'Make the minutes count' - Finlay Bealham wants a big impact

When Andrew Porter moved across the scrum just over two years ago, there was a real degree of uncertainty around Ireland's depth at tighthead prop.

While Tadhg Furlong was the undisputed holder of the number 3 jersey, there was a regular spot in the matchday squad up for grabs.

When the Autumn Nations Series rolled around in 2021 it was Finlay Bealham who got the nod ahead of Ulster's Tom O'Toole and Munster's John Ryan.

The Connacht prop had been playing Test rugby for five years by that point, but a sporadic 14 caps across that period meant he was still inexperienced at this level.

The 31-year-old has now won more caps in the last two years than he did in those previous five, and has established himself as a key member of the matchday squad.

When Furlong had to sit out the opening games of the Six Nations, Bealham stepped up seamlessly and was named in the official Team of the Championship, despite a knee injury limiting him to just two and a half games.

In Ireland's 13-8 win against South Africa last week, he was brought in on 64 minutes with Ireland's scrum creaking under the weight of Ox Nche, and not only did he shore up the Irish set-piece, but contributed with an impressive six tackles in just over a quarter of an hour.

"When you come on, you obviously want to make an impact," he says.

The Connacht prop (above) is now consistently having a positive impact on games, and while he would love to be in a starting role, he says the quality of his minutes are more important than the quantity of them.

"There's smarts in there, in that you’re trying to make an impact through our shape and structure, that allows you to bring those moments and understand how to do it. From a mindset point of view, when I’m on the bench I don’t care