Samoa v Ireland - teams and prediction
PREVIEW: The world’s top-ranked team, Ireland, completes its World Cup warm-up fixtures on Saturday by taking on Samoa in Bayonne.
With coach Andy Farrell due to reveal his final 33-man squad for the tournament on Sunday, Saturday presents some players with one final ‘trial’.
Farrell will cut his current 39-man squad down on Sunday afternoon, with six players set to suffer disappointment.
Only a few spots appear undecided, leaving a handful of peripheral players battling it out
Iain Henderson, who will captain the side on Saturday, admits the situation has increased tension in the camp.
However, he insisted the unfortunate players will be well supported.
“You can’t control stuff in games like injuries, so we’re just focused on putting our best foot forward to show Faz,” Henderson said.
“He knows each of us pretty well at this stage so the final step for the players is to go out and show it in the test match this weekend.”
Henderson has urged the hopefuls to set aside any lingering anxiety about selection and play their way into Farrell’s final squad.
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“Close to half the squad haven’t been in this position before,” said the 31-year-old.
“What the players are focusing on is how they’re going to put their best foot forward for Faz [Farrell] to get a good glimpse of them.
“He knows each one of us pretty intimately at this stage and I feel that the final step that the players can take is to actually go out and show it again in the Test match this weekend.
“I think there is a type of anxiety there but the players are well used to being put in sticky situations, selections for cup finals, selections for tours, selections for Six Nations games.
“Obviously this one carries a slightly different weight but we’re a really tight-knit group, the guys who are feeling probably the worst about it are probably the best supported.”
Players to watch:
For Samoa: New Zealand flyhalf Lima Sopoaga will make his Samoa Test debut. Sopoaga, 32, made his last All Blacks appearance in 2017 and benefits from a World Rugby rule change to play for the Pacific Islanders through family links. The former Highlanders playmaker is one of six players to retain their place from last week’s non-Test win over the Barbarians in Brive. Seilala Mapusua’s side start their World Cup campaign against Chile on September 16 and also play Argentina, Japan and England in Pool D.
For Ireland: Andy Farrell has named a team that shows 12 changes from last weekend. Only right wing Mack Hansen, lock Tadhg Beirne and openside Josh van der Flier have been retained. James Ryan, Peter O’Mahony, Ross Byrne and Garry Ringrose – four other starters from the 29-10 win over England in Dublin on August 19 – are named on the bench. With Hansen the only retained starting back, Ireland’s pre-World Cup trip to France will provide run-on appearances for Jimmy O’Brien at fullback, new centurion Keith Earls on the left wing, and midfielders Robbie Henshaw and Stuart McCloskey behind a halfback partnership of Jack Crowley and Conor Murray.
Head to head
Prediction
@rugby365com: Ireland by 25 points
Teams
Ireland: 15 Jimmy O’Brien, 14 Mack Hansen, 13 Robbie Henshaw, 12 Stuart McCloskey, 11 Keith Earls, 10 Jack Crowley, 9 Conor Murray, 8 Caelan Doris, 7 Josh van der Flier, 6 Ryan Baird, 5 Tadhg Beirne, 4 Iain Henderson (captain), 3 Finlay Bealham, 2 Tom Stewart, 1 Cian Healy.
Replacements: 16 Rob Herring, 17 Jeremy Loughman, 18 Tom O’Toole, 19 James Ryan, 20 Peter O’Mahony, 21 Craig Casey, 22 Ross Byrne, 23 Garry Ringrose.
Samoa: 15 Duncan Paia’aua, 14 Ed Fidow, 13 UJ Seuteni, 12 Tumua Manu, 11 Nigel Ah Wong, 10 Lima Sopoaga, 9 Jonathan Taumateine, 8 Steven Luatua, 7 Fritz Lee, 6 Taleni Seu, 5 Theo McFarland, 4 Chris Vui (co-captain), 3 Paul Alo-Emile, 2 Seilala Lam, 1 James Lay.
Replacements: 16 Sama Malolo, 17 Jordan Lay, 18 Michael Alaalatoa (co-captain), 19 Miracle Fai’ilagi, 20 Jordan Taufua, 21 Ereatara Enari, 22 Christian Leali’ifano, 23 Neria Foma’i.
Date: Saturday, August 26
Venue: Stade Jean-Dauger, Bayonne
Kick-off: 20.45 (19.45 UK & Ireland time; 18.45 GMT; 07.45 Sunday, August 27 WST)
Expected weather: Partly cloudy skies. Twenty percent chance of precipitation. High of 29°C and low of 20°C
Referee: Wayne Barnes (England)
Assistant referees: Andrea Piardi (Italy), Adam Leal (England)
TMO: Ben Blain (Scotland)
* Additional sources: AFP, irishnews.com & irishrugby.ie
