Talking points as Ireland wrap up autumn campaign against Australia
Andy Farrell will bid a temporary farewell to his role as Ireland head coach following the match.
Ireland conclude their autumn campaign on Saturday by taking on Joe Schmidt’s Australia in Dublin.
The Aviva Stadium showdown, which is part of Irish rugby’s 150th anniversary celebrations, is packed with subplots.
Here, the PA news agency picks out some of the main talking points.
Farewell Farrell
Andy Farrell will bid a temporary farewell to his role as Ireland head coach at full-time as he takes a sabbatical to lead next year’s British and Irish Lions series against the Wallabies. Defence coach Simon Easterby is poised to take over on an interim basis and will oversee the 2025 Six Nations and a subsequent summer tour. Farrell has repeatedly maintained his imminent departure has not been a distraction this month, while he expects the handover process to be “seamless”. A sizeable chunk of his squad will have aspirations of joining him on the Lions tour.
About Schmidt
Finish with a flourish
November got off to a rocky start for Ireland, with a sobering 23-13 loss to New Zealand followed by a nervy 22-19 win over Argentina. A much-changed side subsequently demolished Fiji 52-17. Having recalled the bulk of his first-choice stars, Farrell wants to sign off with his side’s best performance of the month. Australia remain a team in transition following last year’s dismal World Cup campaign under Eddie Jones. Encouraging victories over England and Wales were tempered by last weekend’s 27-13 loss to Scotland.
Play it again, Sam
History-making Healy
It promises to be a special afternoon for Cian Healy. The veteran prop moved alongside Brian O’Driscoll as Ireland’s joint most-capped player against Argentina a fortnight ago. Having been rested for the Fiji match, he is set to take the record outright this weekend after being named among the replacements. The 37-year-old made his debut against Australia in November 2009 – a 20-20 draw at Croke Park. “Cian is a giant of Irish rugby and we are determined to provide him with a performance that he deserves,” said Farrell.
