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Published 13:49 6 Jun 2023 BST
Updated 16:05 6 Jun 2023 BST
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Leinster players, from left, Hugo Keenan and Rob Kearney pictured with the Guinness PRO14 trophy in 2020. (Photo by Ramsey Cardy/Sportsfile)[/caption]
"You'd probably prefer to see an out-and-out fullback there as back-up in there and ready to go. "That [player] is probably Jimmy O'Brien so I hope, for his sake, that he gets a good amount of exposure to the position in those warm-up games. Potentially, I think he will travel [to France] and feature in some of those games."The other players in the 42-man Ireland training squad with fullback minutes are Mack Hansen, Robbie Henshaw and Jacob Stockdale but all have proven themselves stronger in their preferred positions across the backline. It is worth noting that Kearney himself was injured in the first training session, for the 2019 World Cup, after Ireland landed in Japan. That led to Jordan Larmour starting in the win over Scotland. Kearney returned for the game against Japan that Ireland lost, setting them on course for a quarter-final exit against the All Blacks. On House of Rugby, ahead of that training squad announcement, a strong case was made for Munster fullback Mike Haley to be included by Andy Farrell, despite never winning a cap under him. "I think you should bring a Mike Haley to France," said Jason Hennessy. "Haley is an out-and-out fullback, and that is no disrespect to Jimmy O'Brien or Mack Hansen. They'd be decent fullbacks but are they out-and-out fullbacks at World Cup level? Probably not. If anything happens to Hugo Keenan, you might be up against it. Whereas you have a guy like Haley that is safe as houses." During the Bloom Festival, JOE joined a World Milk Day panel discussion live from National Dairy Council Garden with Irish rugby stars Rob Kearney and Eimear Considine, and MC Joe Molloy. The discussion - “Be the Best” Ireland No.1 at Rugby, No.1 at producing dairy - covered a host of topics, including how Andy Farrell's men would fare at the World Cup.
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