Billy Burns: Ulster fly-half says his form 'didn't warrant Ireland selection for Six Nations'

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Billy BurnsImage source, Inpho
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Burns was named man-of-the-match in Ulster's recent URC win over Scarlets

Ulster fly-half Billy Burns says his current form does not warrant a place in Ireland's Six Nations squad.

Johnny Sexton, Jack Carty and Joey Carbery were named as the fly-halves in coach Andy Farrell's 37-strong squad for this year's tournament.

The number 10 was widely criticised for a mistake in the latter stages of Ireland's 21-16 defeat by Wales in Cardiff in the 2021 Six Nations.

"I want to get back in the Ireland fold but Ulster is my priority," said Burns.

"I was disappointed but I probably don't warrant my selection at the moment," added the 27-year-old, who won the first of his seven Ireland caps to date against Wales in the 2020 Autumn Nations Cup.

"I'm still trying to get that consistency week on week, to back up my performances.

"Ulster is my bread and butter. That is where I have to be performing and I'm hugely passionate about doing well for the club. If I do that I'll hopefully put myself in the picture [for Ireland] again.

"The guys who have been selected in front of me are playing really well - I just need to get back to that level and put my best foot forward again.

"I need to keep training hard, learning and keep going in the right direction, focusing on things I can do better day in, day out," Burns told BBC Sport NI's Ulster Rugby Live programme.

Burns, who is Irish-qualified by virtue of his Dublin-born paternal grandfather, came on as a replacement in Ireland's loss to the Welsh in the Millennium Stadium last year.

In the dying moments of the game he attempted to kick a penalty to touch, which could have given Ireland a chance to score a potentially match-winning try from the resulting lineout, but kicked it dead, allowing Wales to hold on to win.

The former Gloucester player started the following match, a narrow defeat against France, appeared off the bench in the following win against Italy and was an unused substitute in the victory over Scotland.

Image source, Inpho
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Ireland wing James Lowe consoles Billy Burns after his attempted kick to touch went awry in the final moments of the 2021 Six Nations defeat by Wales

'I was a shell of a man'

"It was difficult, really difficult. I struggled after that Six Nations to really find confidence again. At the time I probably went into my shell a bit, it was incredibly tough.

"Deep down I was a shell of a man, it was challenging. Things didn't go the way I wanted in terms of how I played but I feel I'm a much better person for it now and hopefully it will help me in the long run.

"They were my mistakes and my learnings and I wear that.

"I'm lucky that I have a brother who plays at a high level [Freddie Burns at Bath] and he made a couple of mistakes too. He bounced back though and others bounced back. I feel like I've done that too and I'm in a much better place.

"The primary focus for me at the moment is playing as well as I can for Ulster, being the best version of myself and if I get that chance again I'll do the best I can.

"I was on social media way too much and let it get me down. I've come off it a little bit. I'm enjoying my rugby more now, I'm more relaxed at home so those potentially can be the little percentages that get you back to where you were.

'An exciting place to be'

Burns recently signed a contract which will see him extend his stay with the Irish province until 2024, a move which he says was "an easy decision to make".

"Ulster are in an exciting place with a lot of exciting players coming through.

"We went through a period in lockdown when we were fortunate to be playing rugby but I wasn't enjoying my rugby as much - there were no crowds and it felt like the soul of the game had gone.

"But then our young players came in and the crowds were back. The energy the young lads bring is unbelievable - their hunger to get better, to improve.

"They are also good lads and the atmosphere around the club is good. It's a great place to be and it's nice to see a lot of those young boys getting recognition in the Six Nations camp and doing really well."

'Manner of Connacht defeat still hurts'

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Connacht roared to a 36-11 win over Ulster at the Aviva Stadium in October

Burns will hope to play a significant part in Ulster's United Rugby Championship encounter against Connacht at Kingspan Stadium on Friday, a fixture which has been rescheduled after initially being unable to take place on Boxing Day because of Covid-19 related issues.

"Everyone was disappointed it was called off at Christmas and while they [Connacht] will be disappointed at some of their recent results they are one of the best attacking sides in the league with some in-form players so it's going to be a huge challenge.

"The manner of our defeat to Connacht in Dublin in October is still something that hurts the boys when we talk about it so we'll hope to get some revenge in that regard.

"Every year our aim is to win silverware and we are still on a journey to find consistency.

"The last few weeks have been pretty good for us and the strength in depth we have is really encouraging. The more we can continue to build that depth the better we will be."

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