Saturday featured two of the most remarkable results the Six Nations has produced for many a year.
The upshot of that Scottish victory is that three countries can win the 2026 Six Nations next Saturday – and Ireland are very much one of them. Andy Farrell’s men are most definitely back in the chase for glory.
Farrell made five changes from the Twickenham game in order to give some peripheral players the opportunity to demonstrate whether they were serious contenders for next year’s World Cup squad. It was a trio of players from the bench who made the best impression.
Outstanding
After the outstanding showing that Tommy O’Brien made from the bench against England, he must have been extremely disappointed to be completely over-looked for the 23-man squad against Wales. It would be a major surprise if he is not reinstated for Saturday’s clash against a rejuvenated Scotland. Gregor Townend’s side have two very pacey wingers in Darcy Graham and Kyle Steyn, and Ireland will need O’Brien and Robert Baloucoune to counter their threat.
While Ireland’s attack was less than sparkling against Wales, their opponents should take considerable heart from the defensive showing they produced. While Stuart McCloskey enjoyed some success in his efforts to batter his way over the gainline, Garry Ringrose continued his disappointing form from an attacking point of view.
Bundee Aki and Robbie Henshaw are both available to Farrell next weekend and it would be no surprise if he includes at least one of them in his matchday squad. Tom O’Toole has made a remarkable switch from tight to loose-head prop and has put himself firmly in Farrell’s plans for the future.
His contribution in the loose is a considerable asset while his solid scrummaging will have given Farrell a real boost, in what was a previously worrying area for Ireland. On the tight-head side Tadhg Furlong gave one of his best performances for his country in recent years. He scrummaged well and was prominent in the loose.
One of Farrell’s most difficult choices will be who to start in the second-row. Both James Ryan and Tadhg Beirne were excellent against Wales and when Joe McCarthy came off the bench he injected considerable energy into proceedings. One option would be to move Beirne to blind-side flanker but that would mean dropping man-of-the-match Jack Conan to the bench. A nice problem to have but a difficult one nonetheless.
Impressive
It would be a surprise if Josh van der Flier doesn’t start after his impressive display at Twickenham and fine cameo off the bench against Wales. Nick Timoney has shown that he can be relied upon as a substitute for van der Flier in the future, but the Leinsterman still has much to offer as the first-choice open-side. The out-half debate will continue to fascinate Irish rugby followers after an average showing from Jack Crowley against Wales.
Sam Prendergast will still be very much in Farrell’s plans for next year’s World Cup, but after his less than impressive performances in the Six Nations he is unlikely to feature against the Scots. Crowley will need to step up his game on Saturday as he opposes Scotland talisman Finn Russell, who has been in excellent form throughout the tournament.
Despite Ireland’s outstanding record against Scotland in recent years, Townsend will see this game as a real opportunity to not only challenge for this year’s Six Nations title, but to lay down a significant marker for next year’s World Cup.
Ireland and Scotland will face each other in the pool stages in Australia.
Scotland have been so unpredictable this year’s championship it is difficult to call Saturday’s result, but if Ireland can reproduce the form they showed at Twickenham, they ought to be able to withstand the Scottish challenge and at least claim the Triple Crown for the fourth time in the past five years.
