Tadhg Beirne says captaining Ireland for the first time is one of the proudest moments of his career.
He’ll lead the team out in Saturday’s Nations Championship clash against Japan in Newcastle, Australia.
The experienced Munster lock will earn his 72nd Test cap after being handed the captaincy by Andy Farrell, with regular skipper Caelan Doris unavailable through injury and Dan Sheehan rested after leading Ireland to last week’s 33-31 victory over Australia.
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Beirne has previously captained Ireland during matches, but never from the opening whistle.
“It’s a huge honour,” Beirne said.
“I’ve had the honour of being captain on field when our main guys haven’t been there – Dan and Caelan.
“But to lead the guys out from the start, again I revert to that word ‘special’, because it is a special, special moment for me and my family.”
Ireland opened their Nations Championship campaign with a hard-fought win over the Wallabies, but Beirne admitted there was plenty to improve despite the result.
“There’s a lot of positives, obviously,” he said.
“The fight from everyone to stay in it and come from behind was really pleasing.
“But I think there’s a lot of areas of the game where we probably weren’t particularly happy with the way we did things.
“Our defence wasn’t where it needed to be physically, and credit to the Aussies – they played incredibly well.”
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Ireland now face a Japan side brimming with confidence after upsetting Italy 27-10 in Tokyo, and Beirne expects another demanding contest.
“They play fast rugby,” he said.
“I’ve played them in the past and they like to keep the tempo of the game up. It’s on us to match that.
“But especially physically, I think that’s going to be a big area of the game where we’re going to have to put a stamp on it.”
Our skipper in green for the first time.
pic.twitter.com/OflDAB6mjE
— Irish Rugby (@IrishRugby) July 9, 2026
– AFP
Photo: Morgan Hancock/Getty Images
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Tadhg Beirne says captaining Ireland for the first time is one of the proudest moments of his career.
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