There may have only been one game in the Guinness PRO14 over the weekend, but that hasn’t stopped news coming out of the league thick and fast. With the Six Nations just around the corner, we start by turning our attention to the international stage ahead of the Championship getting underway this weekend. While a tackle is yet to be made in anger, Eamon Sweeney of the Irish Independent already believes new Ireland boss Andy Farrell has made an error in selecting Johnny Sexton as captain. Instead, Sweeney argues, fellowLeinster man James Ryan should have been given the honour after a season in which he has helped the club to the summit of the PRO14 Conference A table. However,Munster’s Chris Farrell has no such concerns about the state of the Irish set-up heading into the Six Nations and has been impressed by the way his new coach has approached training. #TeamOfUsAn intense session on Saturday, a freshness in camp, competition for places - we hear from Chris Farrell at Ireland's training camp in Portugal.#TeamOfUs #ShoulderToShoulder #GuinnessSixNations pic.twitter.com/obTPzpkWOJ— Irish Rugby (@IrishRugby) January 26, 2020 Scarlets look to have pulled off a sizable coup after securing the services of Welsh U20 starlet Sam Costelow on a two-year deal. The 19-year-old is expected to have a bright future in the game and has impressed with Leicester Tigers where he has made his first strides in the senior set-up. Meanwhile, reports claim former Wales scrum-half Dwayne Peel could be set to take up the head coach role with PRO14 sideOspreys. Having impressed as assistant at Ulster, Peel is in the running to take the top job at Ospreys who are still on the lookout for a successor to Allen Clarke. Ospreys parted company with Clarke in November and are in dire need of a change in fortunes after a campaign which has left them rock bottom of the Conference A table. Finally, it’s back to Six Nations build-up and it seems everyone has an opinion on how Ireland boss Farrell should approach his side’s opener against Scotland on Saturday. For former Ireland international Alan Quinlan, one of the big decisions comes at scrum-half where he believes it is a toss up to start betweenUlster’s John Cooney andMunster man Conor Murray. Quinlan opts for the latter, writing in the Irish Independent: “Cooney was a strong front-runner heading into Christmas, but in recent weeks I feel the crisp Conor Murray of old has started to re-emerge.”
