CHICAGO, IL - The Irish national rugby team is gearing up to kick off its November series on Saturday at Soldier Field against Italy.

By Louis Ricard

The Irishmen will face Italy as part of The Rugby Weekend, with the USA Women against New Zealand and the USA Men vs the Maori All Blacks rounding out the schedule. All are LIVE on FloRugby.

Forwards coach Simon Easterby acknowledged Tuesday that Ireland won't have every player available for this game, but added that both his team and Italy need to build depth going into a Rugby World Cup Year.

“The starting team will always be given a large percentage of the game,” forward coach Simon Easterby said. “There will be certain individuals that we’ll want to see a little bit more of.”

Among the players on the coaches’ radar figure halfbacks Joey Carbury, Ross Byrne, Luke McGrath, and John Cooney. “We’ve been fairly consistent probably in our selection over the past couple of seasons,” Easterby said. “It’s great that those guys will share some responsibilities.”

The halfbacks are not the only point of focus for this young Irish squad. Some players are returning from injuries, including flanker John Van Der Flier who is back after an eight-month absence due to a cruciate ligament rupture. 

“I’m trying to come back a better player,” Van Der Flier said. “Trying to be as positive as I could, but obviously it’s always tough seeing other people on the field and you wish you were right there.” 

Ireland vs Italy Kicks Off 3pm CT Nov 3 - Watch Live

The Leinster flanker has been rehabbing since his leg injury against France in the Six Nation tournament. He knows that the level of competition is at an all-time high to earn a starting job on this Irish team. According to Van Der Flier, there is no margin for error. 

“If you’re not playing at your best, you won’t play.” 

In a rematch from the Six Nations, Ireland will face an Italian team that is also resting some key players, including veteran captain Sergio Parisse. However, the team is still looking to compete with a threatening 9-10 duo comprising scrumhalf Tito Tebaldi and flyhalf Carlo Canna according to Easterby. 

“We also know that, whenever you play Italy, you know you’re in a game physically,” Easterby said. “It doesn’t matter who they select, they’re a very physical side. We know how much it will take to beat them and how important is it that we get our house in order in terms of the fundamentals of our game.”