Here we go.
In 87 days, Ireland will either be World Cup winners or reflecting on what might have been.
It says something for the positive, collective mood of the nation that Joe Schmidt’s men are being talked up as world champions. That is what two Six Nations championships and an unbeaten Guinness Series, last November, will do for you.
Ireland play Wales, in Cardiff, on Saturday. 23 players will get the chance to prove their worth to the Kiwi and his coaching staff.
Warren Gatland has already named an experimental XV – a mix of youth and British & Irish Lions experience. Schmidt is likely to go the same way.
What we would like to see is a pack that has the right blend of first-teamers but that tries out support players in key positions. Our proposed backline is more experimental.
Cian Healy is out until late August and even that is not a guarantee. Jack McGrath is the go-to No.1 if Healy is not fit but we need to test Michael Bent against a decent team or risk him getting smoked on a world stage.
Dan Tuohy has fought back well after his injury issues, in 2013 and 2014. He deserves a start and he has performed well with O’Connell in their brief link-ups.
Ireland know their first-choice back row but it is important to give more Test outings to the unit’s deputy – Jordi Murphy. It would be good to see Jack Conan get a debut but a bench spot may suffice.
The out-half call is a tough one but we would like to see Paddy Jackson in there. He ended last season well, with Ulster, and has performed capably in Aviva Stadium Tests. Schmidt will want to see how either Jackson or Madigan copes with a sold-out Millennium. Putting Conor Murray beside either one would be a wise move.
We need to see if Felix Jones can fill in for Rob Kearney when it counts. Cardiff provides the chance. Noel Reid and Darren Cave can reprise their Argentina 2014 role while Dave Kearney and Keith Earls get an early chance to impress.
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