While Saturday in Lisbon will be the first Test meeting of Ireland and Portugal, the two sides are already well-versed with each other.
The Irish rugby squad have made Portugal their home away from home under Andy Farrell in the last five years, traveling out to the Algarve twice a year for training camps, before the Six Nations and Autumn Nations Series.
They also spent time in Quinta do Lago before the 2023 Rugby World Cup, and it was here that the squads came together for a joint training session, and an unofficial game.
Even at the time, the rumour was that the Irish players were grateful nobody was keeping score, and as they prepare to face off in Lisbon on Saturday, Paul O'Connell admits they were caught off guard by 'Os Lobos' a couple of years ago.
"I would say on the day they probably beat us in the training session," the Ireland interim head coach said.
"That day we trained, I can’t remember how many players we had, maybe 38 or 40 players. We had some discussions that we didn't want a lot of players on the sidelines, so we ended up playing them in two training blocks.
"We had one team go against one of their teams, and then we had another team go against their other team. Certainly the first team that played against us gave us plenty of it.
"They had an excellent attitude around playing to space, playing to space early, not afraid to make mistakes, not afraid to take risks.
"The players still talk about that training session because we probably didn't expect them to be as good as they were. And then, on the back of that, we really enjoyed watching them at the World Cup together.
"Some of the guys whose names we didn't know, we knew after that training session, and we really enjoyed following them."
The Portuguese side Ireland that trained with that day were no flash in the pan.
Coached by former France international Patrice Lagisquet at the time, they were the plucky underdogs of the 2023 World Cup, defeating Fiji, drawing with Georgia and coming within 20 points of both Australia and Wales.
That tournament put them on the map, and while they remain well down the world ranking – currently 18 in the world – they've had high-profile Tests against South Africa and Scotland in the last year.
Now under the stewardship of former Munster assistant Simon Mannix, they were well-beaten on both of those big Tests, although they did show their attacking threat, scoring 21 points in each game.
"I thought they were excellent at that World Cup and I’ve enjoyed following their progress since. It's great to see them playing the likes of South Africa and doing quite well, playing the likes of Scotland and doing well, certainly scoring tries.
"So when I watch them anyway, I like what I see. I like their attitude to the game. I think a little bit similar to us, they want to play to the space and they want to play to the space as early as they can. I just hope from that World Cup they can kick on and keep developing as a team.
"They've very good backs, nippy backs. I was onto Jerry Flannery, they obviously conceded three tries when they played them with South Africa, so their backs are quite a threat.
"I think the ball will get more air from both sides. We want to play, we want to play with the ball a little bit more than we did against Georgia, but we're happy enough not to play with it as well if it's conditions like it was last week," O’Connell added.
The interim head coach has made six changes to his side following last week’s 34-5 win against Georgia, including a late switch at centre where Connacht’s Hugh Gavin (above) comes in for his debut after Jamie Osborne was drafted in by the Lions.
Connacht wing Shayne Bolton and Munster back row Alex Kendellen are also included from the start for their first caps.
"We saw an opportunity to give guys a go, who can come in and add.
"We’re not giving them a go and hoping that this experience will kick them on. They’re quite good players in their own right and they will add in their own right and the experience will be good for them as players. I don't think it’ll effect the team’s performance."
Among the other changes, Jack Crowley comes in for Sam Prendergast for his second start of 2025, having played as back-up to the Leinster man in the latter stages of 2024 and for the majority of the Six Nations.
"It's a very important position, out-half. I think more and more important in the game than it's ever been," O’Connell added.
"They probably don't touch the ball as much as the nines, but they probably make more decisions than anyone else on the field. And they really decide how we play the game.
"Having two guys that are confident that, that we believe in that, that get to play our way and make mistakes and learn and get it right and learn from that is really important.
"It's just an opportunity for Jack to own the week and run us and get after it. And it's great for us.
"The two of them are quite supportive of each other. They learn a lot from each other, so it's just a brilliant opportunity for us to give more experience to Jack."
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