London (AFP)
Ireland's XV-flyhalf Jonathan Sexton, who has been spared from the start of World Cup preparations, will make his return to Wales on Saturday, the last game before the trip to Japan, he said on Tuesday. .
"I'm impatient," said the best world player of the year 2018, spared in the first 3 games of preparation against Italy (29-10), England (defeat 57-15) and the country of Wales (22-17).
Sexton (34, 83 sel.) Was due to return to Cardiff last week, but was eventually spared due to "stiffness and pain". Previously, it was an injury to an inch that had thwarted his preparation for a 3rd and probably last World.
At the same press point, coach Joe Schmidt brushed aside the criticism of World Rugby Vice President Agustin Pichot against the selection for the World Cup of South African Jean Kleyn, calling them "without interest".
Formalized Monday, this choice pushed out of the group the second line Devin Toner (33 years and 67 selections), while Kleyn (26 years old, 2 sel.) Did not obtain his eligibility for Ireland, after three years only two days before his first selection against Italy.
"If I were a Devin Toner ... I would ask World Rugby questions, I feel sorry for him," said Pichot, who obtained the length of residency prior to eligibility from 3 to 5 consecutive years, a reform that will only come into effect in 2020.
Former Green captain Brian O'Driscoll said the decision "defies understanding".
Pichot "has a bunch of opinions that have been stopped, but are of no interest to us," Schmidt said, insisting that "if we follow the rules of the game, as it is, we have the right to choose who we want from the qualified players ".
© 2019 AFP