Mike McCarthy has backed Jordi Murphy for vital Six Nations role

Jordi Murphy has done it before and he will, no doubt, do it again.

The big question is - will Joe Schmidt back Murphy to do it in Paris, Dublin and London? Following the 2017 Guinness Series, in November, we wrote about how Sean O'Brien was essential to Ireland's hopes of winning the Six Nations. Conor Murray, Johnny Sexton and Tadhg Furlong are all world-class, but a fit O'Brien could be the difference-maker for Ireland. The Leinster flanker is carrying a hip injury and is definitely out of Ireland's championship games against France and Italy and there are no guarantees that he will be back for the run-in. The three men vying to replace O'Brien are all teammates at Leinster - Josh van der Flier, Jordi Murphy and Dan Leavy - and all have decent provincial experience at openside. Former Ireland internationals Mike McCarthy and Tomás O'Leary discussed who would be the best fit on The Hard Yards podcast [from 23:00 below]. McCarthy believes Schmidt could well turn to Murphy, who has the most Test experience of the Leinster trio. "The two likely choices would be van der Flier or Leavy," I said. "But Jordi has come in and done a job for Joe Schmidt before so he could go for him. I'd go for Josh. He's in good form and he's been getting starts for Leinster these last few games. He's my man." McCarthy commented:

"I think Jordi went off the radar a bit after that injury he got in the [Soldier Field] game with the All Blacks. Now he has come back and he has been performing. "He'll certainly have some credits with Joe after that performance in Chicago. I'd expect to see Jordi there but that is the strength in depth that Ireland possess. They have three different guys that each possess qualities that could suit for each particular game."

Murphy, who is Ulster-bound in the summer, may be the No.7 answer lying in plain sight. He has 18 Test caps, World Cup and Six Nations experience and started the 2016 wins over South Africa and New Zealand. While we previously debated the merits of the industrious van der Flier and attack-minded Leavy, Murphy is a reliable mix of both and has the trust of Schmidt. The training sessions in Spain and at Carton House, early next week, should prove the melting pot.