Ireland Coach Andy Farrell Confirms Sam Prendergast Start Against Australia

Ireland’s head coach, Andy Farrell, has expressed confidence in Sam Prendergast, a 21-year-old, following his full debut last week. *Autumn Nations Series: Ireland v Australia* *Venue: Aviva Stadium, Dublin* *Date: Saturday, 30 November* *Kick-off: 15:10 GMT* *Coverage: Listen on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra and BBC Sounds, live text and commentary on the BBC Sport website and app* Farrell stated that Prendergast “deserves” another start at fly-half, having chosen him over Jack Crowley for the upcoming Autumn Nations Series fixture against Australia on Saturday. While Crowley had become Farrell’s primary choice after Johnny Sexton’s retirement, Prendergast has been kept in the lineup for the Wallabies match after making his full debut in last week’s victory over Fiji. Regarding the 21-year-old Leinster player, Farrell commented, “I thought he played pretty well.” He further added, “He has trained pretty well over this autumn series as well so there’s another chance to lead the week and grow in that manner and obviously the opportunity to play in a big game along with a good side behind him. For the likes of himself and Gus McCarthy [who made his debut against Fiji] and a few others, you combine all that and it kicks them on from the future.” Crowley, from Munster, participated in every minute of Ireland’s Six Nations campaign and was a starter in both summer Tests held in South Africa. He retained the number 10 jersey for this month’s loss to the All Blacks and win against Argentina, before Prendergast received an opportunity to perform against Fiji. Prendergast, who has only eight senior starts for Leinster, overcame an early yellow card against the Pacific Islanders to lead Ireland to a 52-17 triumph, contributing five successful conversions and an assist for one of Mack Hansen’s two tries. Farrell also remarked, “Jack’s played very well for us for a good while now, played in a lot of big games as well so we know as far as that’s concerned what we’ve got.” He continued, “Although there’s a lot of improving to be had and to be seen with Jack and Ciaran Frawley. It’s pretty similar to Conor [Murray]. He’s an unbelievably trusted member of our staff as is Jack. Craig [Casey] played well, he deserves the chance to play in a big game [as scrum-half cover] also so it goes throughout the squad.” Saturday’s contest, organized to commemorate the Irish Rugby Football Union [IRFU]’s 150th anniversary, will see Farrell face his predecessor, Joe Schmidt, who assumed the role of Australia boss in January. Schmidt secured three Six Nations titles and achieved Ireland’s first victory over the All Blacks in six years during his tenure as Ireland boss, following a successful period leading Leinster. Farrell stated that Schmidt “deserves all the accolades and probably more” for his “phenomenal” accomplishments with Ireland. Farrell elaborated, “He’s the most successful coach in Irish rugby when you look at his time overall in Dublin.” He added, “We’ve got a lot to thank him about and I think it’s a nice story that we get to celebrate this game alongside him.” Farrell expressed gratitude, saying, “I’m very grateful for that opportunity to Joe and David Nucifora [former IRFU high performance director] for bringing me over here. On top of that, the experience I gained under Joe, seeing how he does it on the inside has been invaluable to me and everyone who’s been coached by him. That’s a privilege. Coaching against him with New Zealand, that wasn’t as high profile because he wasn’t the head coach, but it was because you could see his DNA all over that anyway. We’ve been here before a little bit, when he comes back to these shores it’s a little bit different because he should be celebrated for everything he’s done for Irish rugby.”