JOE SCHMIDT’S return to the Aviva Stadium has dominated the headlines this week — but Ireland captain Caelan Doris is not focused on that.

Andy Farrell’s men are keen to make it a 150th anniversary match to remember against Australia in their Autumn Nations Series finale.

Five years after handing the reins to Farrell — who worked alongside the Kiwi as an assistant coach from 2016 to 2019 — Schmidt returns this afternoon as Wallabies chief.

Australia are aiming to bounce back from a defeat to Scotland in Edinburgh last weekend.

Today also marks Farrell’s last game in charge as he leaves to focus on leading the Lions Down Under next year.

This showdown is also being billed as a 150th anniversary game for the IRFU.

And Leinster No  8 Doris has revealed the historic element to the game has been a talking point.

The skipper said: “The history has been touched on quite a bit — not just this week, but generally it’s something we talk about.

“The legacy of Irish rugby and how the success of teams in the past inspired us to play and how we want to inspire the next generation through how we play.

“It is talked about quite a bit and the jersey definitely means a lot to us. It’s important and it serves as an extra motivation for us.”

Today’s game will see Cian Healy become Ireland’s most-capped player, provided he is sprung from the bench by Faz.

The prop became Leinster’s record appearance holder — with 282 caps — when the Blues faced the Dragons in the URC at the end of September.

And ahead of what Healy, 37, hopes is his 134th Ireland outing, Doris waxed lyrical about his provincial and international pal.

Healy — a keen artist — made his bow for Ireland against the Wallabies at Croke Park in 2009.

And Doris said: “He’s a great fella and is very popular among the squad.

“We were actually watching some of his highlights during the week from his debut against Australia, funnily enough in Croke Park, and 134 caps is just wild.

“I think that’s in large part a testament to how well he looks after himself.

“I had the pleasure of rooming with him in Ireland for about four years and he’s up to all sorts of tricks in terms of his recovery.

“He is sometimes sleeping on the ground with his legs elevated.

“He is sleeping on acupressure mats, does mindfulness and even has all sorts of cold showers.

“He does loads of stretching and it has stood to him in terms of his body and the ability to stay going at this age.

“He is very much his own man as well. People were saying during the week how he hasn’t changed a lot since when he first came in.

“He’s got his own unique and obscure hobbies and does his own thing off the pitch.

“He’s true to himself, which is a good thing.”

DEFINING DAY

While he led Ireland against Italy and South Africa earlier this year, Doris’ first game after being officially named captain was in the Autumn Nations opening loss to New Zealand earlier this month.

Farrell’s men went down 23-13 to the All Blacks at the Aviva but the Mayo man has since guided his team to victories over Argentina and Fiji.

And Doris knows this afternoon’s clash is likely to define how this November window is going to be viewed.

With that in mind, he is hopeful the Green Army can sign off on 2024 with victory at Lansdowne Road.

Doris explained: “We have the chance to go three from four and improve our performance.

“A lot lies on this weekend in terms of the success of the autumn for us and how that’s viewed in terms of how we get our performance right.

“The first meeting when we came in this autumn was about continual growth and improvement, and players trying to take it to another level.

“Other teams are getting better. We’re not playing South Africa but you can see their improvements through the year and we need to be doing the same.

“I think we showed that in the first half against Argentina.

“We showed that at times last week against Fiji but we definitely need to show it again this week.”

With Munster’s Tadhg Beirne and Leinster’s Josh van der Flier lining up with Doris for the third time in four games, Ireland have a settled back row.

AUSSIE EDGE?

But Aussie trio Rob Valetini, Fraser McReight and Harry Wilson are a formidable combination.

And the Ireland skipper is expecting a robust challenge — having faced Valetini in a 13-10 win two years ago in Dublin.

Doris added: “Harry Wilson is obviously their captain and he’s a pretty talismanic figure for them.

“Fraser McReight is class at No 7 and I think he’s got a pretty varied skill set and gets lots of turnovers.

“Rob Valetini is a very hard runner. He is a big physical presence and hits hard. I remember tackling him here back in 2022.

“He’s a big man and he is a hard man to take down. We’ll have our hands full with them.”