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Ireland interim boss Simon Easterby expects Sam Prendergast and Jack Crowley to be long-term rivals for the team’s number 10 jersey but insists the former is the “right man” to start against England.
In Easterby’s maiden selection since taking over from head coach Andy Farrell on a temporary basis, 21-year-old Prendergast has been given the nod for Saturday evening’s Guinness Six Nations opener in Dublin.
Munster fly-half Crowley, 25, played every minute of lreland’s championship-winning campaign last year before slipping behind Prendergast during the autumn.
Easterby, who revealed lock Joe McCarthy was ruled out of this weekend’s match after suffering a “nasty” head knock in training on Wednesday, said the decision at fly-half was “tough” and feels the competition will prove beneficial for the team.
“They are going to play a lot of rugby and compete for a long time, I think,” Easterby said of Prendergast and Crowley.
“This decision has gone Sam’s way. We felt like he did really well in November, he got a taste for international rugby.
“He went away and played really well for Leinster in a good period for them, he was a big part of the successes across the December window and into the new year.
“We feel like he’s the right man this weekend to lead the team. He’s a lot of experience around him.
“The way Jack has trained and played coming into the Six Nations means that Sam knows he’s got to keep raising his game and keep getting better.”
Crowley appeared to be the natural successor to the retired Johnny Sexton following the 2023 World Cup.
Yet Prendergast has jumped ahead in the pecking order, having made his Test debut as a replacement in Ireland’s win over Argentina in November before starting the subsequent victories over Fiji and Australia.
Asked if the decision at out-half has been keeping him up at night this week, Easterby, who has former captain Sexton as part of his coaching team, replied: “When you come into camp you have a feel of how players have come in, but also we had a feel from November.
“We felt like we needed to keep evolving as a team, we need to keep pushing on.
“Other teams are going to see what we’re doing and feel like they can try and get ahead of us.
“There were certainly no preconceived ideas. Selection isn’t a perfect science, it’s conversations that you have with players and with other coaches along the way and then over a period of time you start to formulate your plans.
“We were pleased with the way both of them went in November but we also felt, for the team to evolve, those two need to keep evolving and getting better as well.”
Easterby has made two personnel changes to the team which Farrell, who has stepped aside to prepare to lead this summer’s British and Irish Lions tour, selected against the Wallabies.
Centre Garry Ringrose has been recalled in place of Robbie Henshaw, while Ryan Baird comes in at openside flanker for a rare start, with Tadhg Beirne pushing into the second row in McCarthy’s enforced absence.
“It was a rugby-kind of collision,” Easterby said of the incident which caused the withdrawal of McCarthy, who started each of Ireland’s 11 Tests in 2024.
“It was really innocuous in terms of it was just an unfortunate set of circumstances, someone’s head landed on his head and it was a nasty blow.
“It’s a real disappointment for him and for the team, but he’s good now.
“Fortunately there’s no long-standing issue there in terms of any breaks or anything.
“He might have damaged his nose a bit, it might look like mine a little bit now, but other than that he’s good.
“He’ll hopefully be joining up with the squad this weekend, but unfortunately not available this weekend.”
