Fly-half David Humphreys will lead Ireland out against reigning RBS Six Nations champions France at Lansdowne Road on Sunday to mark his 50th appearance. Captain Brian O'Driscoll will make way for the country's most-capped fly-half and record points-scorer, who has rolled back the years since stepping into the boots of the injured Ronan O'Gara.
O'Gara has since recovered from a foot problem that ruled him out of the opening victory over Scotland, but 31-year-old Humphreys struck a rich vein of form in his absence and deservedly keeps his place in the starting line-up. The Ulsterman contributed 26 points in Ireland's opening 36-6 win over Scotland and was man of the match against Italy and is currently top of the points scorer's table with an impressive haul of 43 in two games.
Manager Eddie O'Sullivan said: "It will be a great honour for him to lead the team out. He's been around for a while and I think everybody realises now we have one of the best Irish fly-halves of all time. We're very lucky to have two of them, but David is certainly the consummate professional and a great all-round footballer. He's had two great performances in the 6 Nations and it would be great if he could go out tomorrow and put in a third."
After back-to-back victories on the road, Ireland can expect a heroes' welcome at Lansdowne Road as O'Sullivan's buoyant team seek to make it nine wins in a row. But Irish confidence is tempered by the memory of their 44-5 mauling in Paris last spring and O'Driscoll, who had scored a memorable hat-trick in the corresponding match in 2000, will be warning the current team of the tough challenge they face.
He said: "It's important to remember what the French are capable of. On their day they can be devastating and beat anyone in the world comprehensively. Granted, we had an off day, but it just shows you cannot have an off day against the French. It's always a difficult challenge against the French."
