THE IRFU’S HIGH performance centre just outside Dublin is a busy place this week.
Simon Easterby’s 40-man senior Ireland squad are in the thick of their preparations for Saturday’s Six Nations clash in Cardiff, while another 29 players have gathered as the Ireland A group for Sunday’s meeting with England A.
The A international will take place in Bristol, just an hour’s drive from Cardiff, so it will be handy for the senior coaching staff and the travelling Irish media alike.
It’s an exciting week for the 69 players called upon and this wider group gives us some idea as to how Ireland are planning for a summer tour when they will be missing a fair few frontliners due to the Lions tour.
Ireland are set to face Georgia and Portugal on a two-Test tour in July, with games in Tbilisi and Lisbon, and Easterby will continue as head coach for that trip with Andy Farrell on the Lions tour.
Right now, Easterby only has avoiding any Six Nations slip-up in Cardiff on his mind. While there might be a couple of tweaks to their starting XV this weekend, Ireland seem unlikely to experiment despite Wales’ woes.
Skipper Caelan Doris is a major doubt due to his knee injury, meaning Jack Conan is in line to start at number eight and Peter O’Mahony could be named captain. Hooker Rónan Kelleher is also a doubt with a neck issue, so Dan Sheehan could come into the number two shirt and there might be a chance for the highly-regarded Gus McCarthy off the bench unless Rob Herring’s experience is preferred.
This seems like a decent chance for Jack Boyle to make his debut as the replacement loosehead prop, especially considering that he was excellent for Leinster away to the Ospreys on Friday night with Easterby watching on in the stands, even if Cian Healy is the experienced option.
Joe McCarthy and Mack Hansen are back from injuries so will probably feature, although Tadhg Furlong remains a doubt.
Diarmuid Mangan is part of the senior Ireland squad. Tom Maher / INPHO
Tom Maher / INPHO / INPHO
Jamie Osborne deserves another cap but overall, Ireland will likely opt for a strong degree of continuity as they bid to continue building momentum in their quest for a Grand Slam.
And even while that is happening, there has been plenty of chance to assess options in the wider group.
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Ignore the Ireland A squad briefly and the fresh faces introduced to senior Ireland camp this week mean Easterby and co. have already worked with 46 different players during this Six Nations window. That number rises to 47 when you consider that Craig Casey will be in camp this week as he continues his recovery from a knee injury.
Ulster back row James McNabney, Connacht scrum-half Ben Murphy, Leinster centre Hugh Cooney, and Connacht centre Cathal Forde joined the initial 36-man squad as development players, getting their first taste of Ireland camp when they travelled to Portugal ahead of the championship.
This week, uncapped Munster flanker John Hodnett and Leinster lock/blindside Diarmuid Mangan have been named in the senior squad, while Ulster backs Stuart McCloskey and Jacob Stockdale return after injury. There are also recalls for Ulser’s Nick Timoney and Munster number eight Gavin Coombes, who had missed out on selection in recent times.
With Iain Henderson and Cormac Izuchukwu both having picked up injuries and McCarthy only coming back from his, Ireland needed to bring in another lock this week and 21-year-old Mangan was an eye-catching pick.
The Ireland A game may have made it a trickier decision given that Easterby and co. want to see players getting game time in that fixture, but Mangan is a big, powerful athlete who previously showed his potential with the Ireland U20s.
Indeed, he follows Sam Pendergast and Gus McCarthy in making the step from that 2023 Grand Slam-winning, World Cup-finalist U20 side into the senior squad, even if caps are unlikely to come as quickly for Mangan.
McNabney was on that team, too, while the Ireland A squad includes several others from the 2023 side in Brian Gleeson – excellent off the bench for Munster last weekend - Evan O’Connell, Conor O’Tighearnaigh, Hugh Gavin, Fintan Gunne, Andrew Osborne, and Paddy McCarthy – impressive in replacing Boyle for Leinster against the Ospreys.
Evan O'Connell is part of the Ireland A squad. Ken Sutton / INPHO
Ken Sutton / INPHO / INPHO
It’s pleasing for Irish rugby to see this conversion from U20 level, with the Emerging Ireland stepping stone helpful for some, as well as all-important exposure with their provinces and in the AIL.
There are also more seasoned pros involved in the Ireland A selection, including skipper Max Deegan, Oli Jager, Tom O’Toole [seemingly picked as a loosehead here], Fineen Wycherley, Shane Daly, and Harry Byrne, all of whom have been capped at Test level in the Andy Farrell era.
