By:
Conor Martin
Ireland have added 20-year-old Connacht loosehead prop Billy Bohan to their Six Nations squad as injury problems continue to mount in the front row.
Bohan is one of two changes to Andy Farrell’s original panel, with Cormac Izuchukwu also called up after Tom Ahern was ruled out with a neck injury.
The reshuffle follows another blow on Saturday night, as Jack Boyle was stretchered off during Leinster’s victory over Connacht in Galway. The young prop has since been ruled out of the opening rounds of the Championship.
A squad update from Dublin. pic.twitter.com/iB2V154EWe
— Irish Rugby (@IrishRugby) January 25, 2026
Andy Farrell dealing with injury headaches ahead of tournament
With options thinning ahead of the tournament and after Ireland’s Six Nations squad announcement, Farrell has been forced to dip further into the depth chart as Ireland look to steady a pack hit hard by injuries.
With Andrew Porter and Paddy McCarthy already sidelined, Boyle had been pencilled in to start against France in Paris next Thursday.
His injury leaves Munster pair Jeremy Loughman and Michael Milne as Ireland’s only fit loosehead options.
https://twitter.com/connachtrugby/status/2015472213076406692
Billy Bohan deserves his Ireland Six Nations call-up
Billy Bohan’s rapid rise has continued with a call-up to the Ireland XV squad, capping a breakout season for the Kildare native under Stuart Lancaster. He is joined by Ulster prop Sam Crean.
The grandson of former Ireland head coach Mick Doyle, Bohan came through Newbridge College and featured in last season’s Ireland U20s setup.
He made his Connacht senior debut off the bench against Black Lion before Christmas and has started their last three matches. A senior Ireland call-up may have seemed some way off, but a growing injury list has created an opening.
Bohan is a powerful, mobile loosehead with strong scrummaging fundamentals and an impressive work rate around the park. He carries with intent, shows good leg drive in contact and is solid defensively. For a young prop, his set-piece technique, fitness levels and ability to stay effective late in games mark him out as a high-upside prospect.
Robert Baloucoune will link up with the squad despite being withdrawn at half-time in Ulster’s defeat to the Scarlets. Cormac Izuchukwu’s inclusion comes as a surprise after a foot injury had initially ruled him out, but with Ryan Baird sidelined, the Ulster forward could yet force his way into the matchday 23.
Ireland are managing multiple injury concerns, with Tadhg Furlong, Finlay Bealham, Tommy O’Brien, Jacob Stockdale, Edwin Edogbo and Jack Conan all carrying knocks, while Hugo Keenan and Jamie Osborne continue their returns from long layoffs.
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