Jackman: McCloskey and Coombes could miss out on squad

Bernard Jackman believes Stuart McCloskey and Gavin Coombes may fall victim to a numbers game when Andy Farrell names his Irish Rugby World Cup squad later this month.

South Africa, New Zealand and England are among those who have already named their 33-man squads for the tournament in France next month, but Farrell is expected to hold off until after their final warm-up game against Samoa on 26 August before making his final selection.

One of the big surprises in England's squad was the absence of experienced centre Henry Slade, who was left out of the panel by head coach Steve Borthwick, despite being a regular in the squad in recent seasons.

On the face of it, a lack of versatility appears to have played a big role in Slade's omission. The Exeter man may have started his career as an out-half, but the bulk of his Test career has been played at outside centre.

Farrell faces a similar dilemma in choosing his squad. With a likely split of 19 forwards and 14 backs, Jackman believes McCloskey may be the unlucky man to miss out from Ireland's midfield.

"That's the problem with him being an out-and-out 12, or someone being a tighthead lock, you limit your opportunities," he told the RTÉ Rugby podcast.

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The Ulster centre started all three games for Ireland in last season's Autumn Nations Series, but Jackman believes that with the likes of Jimmy O'Brien and Jack Crowley both capable of covering centre, a lack of