Out-half call shows Farrell is rewarding form - Heaslip

Jamie Heaslip says the decision to leave Joey Carbery out of the Ireland squad shows head coach Andy Farrell is willing to reward form.

Carbery's omission was the big surprise when Farrell revealed his 37-man squad for the opening rounds of the Guinness Six Nations this morning, with Ross Byrne and Jack Crowley included alongside captain Johnny Sexton as the out-half options.

"With Joey, I think initially your gut would be surprised because you've seen him there so many times, but when you step back and look at the merit of selection I don't think it's a surprise. I think it's a very fair selection at that position," Heaslip told the RTÉ Rugby podcast.

The former Ireland number 8 was speaking at the launch of RTÉ Sport's coverage of the 2023 Six Nations, where he was joined by former Ireland women's out-half Hannah Tyrrell.

And Tyrrell says while Carbery's absence from the squad did come as a surprise initially, it's a fair decision by the Irish coaches.

"It [the surprise] comes off the back of every squad over the last couple of years, where when Joey has been available he's been selected, but we don't really know Andy Farrell's thinking yet, or the discussion he had with Joey Carbery, he just feels like Ross Byrne is giving him something a little bit extra right now.

"Jack Crowley is the new kid on the block who is learning his trade and can do with a couple of extra minutes, and I think he could be a really good impact off the bench."

And with Carbery now set to feature in Munster's trip to Toulouse on Sunday, as well as their visit to Benetton in the URC on Friday, 27 January, she believes he has the opportunity to prove a point to Farrell.

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