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Tadhg Beirne says he is looking forward to a “special, special moment” when he captains Ireland for the first time in Saturday’s Nations Championship game against Japan.
The 34-year-old was appointed Munster captain in 2024 and captained the British and Irish Lions. A win against the Waratahs last year in sydney
Having previously taken over the on-field captaincy for his country, he will lead Ireland against Japan in Newcastle, New South Wales (11:10 BST), with tour captain Dan Sheehan rested.
“(It’s) a huge honor. Of course it is,” Beirne said.
“I had the honor of being captain on the field when our main guys weren’t there, Dan and Kellan (Doris).
“But to get the boys out from the start, I come back to that ‘special’ word again, because it’s a special, special moment for me and my family.”
After recovering from a knee injury that sidelined him for the rest of Munster’s season, Bayern made a significant impact on the bench. Last week’s 33-31 win over Australia.
His inclusion in the second row was one of nine changes made by head coach Andy Farrell for the Japan game.
And while Beirne said he was buoyed by Ireland’s resilience, as they recovered from 12 points down to overcome the Wallabies, he admitted his side must improve defensively.
“There are a lot of positives, obviously,” he said.
“Everybody’s fight to stay in it and come from behind was really pleasing. But I think there were a lot of areas of the game where we probably weren’t particularly happy with the way we did things.
“Our defense was not where it needed to be physically, and credit to the Aussies — they played incredibly well.”
Japan’s only win came against Ireland in 11 meetings at the 2019 World Cup, but Eddie Jones’ side head into Saturday’s match in fine form after opening the Nations Championship with an impressive 27-10 win over Italy in Tokyo.
“They play fast rugby. In the past I’ve played them they like to keep the pace of the game – it matches us,” Beirne observed.
“But especially physically, I think that’s going to be a big area of the game where we have to put a stamp on it.”
