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Ireland name 34-strong Nations Cup squad, includes call-ups for James Lowe and Billy Burns
Fresh from their Six Nations title-ruining loss in France last Saturday night, Ireland have reassembled in Dublin with a 34-strong squad showing three changes from the 34 initially chosen on October 14 for the championship resumption against Italy and the French.
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Uncapped Ulster out-half Billy Burns, newly eligible winger James Lowe and fit-again Keith Earls are all included in a squad where Jack Carty, the broken-jawed Garry Ringrose and Jack Conan step away. Lowe had been training with the squad in recent weeks but was not officially part of the set-up as he wasn’t eligible to play. However, he has now served the necessary time to qualify under the 36-month residency rule.
Kieran Marmion and Quinn Roux will be available to Connacht this weekend in the PRO14 and will only join the national squad on Sunday. Conan, who was rehabbing an issue in camp, has an unspecified injury that has not settled and has return to Leinster to continue his rehab programme.
There is no room for Ulster scrum-half John Cooney, who was called into the squad at the start of last week as injury cover for Jamison Gibson-Park who came right and appeared off the bench at Stade de France.
Ireland open their Autumn Nations Cup campaign at home to Wales on November 13, travel to England on November 21 before hosting Georgia at the Aviva Stadium on November 29. A play-off match against either Fiji, France, Italy or Scotland will follow on the first Saturday of December.
"He should apologise to Farrell."https://t.co/LfZloxUfA7
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) November 5, 2020
IRELAND AUTUMN NATIONS CUP SQUAD (34)
Backs (16)
Bundee Aki (Connacht/Galwegians) 28 caps
Billy Burns (Ulster) uncapped
Ross Byrne (Leinster/UCD) 8 caps
Andrew Conway (Munster/Garryowen) 23 caps
Shane Daly (Munster/Cork Con) uncapped
Keith Earls (Munster/Young Munster) 84 caps
Chris Farrell (Munster/Young Munster) 10 caps
Jamison Gibson Park (Leinster) 2 caps
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Robbie Henshaw (Leinster/Buccaneers) 45 caps
Hugo Keenan (Leinster/UCD) 2 caps
James Lowe (Leinster) uncapped
Kieran Marmion (Connacht/Corinthians) 27 caps
Stuart McCloskey (Ulster/Bangor) 3 caps
Conor Murray (Munster/Garryowen) 83 caps
Jonathan Sexton (Leinster/St Mary’s College) 93 caps (capt)
Jacob Stockdale (Ulster/Lurgan) 30 caps
Forwards (18)
Finlay Bealham (Connacht/Buccaneers) 11 caps
Tadhg Beirne (Munster/Lansdowne) 15 caps
Ed Byrne (Leinster/UCD) 2 caps
Will Connors (Leinster/UCD) 2 caps
Ultan Dillane (Connacht/Corinthians) 17 caps
Caelan Doris (Leinster/UCD) 4 caps
Cian Healy (Leinster/Clontarf) 100 caps
Dave Heffernan (Connacht/Buccaneers) 3 caps
Iain Henderson (Ulster/Academy) 55 caps
Rob Herring (Ulster/Ballynahinch) 13 caps
Ronan Kelleher (Leinster/Lansdowne) 3 caps
Peter O’Mahony (Munster/Cork Constitution) 69 caps
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Andrew Porter (Leinster/UCD) 28 caps
Quinn Roux (Connacht/Galwegians) 12 caps
John Ryan (Munster/Cork Constitution) 21 caps
James Ryan (Leinster/UCD) 28 caps
CJ Stander (Munster/Shannon) 43 caps
Josh van der Flier (Leinster/UCD) 26 caps
"I had never seen them in my life. This man pulls them out of his bag as if it is nothing. That bag was a bag of tricks"https://t.co/1ZFNIqZsif
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) November 4, 2020
Comments on RugbyPass
Bar the injuries, it’s pretty much their top team …
2 Go to commentsDon’t disagree with much of this but it appears you forgot Rodda and Beale, who started at the Force on the weekend.
