Ireland captain Peter O'Mahony has claimed that he and his Irish teammates have given no notice to the favourite tag that has come their way ahead of the England game this weekend.
The Irish team is expected to beat a lacklustre England side in Twickenham this weekend in their quest to win back-to-back Grand Slams. If Ireland does manage to beat England and Scotland next week, then they will become the first side ever to do so in the Six Nations.
Andy Farrell's side is well-fancied to beat England, according to pundits, fans, and the like, but O'Mahony states that the team isn't paying attention to anything other than beating England on Saturday afternoon.
"It's not something that we really buy into," O'Mahony said. "I know you're probably sick of hearing it from me, but it's a Test match tomorrow, Ireland versus England.
"It's about who plays better tomorrow; it's not about anything else.
"It's not about previous form or where you stand; it's about who plays better tomorrow, and that's something that we've always been focused on: our performance.
"We know if we play well tomorrow, we'll be in with a shout, but if we don't fire, this English team has incredible quality and can beat anyone on their day.
"It's not long ago they were competing in the last two games of the World Cup. We know we're in for a huge test tomorrow here at Twickenham, as always."
Dublin , Ireland, August 19, 2023; Peter O'Mahony of Ireland. (Photo By Ramsey Cardy/Sportsfile via Getty Images) )The home venue in the Six Nations is a massive factor in performance and wins, and it's fair to say that Twickenham will be rocking when the Irish come to town on Saturday.
Ireland won on their last visit to the venue, but their record there over the years isn't as rosy. O'Mahony knows how tough it is to win against the likes of England and France in their own stadiums.
“Look, I think playing away and winning away at any stadium in this competition is incredibly tough," the 34-year-old added.
"Look at the stats across the however many Six Nations; it’s tough to win away from home, regardless of where you are, and no more so than Twickenham. It’s obviously a fortress of rugby for England.
Ireland's last win against England came in a 15–32 dogged stodgy win, and O'Mahony, one of the elder statesmen, recognises that a strong performance is key for Ireland in London this weekend.
"Certainly, we’ve picked up some wins here. But you look at them, and we’ve had to play unbelievably well to get the wins.
"Some unbelievable rugby that we played, and that’s what tomorrow is going to take, a special performance from the group.
"You’re going to get sick of me saying it, but it’s about the performance tomorrow; it’s an incredibly difficult place to come and play and even more difficult to win."
The game in Twickenham starts at 4.45 on Saturday and will be broadcast on ITV (UK) and RTÉ (ROI)
Ireland's team to face England:
Backs:
15. Hugo Keenan fullback 14. Calvin Nash, Wing 11. James Lowe, Wing
13. Robbie Henshaw, Outside Centre 12. Bundee Aki, Inside Centre
10. Jack Crowley fly-half 9. Jamison Gibson-Park, Scrum-half
Forwards:
1. Andrew Porter, Prop 2. Dan Sheehan, Hooker 3. Tadhg Furlong, Prop
4. Joe McCarthy: Lock 5. Tadhg Beirne: Lock
6. Peter O’Mahony, Blindside Flanker (captain) 7. Josh van der Flier, Openside Flanker 8. Caelan Doris, Number Eight
Replacements:
Ronan Kelleher, Replacement Hooker Cian Healy, Replacement Prop Finlay Bealham: Replacement Prop Iain Henderson, Replacement Lock Ryan Baird, Replacement Forward Jack Conan, Replacement Forward Conor Murray, Replacement Scrum-half Ciaran Frawley, Replacement Back
