MACK: I’M 100% SURE WE’LL WIN

MACK HANSEN warns that Scots dangerman Duhan van der Merwe nust be shut down – but insists Ireland’s greater teamwork will see them win the Six Nations.

Under normal circumstances Hansen would be looking to take down the big winger.

However the 25-year-old Grand Slam winner is only halfway through his shoulder surgery rehab and won’t return until May, so that task will fall to Calvin Nash – if he gets the OK to play – or Garry Ringrose.

Hansen was in Twickenham last Saturday to participate in a Q and A with injured England star Tom Curry.

“I was surrounded by old and current English players, so it wasn’t the best place for me to be watching the game,” he said.

“I think they were a bit shocked as well – everyone was expecting Ireland to walk away with the points.

“If anything they were more proud of their fellas, they weren’t insufferable at all – not like some of their fans have been.

“They were more like,

‘it’s great to see, that’s how England should be playing’. Which is right, we want to see a strong Six Nations and strong teams playing strong teams.”

Ireland are still in pole position heading into the final weekend – four points clear of England, who travel to France, and five ahead of Scotland, who come to Dublin earlier on Saturday.

But van der Merwe (inset) is the visitors’ big try threat, having scored a brace against Wales and a hat-trick against England in this championship.

“He’s very powerful, he’s built like a brick s***house,” said Hansen. “He’s a lot bigger than most wingers in the world at the moment.

“But it’s not all about power. He does have speed, he’s quick. He’s just a big body – he’s almost like a back-row playing on the wing – and he’s not afraid to use it.

“He can beat you with his feet but he can also try to run over so he’s definitely tough to come up against for sure.

“But I think the difference between us and them is that we work as a team a little bit better so I think that’s going to play into our hands.

“There are some things where he’s trying to do it as individual brilliance and I just think as a team, we will be able to shut it down.”

Hansen adds that he is “100 per cent confident” that Ireland will get the job done.

“I’ve got no doubt in my mind on this,” he said. “I can’t think of the last time we lost back-toback games.

“But saying that, this has always been the week that everybody was saying was going to be the big one regardless of how the others went, win or lose.

“But I know for a fact they are going to go out there and perform this weekend and get the job done.”