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Joe Schmidt has leapt to the defense of veteran hooker Rory Best, branding criticism of his Ireland captain \u201cunfair\u201d.<\/p>\nJoe Schmidt has leapt to the defense of veteran hooker Rory Best, branding criticism of his Ireland captain \u201cunfair\u201d.<\/p>\n
Head coach Schmidt has made 12 changes from last weekend\u2019s record 57-15 loss to England at Twickenham, for Saturday\u2019s World Cup warm-up clash against Wales in Cardiff.<\/p>\n
Munster\u2019s Niall Scannell starts at hooker with a big chance to seal his World Cup squad spot, with 37-year-old Ulster stalwart Best added to bench at his own request.<\/p>\n
Best and prop Tadhg Furlong were due to be rested this weekend, but Schmidt admitted both asked for extra time to push themselves back up to top match sharpness.<\/p>\n
Schmidt refused to give any guarantees that Best will captain Ireland at the World Cup on Tuesday, but has now defended his regular skipper in the wake of the eight-try England hiding.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe people who maybe really launched the criticism at him, some of it is unfair,\u201d said Schmidt, of Best.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe quality of what he provided, his support play and breakdown work, was still of a good standard.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo put his performance in the nutshell of the lineout which is a lot of moving parts, there\u2019s a little bit of undue criticism.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt the same time Rory is very self-critical. He is very conscious of wanting to improve himself.<\/p>\n
“I know internally he sets an incredibly high benchmark for himself, he didn\u2019t reach that benchmark and he will be very keen to re-establish that benchmark coming off the bench on Saturday.”<\/p>\n
Asked if he had always planned to include Best and Furlong on the bench for the Principality Stadium clash, Schmidt said: \u201cIt wasn\u2019t originally the plan, but the plan is always fluid.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou get guys who get knocks, or guys who need more time.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey were very keen to get back in and get back involved, they felt they were just a bit off last week.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey felt that it would help them in their preparation if they got a little bit more time this week.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re looking at them getting 25 to 30 minutes as the plan. That can springboard them into next week and beyond if they are selected.<\/p>\n
\u201cRory felt he was underdone, and didn\u2019t have the energy in his legs.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ireland\u2019s soul-searching this week has included boss Schmidt unusually addressing the media on Tuesday, while Jacob Stockdale has had his shaggy hair cut short and Bundee Aki his bushy beard shaved off.<\/p>\n
Peter O\u2019Mahony will captain Ireland on Saturday from openside flanker \u2013 the Munster star shifting across the back-row to accommodate provincial colleague Tadhg Beirne at blindside.<\/p>\n
O\u2019Mahony, Aki and Stockdale are Ireland\u2019s sole survivors from last weekend\u2019s Twickenham humbling, as Schmidt looks to hand out chances far and wide in his squad.<\/p>\n
Jack Carty starts at fly-half with a big opportunity to push ahead of Ross Byrne in the queue for Ireland\u2019s third playmaking berth.<\/p>\n
Ulster\u2019s Will Addison will make his first start at full-back, with the former England Under-20s star\u2019s versatility leaving him still in the frame to squeeze into Ireland\u2019s final 31-man World Cup squad.<\/p>\n
Ireland have not named a recognized fly-half on their bench, with replacement center Garry Ringrose and Addison both covering that role.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor Will, it\u2019s a really important opportunity but he has to hit the ground running,\u201d said Schmidt of Addison.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s trained really well this week, so we\u2019re hoping he can hit the ground running.<\/p>\n
“He\u2019s a very capable kicker of the ball, including goal-kicking, and the jack of all trades that we very well might need.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs far as out-half cover we\u2019ve got a couple of guys: Will is one of them and Garry Ringrose is the other.<\/p>\n
\u201cGarry has played a bit of out-half at school level. He has the temperament and skill base to fit in there.\u201d<\/p>\n
IRELAND TEAM TO FACE WALES IN CARDIFF ON SATURDAY: <\/strong>W Addison (Ulster), A Conway, C Farrell (both Munster), B Aki (Connacht), J Stockdale (Ulster), J Carty, K Marmion (both Connacht), D Kilcoyne, N Scannell, John Ryan (all Munster), I Henderson (Ulster), James Ryan (Leinster), T Beirne, P O\u2019Mahony (both Munster, capt), J Conan (Leinster). Replacements: R Best (Ulster), A Porter, T Furlong, D Toner (all Leinster), J Murphy (Ulster), L McGrath, G Ringrose, D Kearney (all Leinster).<\/p>\nShare this:<\/h3>