RWC 15: Bolt from the blue should inspire the boys in green

Bringing in high-profile guests is a feature of World Cup camps, but few could have startled Ireland's 31-man squad more than the world's fastest man, Usain Bolt, when he called into their camp in London the night before the England game.

Following visits from singer Christy Moore and comedian Tommy Tiernan earlier in pre-season, the Jamaican sprinter spent a full hour with the squad in joining them for dinner at the behest of the Irish management.

"I think everyone got a bit of a surprise and he was fantastic," said Irish manager Mick Kearney at the squad's Carton House base yesterday. "He sat down and did a Q&A for the guts of an hour. He stood in for photos with all the lads and then had dinner with them, and I must say he came across as an extraordinarily humble, nice guy.

“For the lads to see someone like Usain Bolt, who has won 11 of the last 12 major sprints in Olympics and World Championships, come in and just be so humble and so giving of his time and mingle with the lads was a really good experience. The feedback was really good, the lads really enjoyed it.”

Motivation

That said, Bolt’s advice would not have been particularly pertinent to rugby. “He didn’t have a lot of advice in relation to rugby because he’s never been to a rugby match in his life,” said Kearney. “One thing that struck me was, the lads asked him what he did to motivate himself. He just said, ‘I relax. I listen to music’.”

“He didn’t have any major snippets I’d be willing to share. He is just a completely relaxed individual and very laid back, but extraordinarily driven to succeed.”

Hooker Rory Best gave a player's perspective on Bolt's visit.

“He is such an iconic figure in the word of sport. There wouldn’t be many people that would be more recognisable,” he said. “The big thing, from our point of view, was just that he says when he goes into championships and he feels good, he knows he’s going to perform. It’s not necessarily about how events leading into it have gone. It is about how he’s feeling himself.

“The other big thing that struck me about him, as a presence, was just how big he is. Paulie went to present him with a shirt. Paulie still claims he had an inch on him, but I’m not convinced.”

Rotation

In stating that all 31 players are fit and available for Ireland's opening game against Canada in the Millennium Stadium on Saturday, including Cian Healy, Kearney also intimated the coaches were of a mind to play all of the squad, presumably with a fair degree of rotation for the second game against Romania in Wembley on Sunday week.

“The team hasn’t been picked yet for Canada, but to bring a 31-man squad and not give them an opportunity in the pool stages wouldn’t be the best thing for the squad. If you look back to 2007 there were a number of players who didn’t play in the pool stages and didn’t play at all. That leads to a certain amount of discord maybe among the group. It is important to use the squad during the group stages but ultimately that is down to the coaches to make that decision.”

Regarding Healy, Kearney said: “Cian had a few dark days across the summer but towards the end of August he made fantastic progress. He’s been in full training for the last two weeks and I’m delighted to report that he is available for selection at the weekend against Canada.”

Maintaining that Healy’s fitness is “a huge boost” for the player and the squad, not least in adding some badly needed ball-carrying ballast, Kearney said: “I think it would be great to see him get some game time at the weekend.”

Conor Murray also had no issues with return-to-play protocols after suffering concussion against England. After four days off the squad re-assembled for an extended barbecue in the Carton House on Sunday with families – despite the rain.

The squad travel to Cardiff tomorrow, and although England are hosting the tournament, the draw has meant that Ireland will bookend their pool itinerary in Cardiff, as well as playing their quarter-final there should they progress.

“We go from Cardiff up to St George’s Park to the Hilton of Wembley and then we’re over to Guildford and then back to Celtic Manor and then to Cardiff again. It’s a nice mix. There are advantages in that Ireland are playing in the Millennium Stadium. We will have played there with the closed roof during the summer and will have an advantage playing Canada there on Saturday under a closed roof,” Kearney said.

“We have a lot of happy memories from Cardiff and we’re very comfortable in and around there. It is a plus and moving around is a plus because it keeps people fresh. Seeing different places and different parts of the UK is a good thing.”