Jack Conan says he has no intention of handing over the number eight jersey to CJ Stander for next weekend’s clash with Argentina.
The Leinster back row forward got in for a break-away try in Saturday’s nervy 23-20 win over Fiji at the Aviva Stadium in the middle of the three Guinness Series tests.
It’s expected that head coach Joe Schmidt will put the more experienced CJ Stander straight back into the team, but Conan won’t give up without a fight.
The pair actually got a chance to play together against Fiji, when the Munster man came on a second half substitute for captain Rhys Ruddock at flanker so there is a chance that they could line out int he same back row next weekend.
"I think it’s the first time we ever played together, though obviously we have trained together in the last few camps," said the 25-year-old.
"He’s a fantastic athlete, he’s a great bloke, he has a great brain and he’s a great leader for the team. Every chance I get to play with him and learn from him is great for me as a player and helps me grow so no complaints on my behalf.
"When Joe tells you on the Monday or the Tuesday that you’re going to be involved, you’re not thinking that you’re borrowing this jersey from someone for 80 minutes. You’ve got to think that ‘this is my jersey now’ and do your best.
"Great performance against South Africa, not the performance we wanted against Fiji, but a lot of boys put their hands up and had great showings so we’ll recover well and we’ll be back in training on Monday so hopefully it’ll be another great week for us."
Conan got in for this fourth try on the occasion of his fifth cap so he’s setting a prolific pace for a forward and he says when space opened up for him after he picked up a loose ball he only had one thing on his mind.
He explained: "For me when I see a bit of open space I say ‘lovely, I’ll see what I can do’, but after about five metres I was starting to think ‘someone’s going to get me, someone’s going to get me’, so it was nice to get over the whitewash. I was pretty happy with that!"
Conan also had some words of encouragement for his Leinster team mate Joey Carbery, who is set for a spell on the sideline after he suffered a broken arm just after the hour-mark against Fiji.
"He’s a fantastic player and a great bloke. I know he’ll bounce straight back and he’ll never be more determined," he said.
"He has a calm head on his shoulders, he’s only 22-years-old and I’d back Joey in every aspect because I see him in training every day with Leinster and here with Ireland.
"He’s going to be an absolutely fantastic player, he is already, and he’s going to grow into that, either 10 or 15, and the future is so bright for him. I wish in the best in recovery."
