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Kicking coach Richie Murphy insists every player within Ireland\u2019s ranks is considered to be Irish following mischievous remarks about residency rules from England head coach Eddie Jones.<\/p>\nKicking coach Richie Murphy insists every player within Ireland\u2019s ranks is considered to be Irish following mischievous remarks about residency rules from England head coach Eddie Jones.<\/p>\n
Jones referenced Ireland as the \u2018United Nations\u2019 on the grounds that eight of their 23-man squad for Saturday\u2019s Autumn Nations Cup match at Twickenham hail from overseas.<\/p>\n
New Zealand-born trio Bundee Aki, James Lowe and Jamison Gibson-Park will start in London, alongside South Africa-born duo CJ Stander and Quinn Roux.<\/p>\n
Rob Herring, another player from South Africa, Australia-born Finlay Bealham and former England Under-20 star Billy Burns, born in Bath, have been named among the replacements.<\/p>\n
Murphy was adamant Ireland\u2019s coaching staff have no reason to defend their selection and says the diversity does not cause division within the camp.<\/p>\n
\u201cDefinitely not. We\u2019ve a group of a players obviously who are all eligible to play for Ireland,\u201d said Murphy.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe select that squad early on in relation to who we feel is in the best place to play for Ireland over the next number of weeks.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo tell you the truth, we think of all of our players as being Irish. They\u2019ve been in the country, they are members of their local communities, and we just get on with it from there.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen the guys come in and play for Ireland, they are in a situation where they are more than happy to do that and they take on the challenge as if they were anyone else.<\/p>\n
\u201cI can\u2019t say how they actually feel but from a coaching point of view, they fit into the group really well and they\u2019re taking us forward.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s no \u2018us and them\u2019, it\u2019s Ireland as a squad, including the management.\u201d<\/p>\n
World Rugby guidelines state players are eligible to represent another country if they have lived there for three consecutive years, or if they have a parent or grandparent born there.<\/p>\n
With some quarters calling Ireland the \u2018Irish Barbarians\u2019, England coach Jones seized his opportunity for a playful quip at his pre-match press conference on Thursday.<\/p>\n
\u201cI heard someone calling them the United Nations, so I had a little chuckle,\u201d said the Australian.<\/p>\n
He added: \u201cI can understand how Irish people would be upset about Irish-born players missing out, but they are the laws and regulations of international rugby. They are just sticking by the regulations.\u201d<\/p>\n
With Ireland seeking to end a dismal run of three heavy defeats to England, Murphy is convinced the foreign-born contingent are aware of the rivalry between the countries.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople are always looking for little things but for us it\u2019s all been about a Test match. All the ones that we play in, our preparations are very similar,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s been nothing special this week in relation to trying to build up these guys.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese guys are playing for Ireland, they\u2019ve made that choice to come to Ireland, they are ready to go.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey understand some of the history and some of the background that\u2019s there. It\u2019s not something we\u2019ve hyped at all within the group.\u201d<\/p>\n
Another area of head coach Andy Farrell\u2019s selection which has attracted attention is the half-back pairing of Gibson-Park and Ross Byrne.<\/p>\n
Gibson-Park has retained the scrum-half role ahead of the vastly-experienced Conor Murray, while fly-half Byrne has been tasked with filling the sizeable boots of injured Leinster team-mate Johnny Sexton.<\/p>\n
Murphy is optimistic Byrne will prove a capable understudy.<\/p>\n
\u201cI am very confident in Ross. Ross is getting a big opportunity. Obviously coming out of Johnny\u2019s shadow \u2013 like he does for Leinster \u2013 is tough because people will be very focused on him,\u201d said Murphy.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut he\u2019s led the week very well, he\u2019s stepped up, his communication and his leadership has been really good.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s going into a Test match that he knows is a massive opportunity for him personally but I know that Ross will put the team first and try and guide his team in the right direction.\u201d<\/p>\n