The Irish out-half race took another turn on New Year's Day, after Billy Burns orchestrated a famous Ulster win over Leinster at the RDS.
His kicks in behind the Leinster defence were timed to perfection and executed with supreme accuracy, and allowed Ulster to be uber efficient, making up for their lack of territory and possession.
Is Billy Burns Back In Ireland Contention
Burns had chances with Ireland during the 2021 Six Nations, but failed to make the most of the opportunity with an Irish side in transition.
There have now been renewed calls for him to get another international shot, but ex-Ulster man Stephen Ferris - speaking exclusively with Balls.ie in association with Ladbrokes - pointed out a crucial area in Burns' game that is lacking, and will hamper is chances of an Ireland call-up.
Yeah, there's been a lot of hype, a lot of talk about Prendergast just because he seems to be the next in line at Leinster.
And of course, if you are next in line, you seem to be next in line for Ireland, and Billy Burns had something to say about that at the weekend.
The only thing about Billy Burns is that, and nobody has really touched it, he doesn't kick at goal, you know, rarely kicks for Ulster, maybe one in every four or five games he might knock one over.
But you have John Cooney that takes most of the kicks and you have Nathan Doak that takes the kicks when he's on.
So if you're going to be an international half, you have to be able to put the ball on the kicking tee and knock it over, and Billy Burns hasn't had the opportunities to do that.
That's not his fault, but I think he showed what is the best thing about his game and that's how good he is with his kicking game [out of hand].
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1 January 2024; Ciarán Frawley of Leinster in action against Billy Burns of Ulster during the United Rugby Championship match between Leinster and Ulster at RDS Arena in Dublin. Photo by Ramsey Cardy/Sportsfile
From an Ulster perspective, their recent form has been excellent, with two inter-pro wins and a big victory over Racing 92, following a disastrous run of three losses.
Question marks had been raised over Dan McFarland and his coaching staff, with Ulster in a limb of sorts over the last number of seasons, but Ferris praised their cunning tactics against Leinster.
"The coaches got together, put a strategy together and dinked the ball in behind Leinster on a couple of occasions, kept loads of width.
"Fair play to all the coaching staff, they were able to come up with a plan to negate the line speed of Leinster and get over for a couple of scores."
SEE ALSO: Billy Burns Admits That Lack Of Ireland Opportunities Is His 'Own Fault'
