. With Farrell not in the team, Borthwick will want some of the other squad leaders to stand up, including Maro Itoje. If England are to be successful in Dublin, they will need a standout performance from their star lock.
Prediction
@rugb365com: Ireland by 12 points
Teams:
Ireland: 15 Hugo Keenan, 14 Mack Hansen, 13 Garry Ringrose, 12 Bundee Aki, 11 James Lowe, 10 Ross Byrne, 9 Jamison Gibson-Park. 8 Cian Prendergast, 7 Josh van der Flier, 6 Peter O’Mahony, 5 James Ryan (captain), 4 Tadhg Beirne, 3 Tadhg Furlong, 2 Dan Sheehan, 1 Andrew Porter.
Replacements: 16 Rob Herring, 17 Jeremy Loughman, 18 Finlay Bealham, 19 Joe McCarthy, 20 Caelan Doris, 21 Conor Murray, 22 Jack Crowley, 23 Keith Earls
England: 15 Freddie Steward, 14 Anthony Watson, 13 Joe Marchant, 12 Manu Tuilagi, 11 Elliot Daly, 10 George Ford, 9 Ben Youngs, 8. Billy Vunipola, 7. Ben Earl, 6. Courtney Lawes (captain), 5 David Ribbans, 4 Maro Itoje, 3 Will Stuart, 2 Jamie George, 1. Ellis Genge.
Replacements: 16 Theo Dan, 17 Joe Marler, 18 Kyle Sinckler, 19 Ollie Chessum, 20 Jack Willis, 21 Danny Care, 22 Marcus Smith, 23 Ollie Lawrence.
Date: Saturday, August 19
Venue: Lansdowne Road, Dublin
Expected weather: There will be rain which will clear later with a high of 21C° and a low of 14C°
Kick-off: 17.30 (16.30 GMT)
Referee: Paul Williams (New Zealand)
Assistant Referees: Craig Evans (Wales), Adam Jones (Wales)
TMO: Ben Whitehouse (Wales)
Additional reporting: AFP, @RugbyPass & BBC