Wallabies v Ireland: Johnny Sexton recalled for second Test

Johnny Sexton spells trouble for the men in gold in tomorrow’s second Test against Ireland at AAMI Park.

Ireland have recalled Johnny Sexton into five-eighth for the second Test against the Wallabies at AAMI Park. Picture: AFP

Wallabies coach Michael Cheika describes him as “the maestro”.

Australian playmaker Bernard Foley rates him as “one of the best five-eighths in the world”. But however he is described, Johnny Sexton spells trouble for the men in gold in tomorrow’s second Test against Ireland at AAMI Park.

Cheika waxed lyrical about Sexton yesterday after discovering that the 32-year-old had been brought back into the Irish starting XV this week and although the two have teased each other in print basically ever since they found themselves in opposite camps, it’s clear there is a healthy respect, even affection there from Cheika’s days of coaching Leinster.

“We’ve got very strong ties,” acknowledged Cheika. “I love those blokes. Just love my guys more.

“He (Sexton) is running the show, he’s in charge. He’s directing traffic all the time and he’s a great competitor. He’s a great defensive player. Everyone talks about his attack, he’s a great defensive player as well. He’s got a great kicking game as well.”

All of those things held true last week, when Sexton astonishingly was relegated to the reserves as 22-year-old Joey Carbery, a virtual P-plater at five-eighth, was handed the keys to the Rolls-Royce that is the Irish rugby team. No doubt the dramatic change at No 10 made good sense to coach Joe Schmidt and it may well pay rich dividends down the track, but it was the first thing the Australians noted about the visitors’ team.

While Cheika insisted he did not use it for motivational purposes — “Look, Ireland think they can rest Sexton and still beat us!” — in the Wallabies’ heart of hearts, they are well aware following the release of the two teams yesterday that the Irish are coming after them tomorrow, shillelagh and all.

There are, by the by, eight changes in the Irish side. While Cheika has named an unchanged Australian 23, for only the second time in his 46-Test career, Schmidt has picked for Melbourne essentially the side everyone was expecting to run out in Brisbane.

Their first-choice props Cian Healy and Tadhg Furlong have been rolled out, with Niall Scannell, Rory Best’s replacement, packing down at hooker between them. Devin Toner, who started at Leinster the same year Cheika did, 2005, takes over from Iain Henderson (knee injury) in the second row, while Dan Leavy, who was in beastly form in the Six Nations, has been recalled at openside flanker in a direct challenge to David Pocock’s influence at the breakdown.

All up, there are three positional changes in the backline, two of them forced by injury and certainly the Australians will give thanks that Jacob Stockdale, who crossed for seven tries during the Six Nations, pulled up sore in Brisbane and has been rested.

Marika Koroibete doesn’t get beaten for pace much but he badly underestimated Stockdale’s speed and tackling ability at Suncorp Stadium.

Stockdale, indeed, provided a clear demonstration of how much fight there is in this Irish side and Cheika was taken aback by comments from Irish assistant coaches Andy Farrell and Greg Feek that only this weekend would Ireland learn how much ticker was in their team. As far as the Wallabies were concerned, there was ticker aplenty in the first Test.

“I’ve been a bit surprised actually where their coaches are talking about ticker … The physicality they brought to the game and the intensity they brought to the game was pretty immense,” Cheika said. “You can’t have a physical game without two teams bringing it. So I was a little bit surprised when the bear was poked because I felt they gave to us as much as we gave it to them.”

Arguably, Cheika could have made changes to his 23, indeed to his starting XV from Brisbane, but it’s debatable whether the Wallabies have ever made a more polished start to a June Test series than they did last week. What’s more, it was done on a limited build-up, with the team having only six days to prepare for a side that had gone 15 months and 12 Tests without defeat.

The urgency flowed right through the Wallabies, who have actively embraced the “get set early” mantra.

“Every team is trying to do it, to be ready quickly and ready early,” he said. “It’s just mindset more than anything and it comes down to wanting to do it for your teammate, wanting to play for the country and making the country proud of supporting you. All those things, you know. It’s very much about mindset and being ready for the next thing, whatever it is.”