Porter faces tough Test at tighthead on his first start

Test rookie Andrew Porter will be tasked with anchoring Ireland’s scrum against Wales in his first Natwest 6 Nations start tomorrow.

Fast-rising Leinster star Porter will start at tighthead after Tadhg Furlong failed to beat his hamstring injury in time for the Aviva Stadium clash.

Munster centre chris farrell will also make his first Six Nations start against Warren Gatland’s Wales, while Devin Toner starts at lock with Iain Henderson also missing through hamstring trouble.

Porter scrambled from the bench just three minutes into Ireland’s 56-19 win over Italy, when Furlong pulled up.

The 22-year-old acquitted himself well against the Azzurri, but now faces an entirely different proposition against Wales this weekend. Ireland and Leinster have, however, long held high hopes for the physical Under-20s graduate, who only made his Test debut in June 2017.

Munster centre Farrell slots in for Robbie Henshaw, now sidelined for up to four months with a dislocated shoulder. The former Ulster midfielder won both his Test caps in Ireland’s autumn campaign, and will link up with Bundee Aki in an inexperienced centre partnership.

Head coach Joe Schmidt expects both Furlong and Henderson to be fit for Ireland’s clash with Scotland in Dublin on 10 March.

“Iain could probably have played on Saturday,” said Schmidt. “But Iain wasn’t able to complete training today so we’re not going to risk him. He could definitely play next week, and the week after he will be fine.

“With Tadhg the progress just stalled a little bit so we said ‘let’s not chase this, get you right for Scotland’.”