Jamie Osborne, looking manor-born, comfortable in an Ireland shirt - any Ireland shirt
Jamie Osbourne isn't a natural full-back but he is a natural footballer, more pertinently a breakthrough player Andy Farrell wants in the team.Injuries to Hugo Keenan. Jimmy O'Brien and Mack Hansen has seen him rerouted to full-back for the opening Six Nations game with France where there were back-three positioning/connectivity issues.It is no accident Tommy O'Brien and Jacob Stockdale paid the price, Osborne got to go again and, lessons learned, understood and applied, he came within an ace of the man of the match award against Italy.Indeed, there is a case to be made that the 24 year-old was the best no15 on view across the tournament's three fixtures at the weekend while there was a neatly timed try that opened the Ireland scoring."I think it was a real team effort, I can't remember how it started now but I think we worked our way into the 22 well.READ MORE: IRFU investigating 'cowardly' racist abuse directed at Ireland star Edwin EdogboREAD MORE: Ireland's second-half pressure delivers hard-fought win over Italy at the Aviva"Then with Stu (McCloskey), when he gets the ball you know he's probably going to get his hands free ao I just tried to run off him and I was lucky enough to get a ball from him and score."When you see him carrying forward and you're behind him you know you've got a good chance he's going to pop the ball to you, we had a close one in Chicago if you can remember.He always gets good go-forward ball and he's so good at getting his hands free"He's a joy to play with , he comes out with a bit of unexpected stuff as well but he's a joy to play with - and to be fair I didn't expect him to throw a quarterback pass to Rob Baloucoune."There was also a try for the aforementioned Baloucoune. “I thought Rob was class, he's been great about it, it was my first week really training with him as well and I thought just his ability with the ball, he gets his hands free as well."His ability to beat defenders and his own out speed is a real point of difference for him and he's a joy to play with."It was good to get back to winning ways after the opening week's disappointment. "Andy alluded to the intent factor last week and how it wasn't really there and I think it wasn't perfect today but I think we brought a lot more intent."We had some, I thought, very nice passages to play and it might have been a wide breakdown or the last pass that would come undone but I thought it was a lot more positive anyway. I know there's a lot to work on but I think we can be pleased with the intent part of the game.“They're a good side, we didn't take them lightly at any stage, in Autumn, they obviously beat Australia, pushed South Africa, they’d great win last week against Scotland in tough conditions. So I don't think anyone should be looking at Italy now as a weaker team, I think they're definitely right up there."There was a lot to be taken from holding firm at the finish. "It was such a team effort at the end, I think we'll learn a lot about how we can manage that better and hope that we don't put ourselves in those positions."Because, probably around discipline and just giving them access, we could definitely be better there but the effort and the intensity at that stage in the game was top notch.“As a team we probably felt better. It's all part of the same, the intent last week was a bit off, everyone was a bit off it seems, so I think everyone's feeling better.Onwards and upwards, Twickenham and England next weekend. “Hugely exciting, I think any sport, Ireland vs England is a proper game. England at Twickenham, you've seen how good they've been recently at home."They played very well last week against Wales and they are a team with very high confidence and we're probably a team that is starting to build now.""So we're coming into it a little bit differently but I can't wait to get stuck into them if I am excited. I think we're building something good here."Want to see more of the stories you love from the Irish Mirror? Making us your preferred source on Google means you’ll get more of our exclusives, top stories and must-read content straight away. To add Irish Mirror as a preferred source, simply click here
