There was one main talking point from Joe Schmidt's team announcement for the Wales game.

While Paul O'Connell returns after recovering from a chest infection, Luke Marshall was left out as the experienced Gordon D'Arcy comes in at 12.

Off The Ball's Dave McIntyre caught up with the Ireland head coach and Schmidt shed some light on his thinking.

"It wasn't a tough call in terms of freshness. Gordon obviously didn't play at all last week and he was able to freshen himself up and get a real good start to the weekend. Last week it was the reverse because Gordon had a stomach bug," said Schmidt who also explained that he has chosen Devin Toner ahead of Dan Tuohy with the lineout in mind.

While Schmidt could have a few aces up his sleeve, he is advocating a simple approach due to circumstances.

"I think you'll see a bit of simplicity in what we're trying to do in attack just because the window's been small and the weather forecast has been poor. We've got to make sure we're efficient and precise. We've got to bring a focused physical approach to everything we do."

Image: Schmidt at today's captain's run ©INPHO/Billy Stickland