Byrne is an interesting case given that he is currently with Bristol but his loan move has revitalised him and he is now seemingly wanted by Ulster, Connacht, and Munster ahead of next season as they all look to add an out-half to their squads. Byrne’s Leinster contract was due to cover next season too so it will be interesting to see where the 25-year-old ends up.
Already, the success of his move to Bristol shows why IRFU performance director David Humphreys is open to similar short-term deals in the future.
As well as presumably giving players a boost with the honour of wearing an Ireland jersey again, this A international allows Irish coaching talent to have a valuable experience too.
Mike Prendergast is head coach, while Jimmy Duffy, Seán O’Brien, Mark Sexton, and Colm Tucker are also involved in another nod to development.
Given that Farrell could bring at least one of his senior Ireland assistants on the Lions tour, it might be that a couple of these Ireland A coaches end up as part of the senior tour to Georgia and Portugal.
Ireland and Ireland A players:
Ireland A players in italics
Hookers: Dan Sheehan, Rónan Kelleher, Rob Herring, Gus McCarthy, Diarmuid Barron, Stephen Smyth
Loosehead props: Andrew Porter, Cian Healy, Jack Boyle, Tom O’Toole, Paddy McCarthy
Tighthead props: Tadhg Furlong, Finlay Bealham, Thomas Clarkson, Jack Aungier, Oli Jager
Locks: James Ryan, Tadhg Beirne, Joe McCarthy, Diarmuid Mangan, Evan O’Connell, Conor O’Tighearnaigh, Fineen Wycherley, Darragh Murray
Back rows: Caelan Doris, Josh van der Flier, Peter O’Mahony, Jack Conan, Ryan Baird, Cian Prendergast, Nick Timoney, Gavin Coombes, John Hodnett, Max Deegan, Brian Gleeson, Alex Kendellen, James Culhane, Sean Jansen, Alex Soroka
Back threes: James Lowe, Hugo Keenan, Mack Hansen, Calvin Nash, Jamie Osborne, Jimmy O’Brien, Jacob Stockdale, Shayne Bolton, Shane Daly, Ben O’Connor, Tommy O’Brien, Andrew Osborne, Zac Ward.
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Busy week for Ireland and Ireland A gives bigger-picture view
THE IRFU’S HIGH performance centre just outside Dublin is a busy place this week.
Simon Easterby’s 40-man senior Ireland squad are in the thick of their preparations for Saturday’s Six Nations clash in Cardiff, while another 29 players have gathered as the Ireland A group for Sunday’s meeting with England A.
The A international will take place in Bristol, just an hour’s drive from Cardiff, so it will be handy for the senior coaching staff and the travelling Irish media alike.
It’s an exciting week for the 69 players called upon and this wider group gives us some idea as to how Ireland are planning for a summer tour when they will be missing a fair few frontliners due to the Lions tour.
Ireland are set to face Georgia and Portugal on a two-Test tour in July, with games in Tbilisi and Lisbon, and Easterby will continue as head coach for that trip with Andy Farrell on the Lions tour.
Right now, Easterby only has avoiding any Six Nations slip-up in Cardiff on his mind. While there might be a couple of tweaks to their starting XV this weekend, Ireland seem unlikely to experiment despite Wales’ woes.
Skipper Caelan Doris is a major doubt due to his knee injury, meaning Jack Conan is in line to start at number eight and Peter O’Mahony could be named captain. Hooker Rónan Kelleher is also a doubt with a neck issue, so Dan Sheehan could come into the number two shirt and there might be a chance for the highly-regarded Gus McCarthy off the bench unless Rob Herring’s experience is preferred.
This seems like a decent chance for Jack Boyle to make his debut as the replacement loosehead prop, especially considering that he was excellent for Leinster away to the Ospreys on Friday night with Easterby watching on in the stands, even if Cian Healy is the experienced option.
Joe McCarthy and Mack Hansen are back from injuries so will probably feature, although Tadhg Furlong remains a doubt.
Jamie Osborne deserves another cap but overall, Ireland will likely opt for a strong degree of continuity as they bid to continue building momentum in their quest for a Grand Slam.
And even while that is happening, there has been plenty of chance to assess options in the wider group.
Ignore the Ireland A squad briefly and the fresh faces introduced to senior Ireland camp this week mean Easterby and co. have already worked with 46 different players during this Six Nations window. That number rises to 47 when you consider that Craig Casey will be in camp this week as he continues his recovery from a knee injury.
