Rugby:Eoin Reddan has been given the green light to start Ireland's Six Nations clash with England at Aviva Stadium tomorrow. Reddan was concussed during the opening minute of last Saturday's 19-13 defeat by Wales after being struck in the face by a clearance.
Head coach Declan Kidney today confirmed that the 28-year-old Leinster scrum-half will play after receiving a positive assessment from a neurologist.
Kidney said: “Eoin’s good. He saw a specialist during the week and got the all clear. It was a substantial knock when he got it, but he’s been good ever since. He has had no adverse reaction so he’s good to go.”
Gordon D’Arcy has vowed to “man-up” when he confronts England colossus Matt Banahan. Banahan makes his second Test start at 13 after Mike Tindall was ruled out of the final encounter of England’s Grand Slam tilt with an ankle injury.
At 6’7 and nearly 18 stones Banahan dwarfs Ireland’s centre partnership of D’Arcy and Brian O’Driscoll, who both stand 5’10“ tall. Add inside centre Shontayne Hape, who is 6’2“ and 16 stones, and England have an overwhelming size advantage in a key area of the game.
But D’Arcy, viewed by O’Driscoll as one of the top three defensive centres in the world, has grown accustomed to gazing upwards at his opposite number.
“Everybody’s Matt’s size in world rugby these days, except me by the looks of things!” he said. “Matt’s primarily a winger but he’s come in at centre and has done quite well. I played against him for the Barbarians two years ago. There wasn’t much video analysis done for the Barbarians as you can imagine.
“It was more seat of you pants time, but this week will be a completely different ball game. He’s a big, powerful guy. He’s got a very strong running game. I’ll try to be one step ahead but sometimes you have to rely on your defence and the fact that you’re a good tackler.
“You just have to man up, make the hits and make them count.”
Earlier in the week O’Driscoll also sounded a note of caution over Banahan, describing him as “a big, big man who will take a lot of stopping”. In private, however, the duo’s reverential tone will be replaced by eagerness to begin their duel against such an inexperienced pairing.
Tomorrow O’Driscoll and D’Arcy will equal the 45-Test record for a centre partnership held by Will Carling and Jeremy Guscott, clocking up their 27th Six Nations start together in the process.
Between them they have amassed 167 caps, while Banahan and Hape have made only 10 Test appearances each. A year ago Banahan had never played at centre, even at club level. Though D’Arcy and O’Driscoll have fired too infrequently in attack during this Six Nations, they have been rock solid in defence and will scent blood tomorrow.
“We’ll rely on our cuteness around the field and maybe seeing those little things that a new centre partnership wouldn’t necessarily see,” said D’Arcy. “Brian and I look to exploit it when there’s someone new in the team. You wouldn’t say there any weaknesses individually in that team, but maybe the continuity won’t be there.
“But Banahan got 40 minutes in the last game, so he’s had plenty of game time there. We won’t be expecting any gifts. England have good back line runners. They have Chris Ashton, Ben Foden and Mark Cueto, who are a handful, and two big bruisers in the centres.
“Hape must pull the strings now that Tindall’s out and bring Banahan into the game. I’ve been impressed with England as a backline and 12 is quite a key position. Hape has a good step off both feet, he’s comfortable on the ball and he’s quite a big fella, so he brings that directness.
“He’s playing a little bit like a second five-eighth, alongside Toby Flood. He’s a string puller as well, but coming from a league background he’s not afraid to carry the ball. You can see the league crossover there with Ashton. The two of them seem to work well together.”
