If Joe Schmidt wasn’t already aware that it’s impossible to please everyone in life then he’ll certainly be learning that today.
Ireland’s head coach has confirmed his 31-man selection for the Rugby World Cup which gets underway in Japan later this month and it’s fair to say the announcement has sparked plenty of debate. So much so that at the time of writing, nine of the top 10 trending topics on Irish Twitter are all related to the news, with the other one being #MondayMotivation, a notoriously difficult hashtag to budge at this point in the week.
Here's your 31 man Ireland Rugby World Cup for @rugbyworldcup #RWC2019https://t.co/sXvLCNiCqQ pic.twitter.com/FBk8nB96aD
— Irish Rugby (@IrishRugby) September 2, 2019
Perhaps the omission that has gotten most fingertips pounding is that of Devin Toner, a man who has practically been an ever-present throughout Schmidt’s six-year reign. Kieran Marmion is another whose exclusion has gotten people up in arms, while Jack McGrath, Will Addison and Jordi Murphy also miss out.
Jack Carty makes the cut after his man-of-the-match performance against Wales on Saturday, as do Jean Klyn, Rhys Ruddock and Andrew Conway.
Whether you’re a big rugby fan or not, your timeline is sure to be clogged up by fans and experts expressing their opinions on the squad, as the following tweets testify.
Wow. Cannot get my head round the decision on Dev Toner – sport can be brutal – u forget sometimes – this feels particularly so. Marmion, Murphy and McGrath maybe not as surprising but tough to take no doubt.
— Ryle Nugent (@ryle_nugent) September 2, 2019
No Addison????! I know he’s had limited game time but on Saturdays showing…. 🤔
— Brian O'Driscoll (@BrianODriscoll) September 2, 2019
Joe has elected for players that can play in a number of poisitions, good idea in most regards, some players unlucky though? @irishrugby #selections
— Brent Pope (@RealBrentPope) September 2, 2019
https://twitter.com/natural20/status/1168521758976225282
Harsh on Toner. Great to see Ruddock and McGrath make the squad. pic.twitter.com/RadE5hhfLT
— Donal O'Higgins (@DonalOHiggins) September 2, 2019
https://twitter.com/ronan_donnelly1/status/1168504684295966720
This has cemented all excitement for me. I’m in full on hype mode, cannot wait. Gutted for Toner, Marmion and Murphy, but thems the breaks. https://t.co/3DqOsSe3pD
— Kevin Kelly (@kevindublin) September 2, 2019
Gutted for Marmion – an incredible servant to Irish rugby – and can't believe Kleyn is going in place of Toner. Schmidt obviously trying to be ready for the power game of South Africa. #RWC2019
— Hilary White (@HAWhiteK) September 2, 2019
https://twitter.com/KevBeirne/status/1168502414497976320
The natural tendency is to focus on the players who have missed out but what a feeling it must be for some of the younger players about to fulfill their ambition of going to a @rugbyworldcup #RWC2019 https://t.co/j5o5XorR61
— Damien O'Meara (@damien_omeara) September 2, 2019
I’m sure St. Joe knows what he’s doing, but it sure feels like leaving @DevinToner4 out 😱 for Hendo and Kleyn, who’s been qualified for about a fortnight, is a mistake we’ll be chewing over for a long while. #IrishRugby How many times have his Powers Of Tall saved us? #RWC2019
— Simon Carroll (@simoncarrolltw) September 2, 2019
Once the initial debate subsides, the country is sure to be behind the lads when they take the pitch against Scotland on Sunday September 22. Japan here we come.
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