Former Ireland captain Brian O’Driscoll has said that it would not have been easy for Rob Kearney to watch Jordan Larmour’s man of the match performance against Italy last weekend.
The prodigious Leinster utility racked up a hat-trick of tries and 245 metres on the ground in a crushing 54-7 win in Chicago.
Kearney was ruled out of this weekend’s game against Argentina with a shoulder injury and Ireland head coach Joe Schmidt admitted at Carton House on Thursday that both players would tussle to start at full-back against New Zealand next weekend should Kearney return, but while O’Driscoll believes that last weekend may have been an uncomfortable viewing experience for his former teammate, he insists that he is still in control of the Ireland number 15 jersey.
“I’m sure it wasn’t easy viewing last weekend for Rob Kearney when a guy that’s in your position runs in a hat-trick,” said O’Driscoll ahead of the Guinness series.
“One of his tries was soft from the Italians he fell off a couple of tackles, the intercept he picked off well but it was an appalling pass. The third try though was pretty special. There are not many players in the world that are capable of that sort of footwork.
“There are no question marks about what Jordan does in attack he can beat players one on one, it’s the rest of his game. He’s 21 it’ll come to him. His fielding game which is very very important in international rugby is something that we associate with Kearney who is one of the best fielding fullbacks in the world.
“His kicking game likewise is superior to Jordan Larmour. So there’s aspects of the game that Kearney is better than Larmour at and vice versa. It depends on what you want, do you want real stability and defensively I think Rob probably just has the edge too I think Jordan just needs to learn positionally or are you thinking all out attack and Kevin Keegan “we’ll score more than them” so I think probably Rob is the safer option for now with an eye on the World Cup being 10 months away but Jordan has all but played himself him as a bench player for me now because he can play 13, wing and fullback, he’s the obvious choice to be in the 23 and he can do something for you if you need to pull a rabbit out of a hat.”
Trimble, who played with Kearney for 10 years with Ireland, predicts that Ireland head coach Joe Schmidt will stick with the former Lions full-back and that he will place a lot more emphasis on the finer details of the position than the more obvious highlight plays.
“He’s closer than ever but it’s still not that close I don’t think,” said Trimble on the latest episode of Baz and Andrew’s House of Rugby.
“He could go a great job against the All Blacks but he might not be able to do a Rob Kearney job. I think it’s still a big step up. You can’t compare playing a second-string Italy side in Chicago to the All Blacks in the Aviva. It’s not the same thing.
“But he’s done everything he can possibly do to climb the ladder and be as good as he possibly can be but still Joe likes Rob Kearney. Joe likes somebody where he knows what he’s going to get.
“He’s going to be good in the air, he’s going to kick the ball well, he’s a guy that can appreciate space in the backfield, he’s going to do basics really, really well, better than anyone in fact, and I think that there’s a lot to be said for that.”
Trimble was not put off by Kearney’s try scoring drought (one try from his last 79 matches) and added that the 32-year-old has faced pressure before concerning his position but that that has not prevented him from holding on to the Ireland no.15 jersey in the past.
“He’s been in this position before where he’s got a bit of pressure,” added Trimble.
“Guys have talked about other young fellas coming through with a bit of x-factor. He’s always stepped up and taken the next opportunity that has come his way. He just performs and we’re so used to him performing.
“I think Joe cares – not that he doesn’t care about try scoring – but he cares an awful lot more about execution under pressure, getting the ball, contesting, making tackles in the backfield, making correct decisions with ball in hand – all those decision that contribute to a big test match performance and that’s the stuff that Rob Kearney does well.
“Jordan Larmour is an incredible athlete, he’s so talented, and I think he’s put himself as close as he can to Kearney but Joe knows what he’s going to get from Kearney at the test match level.”
Dublin, 9th November 2018: Ahead of the Guinness Series kicking off this weekend, former Irish international rugby player Brian O’Driscoll was on hand to preview Ireland’s game against Argentina as a part of Guinness’ #AnswerIrelandsCall campaign. #AnswerIrelandsCall celebrates the camaraderie between rugby fans, by giving them a voice and rallying them to get behind the Irish Rugby team. Throughout the series fans are encouraged to get involved as Guinness is giving away a number of pairs of tickets to each fixture including the sold out Ireland v New Zealand game at the Aviva Stadium. Fans should visit the Guinness Facebook page and leave their message of support using the #AnswerIrelandsCall to be in with a chance to win tickets to the Guinness Series (terms and conditions apply) *.
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