The near annual guessing game that is the make-up of an Irish tour squad will be concluded this morning when the Irish management announces the 28 players who have been chosen for the four-match, four-week tour of Australia.
While essentially a build-up to the World Cup, the composition and itinerary of the tour allows for a certain experimentation. And as the World Cup squad will consist of 30 players, then presumably a few players overlooked for this tour can still force their way back into the squad via the interprovincials in August. Thus, some of the first-rank players from this season's International Championship could be rested.
The unusually restricted number of matches limits the scope for giving each member of the squad a runout during the tour, although this in turn enables the management to bring along young players who might otherwise not have made it. Thus, there should be a few eye-catching inclusions.
After all, it was the 1994 tour to Australia which unearthed Jeremy Davidson, Jonathan Bell, Keith Wood and Conor O'Shea, then 19, 20, 22 and 23 respectively.
The criteria for these selections is that the players concerned would be exceptionally talented, if a little raw, as opposed to a gradually developing player. In other words, a Jeremy Staunton-type over a Ronan O'Gara-type. This in turn, though, has to be balanced with the need to send out a strong team to Argentina in July for the Under-21 World Cup finals and what will be, as Delboy might say, the creme de la menthe.
There might also be a few tips in the management's recent choice of games: West Hartlepool v Harlequins, Wasps v London Scottish and, last Friday, the Leinster Cup tie between Blackrock and Lansdowne.
Presuming there will be a 15-13 breakdown between forwards and backs, then the choice of four props could spring a surprise or two. Marcus Horan is one of the select crop of young players pushing hard, while Jimmy Screene's club form, Ireland A form over three games, and improved fitness levels make him a contender. If it is to be the more established quartet of Paul Wallace, Peter Clohessy, Justin Fitzpatrick and Reggie Corrigan, then to a degree this would be down to reputation. Conceivably Wallace could be rested after his declining form, too much rugby and groin operation, as might Corrigan, although the management may feel a need to look at him.
Keith Wood and Ross Nesdale will presumably be the hookers, and Davidson, Paddy Johns and Malcolm O'Kelly will be joined by a fourth lock. Here another under-21 star of the future, Blackrock's Bobby Casey, looks a more likely option than Mick Galwey, although Gabriel Fulcher's end-of-season form may earn him the nod.
This leaves five back-rowers, Dion O'Cuinneagain, Victor Costello and Trevor Brennan carrying on from the Italian game along with, perhaps, Andy Ward and David Wallace, following the latter's typically late, if somewhat irrelevant surge of form in the Italian A game and the AIL (now light years away from international rugby).
A personal favourite would be for Kieron Dawson, arguably the most natural openside for Ireland's more expansive game, to be chosen as his season in just starting and there will be few more opportunities to look at him, thereby possibly affording the over-worked Ward a rest.
One would have thought Brian O'Meara has elevated himself into the frame, most probably with Ciaran Scally, although Tom Tierney and Guy Easterby must be pushing close. Staunton may accompany David Humphreys and Eric Elwood for the ride.
If likely lad Brian O'Driscoll and Shane Horgan (one of the few A successes) make the flight, this could mean one of the established trio of centres missing out, in which case Rob Henderson could be very unlucky. Matt Mostyn, reared in Oz, could be a candidate.
This leaves just four outside backs, Conor O'Shea, Girvan Dempsey and Justin Bishop being joined, maybe, by the recuperated James Topping, all of which, sadly, would leave no room for the gifted Geordan Murphy, nor for the out-ofsorts Dennis Hickie or the out-of-favour Niall Woods.
But none of this takes into account the aforementioned springer or two - like, say, the Harlequins' finisher and first generation Irishman Darren O'Leary.
All will be revealed.
Possible Squad: Props (4): Clohessy, Fitzpatrick, Wallace and Screene; hookers (2): Wood and Nesdale; locks (4): Johns, Davidson, O'Kelly and Fulcher; back-rows (5): O'Cuinneagain, Costello, Brennan, Wallace and Dawson; scrum- halves (2): O'Meara and Scally; out-halves (3): Humphreys, Elwood and Staunton; centres (4): Maggs, Bell, Horgan and O'Driscoll; wings (3): Dempsey, Bishop and Topping; full-back (1): O'Shea.
