Ireland’s next string ‘a long way off’ – O’BrienImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Sean O’Brien won 56 Ireland caps and five for the British and Irish LionsPublished3 hours agoFormer Ireland flanker Sean O’Brien believes there is a “big gap” between Andy Farrell’s Test squad and his untested options.After Ireland were thumped by France to start their 2026 Six Nations last week, there have been calls for a dramatic overhaul of the side who were ranked number one in the world as recently as 2024.
Questions over the quality of Ireland’s depth have been asked anew, however, after an Ireland XV outfit and the side’s under-20s were heavily beaten by their England and France counterparts respectively over the weekend.
O’Brien was on the former’s coaching ticket for the game at Thomond Park and believes what was ostensibly an Ireland second string are a “long way off” the level required to bolster the Test panel for Saturday’s hosting of Italy at the Aviva Stadium (14:10 GMT).
“Let’s call a spade, a spade,” he told BBC Sport NI’s Ireland Rugby Social podcast.
“There’s no point in saying the gap is not that far away. It is, they’re a long way off.
“There’s a big gap between that team we had and the first team obviously, still. How do those lads that we were in control of last week close that gap to get there?
“There’s a lot of work to be done still. Those lads need to really hone in on getting better and do everything they can do to get better.”
