TIME TO FOCUS

Easterby urges players to keep minds on Scots

WITH Grand Slam excitement building, Ireland’s coaching team have warned there will be no Twickenham D-Day if Scotland aren’t dealt with on Saturday in Lansdowne Road.

After three wins from three and Joe Schmidt’s preparations enormously boosted by the return from injury of Tadhg Furlong and Iain Henderson, expectation is sky-high around Ireland, even if Scotland shocked England in Murrayfield.

Concerns in Scotland centre on the fitness of Tommy Seymour ahead of their team announcement today. The wing hasn’t trained all week, but their camp insist he will be fit to start.

Ireland forwards’ coach Simon Easterby said a St Patrick’s Day blockbuster against England in London will only be possible if the challenges posed by Scotland are met in four days’ time, and the management are counting on players not getting distracted by talk of the Slam.

‘I guess you’d like to think not, but it’s so important that we don’t get a chance to do what

you’re saying if we don’t get this week right,’ said Easterby, who pointedly never mentioned the words ‘Grand Slam’. It would be a major anti-climax, though, if Ireland stumbled at home, where they have yet to lose in the championship under Schmidt. Their ambitions to continue the winning run are fortified by Henderson and Furlong being declared fit. ‘I’d like to say I’m moving well bit I never move well. I’m moving as well as I can,’ said Furlong with a smile, his way of announcing he was back after the hamstring problem that put him out of the Italy game after three and a half minutes and left him on the sidelines for the Wales match, too. Henderson had the same problem but he is back and should resume his partnership with James Ryan in the second row. Ireland were stunned by Scotland in Murrayfield in their opening fixture last season, a defeat not been forgotten, according to Easterby. ‘It wasn’t nice,’ he said. ‘I’m not saying you’d want to lose to create a reason to win but there’s lots of things in that game that we feel we could have done better.’