Bernard Jackman: Ireland can look to exploit Will Jordan positioning

Bernard Jackman believes Will Jordan could be the weak link in the New Zealand defence that Ireland should look to expose on Friday.

The sides meet at Aviva Stadium at 8.10pm on Friday night (live on RTÉ Radio 1), in a repeat of last year's World Cup quarter-final, which was won 28-24 by New Zealand.

Jordan has been the game’s most lethal tryscorer since he made his All Blacks debut in 2020, and he's now crossed the line 36 times in just 38 games of Test rugby, the latest of which came in last week’s 24-22 win against England.

Prior to this season, almost all of his international appearances had come on the wing, but this season he has been consistently used in the 15 shirt by new All Blacks coach Scott Robertson, who preferred Jordan at full-back during their time together at the Crusaders.

But after studying the 26-year-old's performances this season, Jackman believes it’s an area of the game Andy Farrell can exploit on Friday.

"The backfield is going to be a little bit more open. Do you know who is really poor in the backfield, is Will Jordan," Jackman told the RTÉ Rugby podcast.