Ian Madigan hopes reiterating his ability to boss a Test match backline in Saturday’s 28-22 victory over Scotland can boost his World Cup selection claims.
The Ireland playmaker’s ability to feature at 10, 12 and even 15 could prove the key to his World Cup selection chances – at the expense potentially of a midfield stalwart like Gordon D’Arcy whose chances of reaching a fifth career World Cup seem under threat after a mixed showing against Scotland.
TRY TIME: @simonzebo picks a great line and @ian_madigan delivers the pass. Silky play from @irishrugby https://t.co/GVYINQmDMk
— World Rugby (@WorldRugby) August 17, 2015
Madigan’s versatility could even hand head coach Joe Schmidt the option to retain Paddy Jackson and squeeze three fly-halves into his final 31-man squad, to be submitted on August 31.
“It was a very important part against Scotland, showing that I could run the game,” said Madigan.
“People love using the phrase ‘game management’, and I’ve been working really hard on that with Joe (Schmidt). One of my main roles as an out-half is to bring other players into the game, and I did my best to do that, and in fairness to the guys around me they made it very easy for me.”
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Johnny Sexton naturally enters the World Cup as Ireland’s playmaker-in-chief, but Madigan’s flexibility renders him central to Schmidt’s overall plans.
The Wales Test on August 29 will be the last chance for any fringe stars to win World Cup selection, as Schmidt must name his final squad by August 31, and Madigan has admitted training has become increasingly frenetic.
“It’s really competitive, I think across the board you’ve got minimum two players and three in some cases competing for each position,” he added. “It means there’s a great edge in training, every single run you get in training counts.”
