Ireland's Six Nations squad will be announced on Wednesday, and it lands between two hugely exciting and dramatic rounds of Champions Cup action.
Andy Farrell is dealing with a few injury concerns that will change the make-up of his squad for this tournament, especially when you compare it to his last squad announcement for the World Cup.
The front row will have a few changes for sure. David Kilcoyne has been ruled out for the next few months and Rob Herring is set to miss the tournament completely. It's more than likely we'll see Herring’s Ulster team-mate, Tom Stewart, come in there but the prop positions are still up in the air.
Cian Healy may well have a job to do for another tournament, to allow the likes of Jack Boyle more time to develop with Leinster before stepping up to an international role. Boyle is a strong candidate for one of Farrell’s favoured development positions.
Oli Jager was brought home after a long stint in New Zealand with the Canterbury Crusaders. You’d have to think that despite his recent injury against Connacht, he’ll be brought in to camp to push Finlay Bealham and Tadhg Furlong. He certainly wasn’t brought back to the Irish system for no reason.
The second row picks itself with the form of James Ryan, Tadhg Beirne, Iain Henderson and Joe McCarthy in particular.
Whether Beirne is selected primarily as a second row or hybrid back-row is one of the topics of conversation which may affect the selection of other back row players.
Ireland has never struggled to develop options at back-row, and with the arrival of Thomas Ahern as a challenger to the Ryan Baird style of blindside flanker, you’d wonder what role Farrell has in mind for Peter O’Mahony [above] or Beirne.
While Ahern is performing well for Munster in his wide role, when it comes to the Irish system, he will be shut out by Baird who has added another level to his game.
Will Connors, John Hodnett, Ahern, Cian Prendergast and Nick Timoney are all more than worthy of a call-up, but who will join Josh van der Flier, Caelan Doris, Jack Conan and O’Mahony is anyone’s guess.
It’s coming to the end of a term for some centralised contracts, and there may be a changing landscape around some of Farrell’s selections. Will O’Mahony continue as a leader within this squad? His defensive lineout role might be challenged, at least athletically, by Baird who is doing serious damage there with Leinster.
O’Mahony has the experience and leadership qualities to help mould this next era of Irish players, but Farrell has a decision to make on whether now is the time to go with the young guns or, instead, to try and blend youth with experience.
The same can be said at half-back. Will Farrell stick with Conor Murray or is it time for Farrell to give Caolin Blade a proper shot at international rugby? Is he too similar in style to Craig Casey and Jamison Gibson-Park? It might open the door for Nathan Doak to add a different style of scrum-half too.
The out-half selection was nearly affected by what looked to be a serious injury for Ciaran Frawley at the weekend. Thankfully, it's not as bad as first feared, with Frawley hurting his rib in a heavy tackle against Stade Francais. He should take up his position in the squad.
I’d expect Harry Byrne to return from injury to take the third out-half spot and get another go at fulfilling his potential on the international stage.
Sam Prendergast certainly has the mindset and ability to become an Ireland player in the near future, but there’s a duty of care to make sure he fulfils that potential without being thrown into the mix too soon. He’s fresh out of Under-20 rugby and must become conditioned to the higher end of senior rugby before being sent out to brutally tough Test matches.
Conditioning doesn’t always mean fitness and strength; young bodies also have to become accustomed to taking big physical hits on a weekly basis too.
Billy Burns, JJ Hanrahan and Jack Carty [above] would all have a cause for believing that they will be in the conversation, but Byrne is more likely to join Crowley and Frawley in Irish camp.
The centre conversation - similar to the second row one - is much more predictable. Robbie Henshaw, Garry Ringrose, Bundee Aki and Stuart McCloskey are likely to resume as normal. Jamie Osborne is an exciting talent for Ireland, but with a shoulder procedure before Christmas and little known about his return, it should be business as usual in the middle of the field.
Antoine Frisch could provide another dimension for Farrell and would be worthy of a call-up.
Keith Earls’ retirement and injuries to both Mack Hansen and Jimmy O’Brien open up a few spots in the back line, more particularly in the back three positions.
If you’re looking at form, Calvin Nash could be a frontrunner to take one of those spots, with Jordan Larmour in with a fair shout as well.
Jacob Stockdale deserves a mention in that position, although the return of James Lowe last weekend might take an opportunity away from Stockdale in that powerful wing spot. Lowe also offers a left-footed kicking option that Ireland like to use.
With Farrell selecting from an initial squad of 37, compared to the 33-man World Cup squad, there could be room for all three of those back three players, at least until the group is whittled down.
However, one of them would need to be considered as a full-back option too, considering O'Brien’s absence as a potential back-up to Hugo Keenan, which could open the door for Shane Daly [below] to return to the Irish squad.
It’ll be interesting to see Farrell’s approach to a fresh start with his squad. We’ve learned that four-year World Cup cycles are too long and Farrell really doesn't have to go all out with youth right now. He can develop them as much as possible over the next four years.
Some players will develop at their own rate with their clubs while vying for a guaranteed starting position. Others that might make the next World Cup squad aren’t even on the radar yet, so the development of this team doesn’t need to be forced.
However, without shoving anyone out the door, it feels like a good time for some transition within the squad and there might be one or two surprises when the announcement is made on Wednesday.
Watch Munster v Northampton in the Champions Cup on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player from 4.45pm this Saturday, follow our live blog on RTÉ.ie/sport and the RTÉ News app or listen live on RTÉ Radio 1.
