Chris Farrell has the potential to do great deeds in the Irish midfield but one suspects he may have to wait until 2018 before getting another chance in the green jersey.
Farrell and Stuart McCloskey had solid outings against Fiji but Joe Schmidt is expected to go with Bundee Aki and Robbie Henshaw to face Argentina. With Joey Carbery out with a suspected arm fracture, it means Schmidt will have to go with someone who can cover the back field off the bench.
Game as they might be, that role may prove a stretch for the Ulstermen and accomplished centres. They will train with the wider squad early this week but may be released for Guinness PRO14 duty this weekend.
Farrell can be satisfied with his first outing for Ireland, though. He was a direct, physical presence in the Irish midfield and was real enforcer when it came to the breakdown. He made one smart shunt that cleared a path for a Dave Kearney try, which was then chalked off for a knock-on.
He left he fray in the final quarter but got a warm reception from the home fans as he was replaced for Robbie Henshaw. Post-match, Joe Schmidt said:
“I thought Chris was very solid. He got a couple of balls when he got the man and ball at the same time; he’s big and aggressive and coped well. He defended well, looked after the ball well, it was a good solid hit out for first Test match.”
Minutes later, in the mixed zone where players are corralled in for interviews, Farrell spoke extremely well about his Ireland hopes and of taking the path less travelled – Ulster to Grenoble to Munster – to make his Test debut. “It was a detour to get here,” he said.
“I had to go to France and back, it was always in my goals to come back and get a chance to play at this level and thankfully that was the case.
“I have that now and hopefully can build on it as one cap is nothing so hopefully I can put in a few more performances.”
“I was very young at the time,” he added, “and [the Grenoble move] was purely to get game time and gain experience and build and grow as a player, then I’d come back home and step up to this level and that was always my view and I was always going to come back.”
Schmidt was in touch with Farrell on a regular basis and the Tyrone native says he was invaluable for reviewing his game and offering up work-ons.
His departure to France’s Top 14 was one of the reasons Stuart McCloskey was fast-tracked into the Ulster midfield and it was interesting to see Schmidt pair the two big men in midfield. “I know Stuart quite well,” Farrell commented. “We never played together at Ulster – we played maybe once at club level.
“It was really difficult out there, it was more difficult than I ever thought it was going to be and it was a really shock to the system.
“We bonded well and had a few nice phases together but we also lost a few balls together. When we came in at half time there were 11 turnovers against us. That is not the standards we drive and that is the kind of thing that changes games, losing balls in key areas. Whenever you can’t put phases together because you can’t look after the ball that is going to hurt you.”
Farrell touched on what the cap meant for himself, his family and his old club, Clogher Valley, before the cameras and dictaphones were switched off.
The amount of reporters that then went up ro congratulate him and shake his hand will go part of the way to explaining how personable the 24-year-old is and how well regarded he is.
Don’t take that amiability for complacency. Farrell is a determined young man and one cap just won’t cut it. He thirsts for more.