Ulster back row James McNabney, Connacht scrum-half Ben Murphy, Leinster centre Hugh Cooney, and Connacht centre Cathal Forde joined the initial 36-man squad as development players, getting their first taste of Ireland camp when they travelled to Portugal ahead of the championship.
This week, uncapped Munster flanker John Hodnett and Leinster lock/blindside Diarmuid Mangan have been named in the senior squad, while Ulster backs Stuart McCloskey and Jacob Stockdale return after injury. There are also recalls for Ulser’s Nick Timoney and Munster number eight Gavin Coombes, who had missed out on selection in recent times.
With Iain Henderson and Cormac Izuchukwu both having picked up injuries and McCarthy only coming back from his, Ireland needed to bring in another lock this week and 21-year-old Mangan was an eye-catching pick.
The Ireland A game may have made it a trickier decision given that Easterby and co. want to see players getting game time in that fixture, but Mangan is a big, powerful athlete who previously showed his potential with the Ireland U20s.
Indeed, he follows Sam Pendergast and Gus McCarthy in making the step from that 2023 Grand Slam-winning, World Cup-finalist U20 side into the senior squad, even if caps are unlikely to come as quickly for Mangan.
McNabney was on that team, too, while the Ireland A squad includes several others from the 2023 side in Brian Gleeson – excellent off the bench for Munster last weekend - Evan O’Connell, Conor O’Tighearnaigh, Hugh Gavin, Fintan Gunne, Andrew Osborne, and Paddy McCarthy – impressive in replacing Boyle for Leinster against the Ospreys.
It’s pleasing for Irish rugby to see this conversion from U20 level, with the Emerging Ireland stepping stone helpful for some, as well as all-important exposure with their provinces and in the AIL.
There are also more seasoned pros involved in the Ireland A selection, including skipper Max Deegan, Oli Jager, Tom O’Toole [seemingly picked as a loosehead here], Fineen Wycherley, Shane Daly, and Harry Byrne, all of whom have been capped at Test level in the Andy Farrell era.
Byrne is an interesting case given that he is currently with Bristol but his loan move has revitalised him and he is now seemingly wanted by Ulster, Connacht, and Munster ahead of next season as they all look to add an out-half to their squads. Byrne’s Leinster contract was due to cover next season too so it will be interesting to see where the 25-year-old ends up.
Already, the success of his move to Bristol shows why IRFU performance director David Humphreys is open to similar short-term deals in the future.
As well as presumably giving players a boost with the honour of wearing an Ireland jersey again, this A international allows Irish coaching talent to have a valuable experience too.
Mike Prendergast is head coach, while Jimmy Duffy, Seán O’Brien, Mark Sexton, and Colm Tucker are also involved in another nod to development.
Given that Farrell could bring at least one of his senior Ireland assistants on the Lions tour, it might be that a couple of these Ireland A coaches end up as part of the senior tour to Georgia and Portugal.
Ireland and Ireland A players:
Ireland A players in italics
Hookers: Dan Sheehan, Rónan Kelleher, Rob Herring, Gus McCarthy, Diarmuid Barron, Stephen Smyth
Loosehead props: Andrew Porter, Cian Healy, Jack Boyle, Tom O’Toole, Paddy McCarthy
Tighthead props: Tadhg Furlong, Finlay Bealham, Thomas Clarkson, Jack Aungier, Oli Jager
Locks: James Ryan, Tadhg Beirne, Joe McCarthy, Diarmuid Mangan, Evan O’Connell, Conor O’Tighearnaigh, Fineen Wycherley, Darragh Murray
Back rows: Caelan Doris, Josh van der Flier, Peter O’Mahony, Jack Conan, Ryan Baird, Cian Prendergast, Nick Timoney, Gavin Coombes, John Hodnett, Max Deegan, Brian Gleeson, Alex Kendellen, James Culhane, Sean Jansen, Alex Soroka
Scrum-halves: Jamison Gibson-Park, Conor Murray, Caolin Blade, Ben Murphy, Fintan Gunne
Out-halves: Sam Prendergast, Jack Crowley, Ciarán Frawley, Harry Byrne
Centres: Bundee Aki, Robbie Henshaw, Garry Ringrose, Stuart McCloskey, Jude Postlethwaite, Cathal Forde, Hugh Gavin, Hugh Cooney
Back threes: James Lowe, Hugo Keenan, Mack Hansen, Calvin Nash, Jamie Osborne, Jimmy O’Brien, Jacob Stockdale, Shayne Bolton, Shane Daly, Ben O’Connor, Tommy O’Brien, Andrew Osborne, Zac Ward.
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Depth Charts Ireland ireland a Squad