Following the announcement of Andy Farrell’s France squad for the 2026 Six Nations Championship, here are our five takeaways.
Top line
There were not too many surprises as Farrell selected a 37-man group for the upcoming Six Nations as they look to win a third title in four years.
The head coach once again opted for experience, placing his trust in those who have served him well for so long, despite a relatively lengthy injury list that includes Andrew Porter, Robbie Henshaw and Mack Hansen.
As well as Porter, another prop, Paddy McCarthy, is currently on the sidelines, leaving them short of loosehead options ahead of their daunting opener against France in Saint-Denis. Cormac Izuchukwu, Calvin Nash, Jimmy O’Brien and Ryan Baird, who would have been there or thereabouts, are also unavailable.
Ireland have been boosted by the return of Hugo Keenan, with the full-back returning just in time for the competition, having not played since the third British and Irish Lions Test in July. It is an indication of the faith Farrell has in his stalwarts, with form certainly not a factor in some of the selections.
Provincial performances have mattered in some instances, however, as Harry Byrne, Tom Stewart and Rob Baloucoune earn recalls, while Edwin Edogbo and Nathan Doak are the two uncapped players in the squad, but whether they find their way in the 23, we will see.
More of the same
With some of the injury issues, as well as the impressive youngsters, particularly at Ulster, Farrell did have an opportunity to shake it up. But alas, conservatism once again won the day for the head coach, who is seemingly determined to get his ageing stars to the next Rugby World Cup.
While that makes sense when it comes to the likes of Josh van der Flier and Garry Ringrose, who are in their early 30s and still playing exceptional rugby, there has been a concerning drop-off from others.
When the Irish coaches decided not to experiment during the November series, or at the very least map out some sort of succession plan, it was almost inevitable that their Six Nations squad would be full of familiar names.
While most fans expected some sort of squad development following the 2023 World Cup elimination, now under two years out from the next global tournament, that is getting more and more unlikely. Unless Farrell has some sort of master plan up his sleeve, supporters who wanted an overhaul may well be left disappointed.
However, it risks becoming a ludicrous situation. Keeping hold of those experienced individuals would be understandable – the right call in fact – if Ireland were getting results and performance, but over the past 12 months, neither of those have been forthcoming.
With Leinster also struggling to reproduce the brilliance of previous years, it suggests a squad in decline and one that needs an injection of fresh blood. The Six Nations will tell us more, but a downward trend has been set, and we can’t see that changing over the next couple of months.
The unlucky youngsters
Over the past few seasons, there has been the Leinsterfication of Ireland, with Farrell relying on the country’s biggest province to produce the core of his side. When the national team were successful, few could really argue about the apparent bias towards the Dublin-based outfit, but things seem to be changing slightly.
Ulster have enjoyed a much-improved campaign thanks in part to the likes of Jude Postlethwaite and the Ward brothers, Bryn and Zac, but all three missed out on selection. Wing Zac has particularly thrived this season and can count himself very unfortunate not to get the Ireland nod.
He is not the only speedster to impress, with Joshua Kenn,y the rising star at Leinster this season, showing that youngsters can still break into a star-studded Dubliners. In 2024/25, it was Tommy O’Brien who emerged at the provincial level and duly became a key part of the Ireland line-up, and Kenny could well follow him, but it won’t come in the Six Nations.
The lucky elder statesmen
Some of those omissions appear even more startling when you consider the form of James Lowe and Bundee Aki. With that backline duo 33 and 35 respectively, and playing in positions which require more athleticism, they were two players we thought Farrell would look at moving on ahead of the 2027 World Cup.
Age hasn’t stopped certain players from producing at a high level, but with both showing significant signs of decline, you wonder how long they have left in the Test arena. As well as their subpar displays for Ireland in November, they have not regained that spark for either Leinster or Connacht, which made them world-class performers in previous seasons.
Farrell obviously thinks that both Aki and Lowe can either rediscover it or, at the very least, offer them something in the Six Nations, but we remain doubtful, and their selection is potentially delaying the development of some talented younger players.
Is it enough to deliver?
On the face of it, you have to say it isn’t. Farrell is ultimately relying on their star performers of recent years recapturing their form and becoming the players that took them to number one in the world and successive Six Nations titles in 2023 and 2024. Even the likes of Dan Sheehan, Joe McCarthy and captain Caelan Doris have suffered a dip over the past 12 months.
They have the quality and, perhaps most importantly, with this Ireland side, the youth to get back to that level, but when they are potentially operating alongside players who are past their sell-by date, then it makes their jobs much harder.
Farrell also needs one of his fly-halves – most likely Sam Prendergast – to finally step up and prove that they can be the long-term heir to Johnny Sexton and be an elite player at the highest level. That number 10 jersey remains a concern, and the inability of Prendergast or Jack Crowley to dominate at their provinces has allowed Harry Byrne to come back into contention. Byrne has arguably been better at Leinster this season than his 22-year-old team-mate, which means that the playmaking debate is not going away.
Injuries could also be a factor for Ireland during the 2026 championship. Neither Porter nor Paddy McCarthy were named in the initial squad, with the latter’s foot problem thought to be “significant”, leaving them short at loosehead. With Tadhg Furlong also having his injury issues over recent years, the scrum is an area opposition teams – particularly favourites France and England – could target.