Leinster senior coach Stuart Lancaster says Jamison Gibson-Park has shown that he's an international quality scrum-half during the Six Nations.
The New Zealand-native started in both the loss to France last month and the recent victory against Italy and now has eight caps for his adopted country.
Almost half of 29-year-old's appearances for Leinster have been from the bench but he's moved ahead of his provincial teammate Luke McGrath in the international pecking order.
Having recovered from injury, Conor Murray is in contention to return to the side for Sunday's match at Scotland, but Lancaster feels Gibson-Park has performed well in his first year in the green shirt.
“It’s great to see him come over here as a quiet young man and grow into an international player," the former England coach said at. press conference head of Leinster's trip to Zebre.
“I think he believes he is the number one, thinks he should be starting. As a consequence, he plays like that. So, he plays with a lot more control and composure.
“He’s experienced now. He has played in a lot of good environments, Super Rugby, but also here in Leinster. Now he has tasted international rugby as well.
“I thought his last performance was his best. It will be interesting to see what they do this weekend because you certainly wouldn’t worry if he was starting again.”
Team of Us. Everyone In.
Vodafone. The main sponsor of the Irish Rugby Team
Download the brand new OffTheBall App in the Play Store & App Store right now! We've got you covered!
Subscribe to OffTheBall's YouTube channel for more videos, like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter for the latest sporting news and content.
