Ireland’s version of the Bomb Squad can detonate once more against the Italians
Rónan Kelleher and Jack Conan made big contributions off the bench against France
It wasn’t quite the South African flex of unleashing seven forwards off the bench at the same time early in the second-half, but Ireland’s version of the ‘Bomb Squad’ in Marseille must be deemed a major success.
Although Ireland had never gone with a 6/2 split on the bench prior to the impressive bonus point win over France, the writing had been on the wall in terms of the recent global trend, which has also been reflected in the provinces, who have begun experimenting by carrying an extra forward among the replacements.
