Neil Treacy is joined by Johne Murphy on this week's RTÉ Rugby podcast, ahead of Ireland's Guinness Six Nations opener against England.
We look at some of the big calls made by Simon Easterby in his team selection, starting with Sam Prendergast who gets the nod to start at out-half.
Joe McCarthy misses out through injury at second row, replaced by Ryan Baird, and Murphy discusses how that could impact Ireland's game (9:30)
We also look at the other big call made on the right wing, as Mack Hansen holds off pressure from Calvin Nash (20:20).
Murphy gives his take on how Ireland are better placed to hit the ground running that they were in their scrappy Autumn Nations Series campaign (29:05) , while we also look at how Easterby's side are likely to continue flirting with a high penalty and card count, as they look play the game right on the edge (32:16).
Listen to the RTÉ Rugby podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.
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Follow a live blog on Ireland v England in the Guinness Six Nations on Saturday from 4.45pm on rte.ie/sport and the RTÉ News app or listen to live commentary on Saturday Sport on RTÉ Radio 1
Watch Scotland v Italy on Saturday from 1.30pm on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player.