9 Go to commentsExcept for the injured Zach Gallagher this would be Saders best forward pack for the season. Blackadder needs to stay at 7, for all of Christies tackling he is not dominant and offers very little else. McNicholfullback is maybe a good option, Fihaki not really upto it, there was a reason Burke played there last year. Maybe Havilli to 2nd five McLeod to wing. Need a strong winger on 1 side to compliment Reece
1 Go to commentsTo me TJ is clearly the best 9 in the competition right now but he's also a proven player off the bench, there's few playmaking players who can come off the bench as calm and settled as he is, Beauden can, TJ can and I doubt any of the scrumhalves in contention can, if they want to experiment with new 9s I want him on the bench ready to step in if they crumble under the pressure. The Boks put their best front row on the bench, I'd like to see us take a similar approach, the Hurricanes have been doing similar things with players like Kirifi.
35 Go to commentsROG has better chance to win a WC if he starts training and make himself eligible as a player. He won’t make the Ireland squad but I reckon he may get close with Namibia (needs to improve his Afrikaans) or Portugal. Both sides had 1000:1 odds to win the RWC in 2023 which is an improvement on ROG’s odds of winning a RWC as a coach. Unlike Top 14 teams, national teams can’t go shopping and buy the best players - you work with the available talent pool and turn them into world beaters.
2 Go to commentsthat backline nope that backline is terrible why would you have sevu Reece when he’s not even top 5 wingers in the comp why have Blackadder when there’s better players no Scott barret isn’t an automatic the guy is more of a liability than anything why have him there when you have samipeni who’s far far better
35 Go to commentsAh, good to find you Nick. Agree with everything about Cale. So much to like about his game
49 Go to commentsNot too bad. Questions at 6, lock and HB for me. The ABs will be a lot stronger once Jordan and Roigard return. Also, work needs to be made to secure Frizzell back for next season and maybe also Mo’unga; they’re just wasting time playing in japan
35 Go to commentsOn the title, i wonder for many of those people it is a case something like a belief in working smarter, not harder?
1 Go to commentsForget Sotutu. One of those whose top level is Super Rugby. Id take a punt on Wallace Sititi Finau ahead of Glass body Blackadder.
35 Go to commentsI’m a pensioner so I've been around a bit. My opinion of SBW is he is an elite athlete and a great New Zealander and roll model. He has been to the top and knows what he's talking about. To all the negative comments regarding SBW the typical New Zealand way, cut that tall poppy down.
17 Go to commentsI'm not listening to a guy moralise over others when this is the guy who walked out mid season on Canterbury RLFC when he had a contract with them, what a hypocrite. All the Kiwis sticking up for this unprincipled individual because they can't accept justified criticism, he has zero credibility or integrity. Those praising him are a joke.
17 Go to commentsI’d put Finau at 6 instead of Blackadder but that’s the only change I’d make. Can’t wait to see who Razor picks.
35 Go to commentsTamati Williams, Codie Taylor, and Same Cane? Not sure about Hoskins Sotutu at test level. Wasn’t that impressive last season. Need a balance between experience and talent/youth.
35 Go to commentsInteresting insight. Fantastic athlete, and a genuine human being.
17 Go to commentsThey played at night in Suva last weekend and it’s an afternoon game forecast for 19 degrees in Canberra this weekend. Heat change is a non issue.
2 Go to commentsWishing Rosie a speedy recovery
1 Go to commentsObscene that SA haven’t been knocking
1 Go to commentsChances of Blackadder being injured seem too high to give him serious consideration. ABs loosie combination finally looked good with 2 committed to tackling and clearing rucks in the centre and Ardie roaming. Hoskins/Ardie together would force one of them into where they don’t excel and don’t get to use their talent, or require a change in tactics. If we continue to evolve last years systems I would take Papali’i and Finau at 6 and 7 (conceding that Blackadder will be injured) and Ardie at 8.
35 Go to commentsArdie’s preferred position 7? Where do they get these writers from? I've no idea where he's playing in Japan, but the previous two seasons he wore the 7 jersey exactly twice.
17 Go to comments