Ireland head coach Andy Farrell has praised Munster and Ireland out-half Jack Crowley ahead of the clash with Italy on Saturday.
Crowley has been named in the starting XV for a number of reasons, one being the absence of Ireland captain Johnny Sexton due to his ban, and the other being his excellent form for Munster during the backend of the United Rugby Championship, which contributed to Munster's huge victory in the competition.
This will be Crowley's fourth cap, and according to Farrell, the young out-half has been 'excellent' during Ireland's pre-season training camp. "He has been excellent, as you would imagine, and let’s be fair, if you were sat in a press conference for any nation at this moment in time, everyone is saying that pre-season is going swimmingly well, but how that transfers into a performance is different. He has been going great," said Farrell.
"I have seen his confidence grow, obviously from what happened with Munster, being able to help navigate his team through those difficult periods at the end and get some success. I have seen his confidence grow."
🗣"He's been excellent."
🗣"I've seen his confidence grow."
Andy Farrell explains that Jack Crowley is a new man from leading Munster to URC victory.
🗣"It's different."@VodafoneIreland #TeamOfUs pic.twitter.com/n614oeJPoz— Off The Ball (@offtheball) August 3, 2023
Farrell also addressed concerns about Sexton's fitness, as the 38-year-old is expected to start for Ireland when the tournament kicks off in September, almost six months after his last start. With a groin injury and Sexton's ban, there is concern that he won't be game-ready before the match against Romania on September 9.
However, Farrell has eased concerns, stating that Sexton has not missed a session for Ireland. "He’s been all systems go, right from the start,” Farrell said. "I mean, we didn’t do much contact at the start anyway, so he was building through that. I think he maybe had two weeks before he was able to do that at the start of pre-season.
"He’s not missed a session, he’s not dropped out of anything. He is back fully kicking, etc. If there was a game two or three weeks ago, he was able to play, no doubt. Look, obviously he is disappointed not to be able to play in these games, but it takes a day or two to get your head around it and plan and keep pushing forward.”
The game between Ireland and Italy will take place at the Aviva Stadium and is scheduled to start at 8pm on Saturday.
