Head Coach Andy Farrell has named the Ireland Men’s Match Day Squad for Saturday’s Quilter Nations Series clash against Australia at Aviva Stadium (Kick-off 8.10 pm). Caelan Doris will captain Ireland as they welcome the Wallabies to Dublin for the second Quilter Nations Series outing, following last weekend's win over Japan. After making his comeback from injury, Connacht's Mack Hansen starts at fullback alongside Tommy O'Brien and James Lowe in the back three, with Robbie Henshaw and Stuart McCloskey named in midfield and Sam Prendergast and Jamison Gibson-Park selected to start in the half-backs. In the pack, Paddy McCarthy is set for his first Test start in green at loosehead prop, partnering Dan Sheehan and Tadhg Furlong in the front row, with James Ryan and Tadhg Beirne in the engine room, while Ryan Baird, captain Doris and Jack Conan complete the starting team. Farrell has strong options on the bench with Rónan Kelleher, Andrew Porter, Thomas Clarkson, Nick Timoney and Cian Prendergast as the forward replacements, while Craig Casey, Jack Crowley and Bundee Aki provide the backline reinforcements.
Looking ahead to the game, *Andy Farrell said: “There’s great respect and familiarity between Ireland and Australia, and Saturday is the latest renewal in a series of matches which have been pretty evenly balanced over the last number of years. There has been a good buzz around training this week, and the players are excited about the challenge that awaits. For us, it’s about putting in an 80-plus minute performance to try and implement our game plan in front of what we know will be a vocal home support.”
Ireland Squad (v Australia):
15. Mack Hansen (Corinthians/Connacht)(28)
14. Tommy O'Brien (Blackrock College/Leinster)(4)
13. Robbie Henshaw (Buccaneers/Leinster)(83)
12. Stuart McCloskey (Bangor/Ulster)(23)
11. James Lowe (Leinster)(41)
10. Sam Prendergast (Lansdowne/Leinster)(11)
9. Jamison Gibson-Park (Leinster)(44)
1. Paddy McCarthy (Dublin University/Leinster)(2)
2. Dan Sheehan (Lansdowne/Leinster)(33)
3. Tadhg Furlong (Clontarf/Leinster)(80)
4. James Ryan (UCD/Leinster)(74)
5. Tadhg Beirne (Lansdowne/Munster)(63)
6. Ryan Baird (Dublin University/Leinster)(31)
7. Caelan Doris (St Mary’s College/Leinster)(53)( captain)
8. Jack Conan (Old Belvedere/Leinster)(53)
Replacements:
16. Rónan Kelleher (Lansdowne/Leinster)(41)
17. Andrew Porter (UCD/Leinster)(77)
18. Thomas Clarkson (Blackrock College/Leinster)(9)
19. Nick Timoney (Banbridge/Ulster)(5)
20. Cian Prendergast (UCD/Connacht)(6)
21. Craig Casey (Shannon/Munster)(22)
22. Jack Crowley (Cork Constitution/Munster)(28)
23. Bundee Aki (Galwegians/Connacht)(66)
