For Ireland, this year's Six Nations is a step into the unknown, as they prepare for life without Johnny Sexton at out-half.
The ex-Leinster man won 118 caps for his country over a decorated near-15-year international career. Since the retirement of Ronan O'Gara in 2013, Sexton was essentially an ever-present for Ireland, and Andy Farrell's side are preparing for their first Six Nations without the 38-year-old in over a decade.
Given the amount of dependence on Sexton in Ireland's game plan, the task set to his prospective replacements is an enormous one.
O'Gara, the last man to truly grapple with Sexton for the out-half spot, spoke to Balls.ie and the Irish media on Tuesday afternoon to launch Guinness' Six Nations campaign and said that he saw no reason for leading candidate Jack Crowley and his competitors to fear the Ireland ten jersey.
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Ireland: Ronan O'Gara bigs up Jack Crowley ahead of Six Nations
Guinness With Ronan O'Gara 25/1/2024. Mandatory Credit ©INPHO/Laszlo Geczo
Ronan O'Gara spoke to Balls.ie the Irish media on Tuesday as part of his association with Guinness, the title sponsors of this year's Six Nations Championship. A promotional video released by Guinness in the build-up to the championship shows O'Gara delivering a rousing speech to Irish fans to get riled up for the championship.
It riffs on his instantly iconic "L'opportunité" speech from earlier this year - and ROG feels his performance in it could rival Cillian Murphy's Oscar-nominated turn as the titular character in Oppenheimer.
The 2024 Six Nations will be the first this century that Ireland enter without either O'Gara or Johnny Sexton.
When O'Gara's predecessor David Humphreys retired from international rugby in 2006, O'Gara had already established himself as the regular choice at out-half - the same was true of Sexton by the time of O'Gara's retirement.
Given the relative inexperience of the trio of out-halves in Andy Farrell's squad, the pressure on Jack Crowley, Harry Byrne, and Ciarán Frawley is that much greater.
Crowley is expected to start in Ireland's opener against France on Friday night in Marseille, and O'Gara feels the Munster man is well-equipped to deal with the pressure of replacing Sexton:
They would be a lot more prepared than I was, I let the occasion [of his debut] get to me, I was a bag of nerves, a complete wreck. But that was probably par for the course at the time. 25 years later it’s a very different set-up. These guys are way more advanced in preparation, nutrition, psychological aspects of the game.
What I like about Jack Crowley is I don’t get the impression he’s going to leave the seat available for someone. He has that element of confidence in him yet a lot of humility in him.
What is so important at Test level is he doesn’t let mistakes eat at his mindset so he’ll continue to back his decision, continue to ask questions of the defence and that will stand him well.
In that position you are only going to get better by the minutes you play. Yeah, he’s lacking minutes but I don’t think he’s lacking mental fortitude, that’s for sure.
It is clear that O'Gara rates his fellow Corkman highly. After all, O'Gara attempted to lure Crowley to La Rochelle off the back of his performances in the 2020 U20 Six Nations championship, and he jokes on Tuesday that Crowley remains the only man ever to say "no" to him.
29 January 2024; Jack Crowley during an Ireland Rugby squad training session at The Campus in Quinta da Lago, Portugal. Photo by Ella Howell/Sportsfile
Of course, Crowley is not the only 10 in this Ireland squad, with Leinster duo Byrne and Frawley vying for a place on the bench in Marseille. Byrne and Frawley have just three caps between them, summing up the inexperience at out-half in the post-Sexton era.
But ROG wisely tells us that their inexperience will, if anything, add extra motivation for them to prove their point in the cauldron of the Stade Vélodrome on Friday night:
Everyone has to start somewhere. It is the same as Richie McCaw when he came off the bench in Dublin - look at the career he had.
These guys all start somewhere. These guys aren’t experienced at the minute, that’s probably the negative, but in their heads, they are going I can’t wait to get on here and rip this up, because they probably feel hard done by because I can offer a lot to the team.
That’s the mindset of competitors. They need to take their place, and improve the team’s performance by 30 per cent.
Friday's Six Nations opener is set to be a rip-roaring affair, with Ronan O'Gara predicting it will decide the winners of this year's Championship. He is not alone in that belief.
France v Ireland kicks off at 8pm on Friday, live on Virgin Media.
Guinness is providing fans with the ‘l’opportunité’ to win exclusive, money-can’t-buy prizes, including match tickets and unique match-day experiences as part of the Guinness Giveaway. To enter, simply visit the link here.
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