Murphy Ready To Lead

Munster back Johne Murphy will captain Emerging Ireland for the first time as they attempt to make it two wins from two in the IRB Nation’s Cup when they take on Uruguay tomorrow.

With 80 caps and 12 tries for Munster, the Kildare native has already represented Emerging Ireland on eleven occasions and brings a wealth of experience and leadership to the side that will hope to maintain their top position on the Nations Cup table, following a bonus point 66-0 win over Russia on Friday.

The Munsterman didn’t give it a second thought when asked by Head Coach Dan McFarland to captain the side.

"I've captained teams at schools level a couple of times, but this is my first professional experience of it. It's a massive honour, something I will probably look back on at the end of my career and really cherish.

"When Dan spoke to me I was absolutely delighted and it makes it more special for me given the quality of the players that I'll be leading out, guys that are really going to be pushing for places in the World Cup next year.”

The winger is also aware that good performances in an Emerging Ireland shirt will put players on the radar of Ireland Head Coach Joe Schmidt and his management team.

"Essentially, we're trying to replicate exactly what the senior lads are trying to do. It's all about learning new terminology, getting it all down and I think we did a fantastic job on that. A pre-tour get together in Ashbourne really stood to us when it came to getting our details right.

"Ireland have just completed a tour to Argentina, the Under-20s are in New Zealand and we're here. Les Kiss is coming out here and Joe (Schmidt) is heading to Auckland to see what's happening there. It shows he is putting in a structure so that guys can slot in and out and know the roles they have.

Showing his competitive nature, it’s all about the result for the Murphy.

"In our case, a fair amount of players were involved in the accompanying tournament in Tbilisi last year and that has helped the group because it means you get to know the players around you. The guys really want to win this competition. It's not an end of season jolly. We're here to do a job."

Uruguay play Emerging Ireland for the second time in the space of 12 months, having lost their opening Nations Cup game to hosts Romania, 34-16. At last summer's Tbilisi Cup Ian Keatley scored two tries and kicked 12 points as the Irish claimed a 42-33 win over 'los Teros'.

The South Americans are using the tournament to prepare for their Repechage semi-final – essentially the last chance saloon for the four also-rans from the Rugby World Cup qualifying regions. They are due to play Hong Kong who finished second to Japan in the Asia region.

Emerging Ireland v Uruguay, Wednesday June 18^th, Stadionul National Arcul de Triumf, Bucharest. KO 2pm Irish time with live coverage streamed online here.