As he announced his team selection on Wednesday afternoon, Ireland head coach Andy Farrell acknowledged his side are not presently “good enough to board the plane believing that 100%” they are ready to lift the Webb Ellis trophy for the first time.
A year out from the World Cups of 2015, 2019 and 2023, Ireland had enjoyed banner seasons, and by this stage were eagerly anticipating the tournaments to come.
While that has not been the case through 2026 to date, the head coach added that he is excited by the thought of the work still to do.
If wider optimism around next year feels in short supply, it is because Ireland’s issues have come to bear when playing the very best.
Across the past two years, their only six defeats have come in the six games they have played against New Zealand, South Africa and France. All came via double-digit scores.
As such, the eye has long been drawn to the visit of the Springboks to Dublin on 21 November, but there can be no looking past a dangerous Argentina fixture.
The Pumas will be expected to provide a good yardstick for both the collective and a number of individuals in an intriguing selection.
With Jack Crowley injured, Sam Prendergast has another opportunity to grab the 10 jersey. When the then 21-year-old made his debut in this fixture two years ago, it certainly felt like a selection with the future, and the 2027 World Cup, in mind.
The Leinster player has had an uneven start to his Test career, and had lost his place in even his provincial 23 by the time of last season’s Champions Cup final, but has the chance to lay down a real marker this month.
Farrell has also put his faith in two regular bench options from the start.
For all the talk of Prendergast’s readiness to be Johnny Sexton’s long-term successor at fly-half, the now assistant coach’s role as the backline’s cerebral fulcrum has already been assumed by Jamison Gibson-Park.
Arguably Ireland’s most important player during this World Cup cycle, the scrum-half missed the start of the season with a groin injury but was player of the match in his return against Munster at the Aviva Stadium.
He will start this window on the bench with Craig Casey instead getting the nod. The 27-year-old will win his 31st cap on Friday but will be making just a second start against a side currently in the top eight of the world rankings.
It is a similar story for Nick Timoney, preferred here to Josh van der Flier, who has become a trusted bench option over the past 12 months but gets a start against this level of opposition for the first time.
Without Caelan Doris and Jack Conan through injury, how the Ulster flanker, Sean Jansen and Ryan Baird fare against what is an abrasive Argentina back row should have a big impact on the game.
