Fiona Hayes: Having coached a few quiet 10s, it’s something that’s very hard to shift. It’s almost like they have to change their personality and become someone else when they are on the pitch and no one wants to do that.

The other side of that, I’ve seen Jack [Crowley]. I’ve been around and seen him down there and he’s not a very out-there, outgoing guy either. But it just seems like he has that natural ability to have that confidence when he’s on the pitch and he’s young.

Could Joey Carbery have been Rob’s long-term successor at full-back if he chose that position over out-half?

Kearney: You’re always very reluctant to become a player that is very capable at two positions. Very quickly, you get moved into the utility bracket. A lot of time you find yourself filling the number 22 shirt. Joey was and is a very good full-back. At provincial level, very capable.

If he had the ability to be a very good international full-back, I’m not so sure. There’s a big difference in that position. In terms of provincial and international. I always know that Stuart Lancaster is someone who thinks that he’s an out and out 15. He thought that for a long time. It’s a coach’s decision to decide where people’s best positions are.

Should Andy Farrell be looking to start Ross Byrne and/or Jack Crowley in at least one Six Nations game?

Hannah Tyrrell: The 10 role, you have to be given opportunities. Joey has had plenty of them. You do not become a good 10 overnight. You need playing time, you need minutes. You need to be able to build a relationship with your 9, with your forward pack and your back line.

Some players grasp that much quicker and develop into that much quicker than others. It’s about having that control and that calmness, to be able to do that amidst the chaos. I think Ross Byrne is perfect for that. I think he is the coolest guy I’ve ever seen on a rugby pitch. Nothing seems to phase him.

Heaslip: I can’t see a world where Johnny [Sexton] goes seven games on the bounce, starting. I don’t know if I can see Johnny even doing 80 minutes of a game these days. I used to abuse him about that myself when I played with him. It’s a rarity. God forbid a player actually plays 80 minutes!

I don’t know if you start Jack yet, but you can definitely give him plenty of minutes. I probably think it will be Ross or Johnny, all things equal, who will be starting games.

Would you be inclined to throw Tadhg Furlong straight back into the starting line-up for Ireland’s opening game against Wales – despite his recent injury problems?

Fiona Hayes: I think so. I think the word is he’s being managed with the Six Nations in mind. I think if Leinster really needed him, we might have seen him in the European games, but they seem to be ploughing through without him. We saw his ability to really anchor that scrum and we saw with [Michael] Ala’alatoa the last couple of games, maybe he doesn’t have the same dynamic across the pitch.

I think it just cemented how important Furlong is for Ireland to me, in watching that. He’s the complete anchor of that scrum. [Finlay] Bealham and other players are standing up at interprovincial level, but I fully, firmly believe if he’s fit to go he’ll be out there and minutes won’t matter. Minutes he has played with Leinster won’t matter because he has the ability to do his job at scrum time and around the park as well.

Kearney: I was always quite lucky that I could come back from an injury and go straight into a game. Sort of feel comfortable straight away, because I had to do it so many times, probably.

I think you find with forwards generally, they need a couple of more games to get their conditioning back a little bit. To find their comfort levels, but it’s very dependent on each different personality and player.

What are Ireland’s chances of winning the Six Nations?

Jamie Heaslip: My heart says Ireland for the Six Nations, my head says it’s going to be tough. I think Steve Borthwick is going to have a massive impact on England and will put structure on them. They’ll actually have consistency in terms of selection and direction as opposed to Eddie Jones, who was constantly playing mind games externally and internally.

I think it’s an important milestone for them [Ireland] to hit, to win the Six Nations. They’ll be more than capable of doing it and will set their stall out to do it.

Rob Kearney: I think Ireland and I’ll go a step further. I think it’s going to be a Grand Slam year. I really do. I think this could be huge for Irish rugby.