Humphreys chasing Kyle's Irish record

David Humphreys is hoping for the slice of the action against Georgia tomorrow which will send him into the record books alongside…

David Humphreys is hoping for the slice of the action against Georgia tomorrow which will send him into the record books alongside one of the game's all-time greats.

An appearance from the replacements' bench in Ireland's World Cup qualifier at Lansdowne Road this weekend will see Humphreys equal fellow Ulsterman Jack Kyle as his country's most capped out-half.

Legendary fly-half Kyle made 46 appearances for Ireland between 1947 and 1958 and Humphreys, first capped in 1996, said: "I'm just hoping to get on.

"I wasn't aware of the record until last weekend and I didn't even realise I was that close to it. Obviously it depends if I get on or not but if I do it will be a huge honour to be even considered alongside him.

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"At the same time, there have been a number of players through the years who have been equally good. Just because I'm equalling his record and because of the connection with Ulster there is something in it."

Humphreys is keen to play down his achievement, saying: "I've met Jack quite a few times, he's back in Ulster now and I've been to a number of functions where he's been present. He's very interesting to chat to and a very interesting guy.

"But I never expected to get anywhere near this number of caps and some of those have been as a substitute. He has 46 caps over a long number of years."