Rugby World Cup debutant outhalf Jack Crowley delighted to learn from 'true leader' Johnny Sexton

World Cup debutant Jack Crowley believes fellow Ireland fly-half Johnny Sexton showed "the type of man he is" with his seamless return from almost six months on the sidelines.

Captain Sexton starred on his first competitive appearance since celebrating Six Nations Grand Slam success in March with a 24-point haul, including two tries, in Saturday's 82-8 demolition of Romania.

The 38-year-old received a standing ovation from tens of thousands of Irish fans when replaced 15 minutes from time before understudy Crowley came on to land four successful conversions on his tournament bow.

Munster playmaker Crowley, who only made his Test debut in November, has been inspired by Sexton’s resilience and dedication to overcoming setbacks.

The 23-year-old is also ready when required to step in for his influential skipper looking ahead to Pool B fixtures against Tonga, South Africa and Scotland.

"It just shows the type of man he is, the preparation he puts into his training and the mindset he has," Crowley said of Sexton’s comeback.

"That’s the type of leader he is: through actions. You could see that it doesn’t matter if he’s out for nine months, 10 months, he’s always going to perform because of the way he prepares. He’s a true leader.

"Of course, you’ve always got to be prepared (to fill in). You can’t be presuming or assuming anything.

"His level of preparation to get his performance is something that I learn from and I will try and do and put into action. You always have to be ready."

We need your consent to load this comcast-player content We use comcast-player to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review their details and accept them to load the content. Manage