Ireland injury list ‘larger than normal’ – Farrell

Ireland head coach Andy Farrell says he hopes the Six Nations will be a “good experience” for the more untested players in his squad as he admitted his injury list is a “bit larger than normal”.

Before Ireland’s opener against holders France in Paris on 5 February (20:10 GMT), Farrell’s preparations have been disrupted by an increasing number of absentees.

With backs Mack Hansen and Jamie Osborne already missing, Ireland’s options at loose-head prop are looking especially depleted with injuries to Andrew Porter, Paddy McCarthy and Jack Boyle leading to a call-up for Connacht’s uncapped 20-year-old Billy Bohan.

“It is what it is. It’s bit larger than normal but there’s always something going on, there’s always someone retiring, in form, out of form, injured etc,” Farrell told the BBC at Monday’s Six Nations launch in Edinburgh.

“It’ll be a good experience for the guys that are coming in. We want to make sure we see the rest of the squad galvanise those guys and give them the belief they had coming in when people helped them starting off at international level.

“These types of experiences are always going to stand for us, hopefully in the here and now.”

Ireland come into this year’s championship off the back of an underwhelming 2025 in which they relinquished the Six Nations title to France and endured a mixed autumn with defeats by New Zealand and South Africa and victories over Japan and Australia.

And Farrell – who did not coach Ireland in last year’s Six Nations because of his British and Irish Lions commitments – has urged his squad to learn from the November Tests.

“Different type of season for us. No excuses, it’s just a matter of making sure we learn from how we keep evolving as a team.

“Obviously the game is changing as well, moving with the times of that and sorting out a few things like our discipline.

“People are getting caught up with how much the ball is being kicked at this moment in time, but I still believe there’s the scope for some good rugby along the way as well.”

Farrell led Ireland to the Grand Slam in 2023 and another title in 2024, and while interim boss Simon Easterby secured the Triple Crown last year, the head coach has his sights set on reclaiming top spot from France.

“It’s about growing as a group and learning from the experience, but at the same time we like winning,” said the 50-year-old.

“That’s pretty important but we’ll see where we are after the first game.”

Andrew Porter: Farrell’s long-term first-choice at loose-head, Porter is out with a calf injury and was not included in last week’s squad. It is unsure when he will return.

Paddy McCarthy: Porter’s understudy is sidelined after sustaining what Leinster called a “significant” foot injury against La Rochelle earlier this month. Like Porter, the 22-year-old was not selected last week.

Jack Boyle: Porter and McCarthy’s Leinster team-mate was in pole position to start in Paris next week before suffering an Achilles injury against Connacht on Saturday. Leinster have said he will have surgery this week.

Mack Hansen: The popular wing who starred at full-back last autumn has not played since Ireland’s loss to South Africa in November and has been ruled out for the rest of the season with a foot injury.

Ryan Baird: The 26-year-old is still out with a leg injury after starting all four autumn Tests.

Robbie Henshaw: The experienced centre was left out of Farrell’s squad after picking up a knee problem in Leinster’s win over Bayonne on 17 January. In an injury bulletin on Monday, Leinster said there was no further update on the 32-year-old.

Tom Ahern: The Munster lock, who has been struggling with a neck injury, was replaced by Ulster’s Cormac Izuchukwu in a squad update issued on Sunday.

Calvin Nash: The 28-year-old wing, who scored in Ireland’s Six Nations win over Scotland last year, has struggled with a shoulder problem this season and is currently unavailable.

Jimmy O’Brien: Was not picked by Farrell after injuring his hamstring against Bayonne.

Shayne Bolton: The 25-year-old, who was part of Farrell’s squad in November, is expected to miss the tournament with a quad injury.

Jordan Larmour: The injury-prone wing has not played since early December because of a hamstring complaint.

On a more positive note for Ireland, Farrell is hoping to have Hugo Keenan, Jamie Osborne, Finlay Bealham and Tadhg Furlong back for the France game after recovering from their respective injuries.