JAMIE OSBORNE has come a long way since he was surprised to see Andy Farrell’s face flash up on his phone.
But, after a tight win over Wales last time out, he still has some way to go to produce the performance levels required for the Six Nations.
Osborne was first called into the Ireland squad as a development player for the November Tests in 2021, the month in which he turned 20.
He recalled: “He rang me the week before I went in as a development player a few years ago.
“I was caught off-guard by the call but I saw his WhatsApp profile so I knew who it was. I was a bit shocked at the time.”
Osborne played for the Wolfhounds the following year and was called into the Six Nations squad proper in 2023.
But he had to wait until last summer to make his debut.
It was a baptism of fire at full-back in the two Tests against the Springboks, the first of which Ireland lost, with the second won.
There were further outings off the bench against New Zealand and Argentina and as a starter against Fiji before he was handed the No 15 shirt for the Cardiff clash 12 days ago.
It was not a vintage performance by any means, either by the team — which featured seven changes — as a whole or Osborne himself.
He threw a pass which was too low for Garry Ringrose to convert in the first half but redeemed himself when he touched down from Jamie Lowe’s tap down after the break.
Osborne, 23, said: “I think the team will learn from it.
“The first half was not how we wanted it to go — a lot of errors, including myself.
“But I thought the way we bounced back in the second half . . . we were five points down with a man in the bin and we managed to find a way to get back into it.
“It was probably not in the way that we were expecting to go out to play before the game.
“We went to a bit more of a kicking game and put pressure back on them and we learned a lot in that second half.”
On the butchered opportunity, he said: “I knew it should have been a try. I was definitely frustrated at the time.
“I didn’t want to let that cloud my judgement or anything for the rest of the game.
“There was a lot of rugby to be played after that.
“I wanted to come off the pitch being relatively happy with the performance so I think it’s best to drop the mistakes as soon as they happen.
“I was frustrated at the time but I tried my best to forget about it.
“I suppose I was pleased with some of the stuff in the second half.
“When you reflect, it could have been better but I was relatively pleased and happy to get the win.”
And he insisted that he was not preoccupied with trying to catch the eye to try to ensure a more prolonged run in the team under interim boss Simon Easterby.
He said: “I wouldn’t really think about trying to stand out as much. Everyone is trying to do their role as best they can.
“If you do your role well and perform well the coaches will see that and people will see that and as a team, we probably play better.
“It’s not something I’d be chasing, to stand out.
“But I try to do the best I can and when the team performance goes well, I think that everyone benefits from that.”
FULL BACKING
While his international starts so far have come at full-back, he had not played in that position for two years before being picked there in South Africa.
And, so, he is hoping to keep his hand in as an option at centre too.
He said: “It definitely helps. I’ve played most of my pro career in the centre, then full-back and a little bit on the wing so I’d be confident in whatever place I end up going.
“There’s a couple of us on the team that cover a couple of positions so we get reps at each of the positions as much as we can.”
Whatever his role, with a place among the replacements looking most likely, he should be more involved than when France last came to town two years ago when he watched it at home, having been in camp but not made the matchday squad.
He said: “I remember I was watching the game in the Aviva two years ago and that was probably one of the best games I’ve ever watched. It was end to end.
“I think the ball-in-play time was ridiculously high as well.
“I think you knew watching that those teams at the time were probably the two best in the world.
“They’re the games you want to play in and hopefully it will be more of the same this week.”
