UNDERDOG, NEW TRICKS
Doris knows Gatland will have Wales straining at the leash WALES V IRELAND
CAELAN DORIS says a fast start by Ireland can take down a Wales side “desperate” to win in Cardiff having gone back to improve their future.
Discarding Wayne Pivac as boss after a disappointing Autumn series could have been a big risk coming less than two months before this Six Nations championship and less than a year out from the World Cup.
But handing the job back to Warren Gatland, the Kiwi who guided Wales to three Grand Slams, could see a return to more glorious times.
Still, it is a risky move. For his first game since returning to the hot-seat, Gatland has gone back to what he knows for today’s championship opener.
Thus, he is depending on his old guard to produce the goods against high-tempo, dynamic visitors, who just happen to be ranked No 1 in the world right now.
“Well, you can picture some of the things that they will be saying going into camp with Gatland back, with some of their club teams going quite well in Europe,”Doris remarked.
Confidence
“So, I think they’re going to try and play on what they can to build confidence. I’m sure they’ll be just as up for it as us. They might be playing on the underdog card as well, potentially.
“I’m sure there’ll be a bit of desperation for them as well. We can possibly take advantage of that, if we can get on top early on.
“We’ve spoken quite a bit about having a fast start and, hopefully, not letting their crowd get in too much behind them.
“Possession is big for them and territory, so an early, accurate start is going to be important for us.”
Still, Ireland are seeking their first Six Nations win in a decade at the Principality Stadium.
It is a reminder that, despite Ireland’s firepower, the Welsh should make life difficult and the unavailability of Tadhg Furlong doesn’t help the cause.
All week during their warm-weather camp in Portugal, Ireland players referred to the hostile atmosphere that awaits under the stadium’s closed roof.
Doris insists he is looking forward to a noisy reception on his Principality debut — and if Ireland get off to flyer, that raucous reception could actually be turned against the Welsh.
“Ideally, there’ll be cheers for us, but either way, I enjoy it,”he said.“From talking about it with some of the lads, the atmosphere is right up there with the best, so I’m definitely excited for that.
“I remember Johnny (Sexton) saying before — I think it came from Brad Thorn — that he got inspired from bums on seats, regardless of who they were cheering for.
“That’s quite a good message going into this one. It’s not a complete shock.You know it’s coming, and then (it’s about) just staying tight; trying to stay present in the moment; taking deep breaths; getting our nervous system into a neutral state; all of that is going to be helpful.
“Going into the Stade de France last year, we’d mentioned it but probably hadn’t fully understood the level of the noise from the warm-up right the whole way through. So, that was a learning that we’ve brought into this one. There’s more awareness of what we’re going into.”
Doris left Faro on Thursday wondering where the last three years have gone.
The Mayo man got his first Six Nations call-up in 2020 and, after impressing Andy Farrell in the buildup, he made his championship debut against Scotland in that year’s opener.
The experience only lasted four minutes, however, as a clash of heads ended his involvement.
Impressing in the build-up was key for the Leinster back-row, and that included a warm-weather camp in Quinta do Lago.
Ireland returned there nine days ago to put the serious work in before today’s game.
Shocked
“It flies by,”said Doris.“We had oneon-ones (with Farrell) last week, and it was the same thing three years ago. I was saying to Faz that I was shocked that the three years had flown by.
“Covid had a big part of that. Playing a bit of cards the other night, it reminded me of playing cards with Dev Toner three years ago — he took me under his wing in the first camp.
“It’s always class this week over there, we missed it during Covid, but last year and this year, it’s class.”
Doris (24) recalls that he wasn’t expecting his debut at that time.
“It was a bit of a surprise,”he admitted.“Sometimes you can get an insight into the team early on and it’s not guaranteed, so you don’t want to get ahead of yourself, but I was delighted.
“Myself and Rónan Kelleher, who
I’m living with now, he was on the bench.
“The team was announced when we were in the airport flying back, and our phones were hopping.”
Doris has since become one of Farrell’s top operators on either side of the ball. His performance will be key to Ireland’s chances.
“Everyone’s buzzing around the place, excited for the Six Nations to start, excited for the growth that still needs to come,”Doris stressed.
“We still need to evolve as we go, but everyone is in a good place mentally.
“It’s important starting well with, hopefully, a win and trying to build momentum and performances.Yeah, hugely exciting.” (above)