Ireland will look to put in a convincing performance in their one-off rugby union test with Fiji on Saturday after two below-par performances against New Zealand and Argentina.
Head coach Andy Farrell has made several changes to the starting XV, as Fiji look to beat the Irish for the first time in their sixth encounter.
The Fijians arrive with pep after beating Wales earlier this month and fancy their chances of claiming an even bigger scalp at the Six Nations champions.
The physically imposing Fijians are yet to beat the Irish in five previous meetings, but they have made giant strides since their last defeat, 35-17 at Lansdowne Road in 2022.
They will also be encouraged that Farrell selected a team with two new picks and unproven but exciting prospect Sam Prendergast at opener.
AFP Sport retains three key points:
– Irish vulnerability –
Fiji scrum-half Frank Lomani did plenty on Wednesday to meet the Irish at just the right time as they are vulnerable after the error-strewn 23-13 defeat to New Zealand and a less than convincing performance in victory 22 -19 against Argentina.
Farrell welcomes such comments and although he denies wanting a “declared victory” after the poor fare served up so far, he hopes Lomani’s remarks will ignite the players.
“You think guys don’t read it, but they do,” Farrell said.
“They might tell you they don’t do it, but they do, 100 percent. It’s great. That’s what you want.
“You want to play against teams who are confident and who think this is an opportunity for them because we have to take it.”
– The Fijian elk –
The Fijians believe they have their best team in many years, building on their run to the Rugby World Cup quarter-finals and having contributed tirelessly to Super Rugby franchise Fijian Drua.
Nevertheless, although they beat Wales, and then a second Fiji team defeated Spain, they were beaten in their first November Test by Scotland.
Farrell anticipates a formidable challenge and disabuses Irish fans’ expectations of an easy exit.
“You look at the Drua, you look at who’s involved in France, who’s involved in the UK, they’re all playing top level rugby and playing really well in that regard, so you’d expect that to transfer over,” Farrell said.
“When you have a good coaching staff putting them together, the consistency and expectations should be where they are.
“All of this leads them to believe in the performance they look forward to putting on here on Saturday.”
– Redemption for Stockdale –
A lot of focus will be on Prendergast and that could be a good fit for Jacob Stockdale as he emerges from the shadows after several years in the wilderness.
The 28-year-old was once the go-to winger during the Joe Schmidt era, scoring a stunning seven tries during the 2018 Six Nations Grand Slam, but things went wrong once Farrell tried him at full-back in an ill-advised experiment.
Four years later, the Ulster star and sports car enthusiast is back in his home province.
Farrell, who last gave him a start against Samoa in a pre-Rugby World Cup match last year, rested James Lowe and gave Stockdale the opportunity to stake his claim permanently.
“There’s something that’s been a game-changer,” Farrell said of Stockdale.
“He obviously had a conversation with himself.
“He’s in good shape, you can tell he’s taking care of himself, you can tell he’s taking care of himself.
“I guess he’s had time to reflect on the time he couldn’t pull on the green jersey and there’s no better time than the present to turn things around.”
ft/tbsp