Ireland and Andy Farrell will no doubt have been expecting the inevitable deployment of the 7-1 bench split from South Africa for Saturday's World Cup clash, but how they would tackle it was another question altogether.
The Springboks debuted the contentious tactic of naming seven forwards on the bench during last month's World Cup warm up against New Zealand, and it has become a major talking point ever since.
Some have slammed the split as dangerous, while others have praised it for its creativity in playing to the Boks's strengths.
One man who falls into the latter group is Ireland head coach Andy Farrell, who yesterday praised South Africa for knowing the strengths of their squad and maximising its potential by loading the bench with forwards.
Nonetheless, one of the biggest questions ever since the 7-1 split made its first appearance last month has been how Ireland would address it when the sides came together for their Group B meeting at the Stade de France.
That mouthwatering clash is now upon us - and Ireland rugby legend Donal Lenihan has praised Farrell for sticking to his guns in the face of such a daunting prospect off the South African bench.
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Donal Lenihan thinks South Africa named team early to force Andy Farrell's hand
5 November 2022; Josh van der Flier of Ireland is tackled by Siya Kolisi of South Africa during the Bank of Ireland Nations Series match between Ireland and South Africa at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin. Photo by Ramsey Cardy/Sportsfile
Eyebrows were raised when South Africa named their team on Tuesday for Saturday's clash with Ireland, revealing their matchday 23 almost 48 hours before Andy Farrell named his selection.
It was no surprise to see the 7-1 split in full force on the Springboks bench and, writing in his column for RTÉ Sport, Donal Lenihan said that he thought South Africa may have named their team early to force Ireland's hand with their team selection.
Lenihan suggested that head coach Jacques Nienaber and director of rugby Rassie Erasmus had named their team early to lay down the gauntlet to Ireland and test their nerve. The former Ireland captain praised Andy Farrell for sticking with his strongest team even with that test of his resolve:
I think Jacques Nienaber and Rassie Erasmus announced the South Africa team two days early. The regulations are you must name the side two days before the World Cup game. They named it last Tuesday and it was almost throwing the gauntlet down to Ireland: 'Look, this is what we're bringing.'
But Ireland haven't blinked and that's the whole thing. Andy Farrell has his tried and trusted formula.
He's picked his strongest team but he has stayed with five forwards on the bench. As a consequence, when you play South Africa, it really becomes a 23-man game.
The buildup to this game has been defined by mind games, and there will no doubt be a few more to come before kick-off in Saint-Denis. The game gets underway at 8pm on Saturday evening.
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