JOE SCHMIDT said yesterday that he has given his Ireland stars no indication who is in the running to face Wales in Cardiff next weekend.

Ulster lock Iain Henderson admitted head coach Schmidt was “keeping us in the dark” over selection for the first of four World Cup warm-up matches.

Ireland take on Wales at the Millennium Stadium on August 8 before facing Scotland, Wales again in a return match in Dublin and England.

Schmidt has been at pains not to reduce his resources by whittling down his training group before he names his 31-man World Cup squad on the August 31 deadline.

“Joe is so hard to predict when it comes to selecting squads,” Henderson said.

“He keeps us on our toes at all times, so it’s typical of him to be keeping us in the dark and that’s what’s happening now.

“It’s making everyone work harder and harder all the time and that in turn probably puts more pressure on him just to make those selections decisions.

“We’re not even sure what the squad will be like for next weekend’s game yet — Joe has kept us in the dark on that and no doubt that’s deliberate.”

Schmidt’s men will open their World Cup Pool D account by facing Canada at the Millennium Stadium on September 19, before clashes against Romania, Italy and France.