Tag Archives: ireland rugby

With Ireland less than 24 hours away from kick-off in their clash with Italy, there will be a few players who may not sleep too well tonight.  The team that Joe Schmidt has named contains four changes to the starting XV which beat Scotland at Murrayfield two weeks ago and there are further changes among the replacements. A number of …

The Ireland team which Joe Schmidt named to face Italy contains four changes to the starting XV which lined out against Scotland at Murrayfield last time out.  There are also a number of new faces on the bench as Schmidt’s selection was a result of injuries to a number of key players and also the intention to provide an opportunity …

Joe Schmidt has named his Ireland team to take on Italy in Rome in the Guinness Six Nations on Sunday.  The Ireland head coach has made four changes to the starting XV which beat Scotland at Murrayfield two weeks ago. In the front row, there are first Six Nations starts for Dave Kilcoyne and Sean Cronin while Tadhg Furlong continues …

We will find out later this afternoon whether Johnny Sexton will be leading the line for Ireland when they take on Italy in Rome on Sunday.  Joe Schmidt’s team announcement will be interesting as the debate surrounding whether to provide valuable experience to fringe players ahead of the World Cup or to continue with the front-line players to develop form continues. …

Bundee Aki has credited Joe Schmidt for facilitating the ease at which players can come in and out of the team without causing any disruption to performances.  Ever since Aki made his Ireland debut in November 2017, he has been a mainstay of Schmidt’s midfield. That has somewhat been influenced by injuries to other players but it has also shown …

Such is the world-class form which we have become accustomed to from Conor Murray over the last few years, once the Munster scrum-half is below-par, it becomes a major talking point.  Murray has yet to hit the heights this season that we saw in years gone by but that is understandable. The 29-year-old played his first game of rugby of …

Ireland kicking coach Richie Murphy has confirmed that the 34 players who are currently preparing for Sunday’s trip to Rome to take on Italy have all come through training unscathed and are eligible for selection.  There were a number of doubts surrounding players like Robbie Henshaw, Tadhg Beirne and Chris Farrell. Henshaw missed out on the trip to Murrayfield to …

Sean O’Brien will reunite with the man who gave him first senior international cap when he moves to London Irish after the 2019 World Cup.  Declan Kidney, who coached Ireland between 2008 and 2013, gave O’Brien his first cap from the bench in their 41-6 win over Fiji at the RDS in November 2009. Kidney, who arrived at London Irish …

Ireland head coach Joe Schmidt has a received a boost with the news that Iain Henderson is free to play this weekend after a citing complaint brought against him was not upheld.  Henderson took part in a disciplinary hearing this afternoon via video conference to investigate an alleged infringement of Law 9.11 – Players must not do anything that is …

Once the 2019 World Cup in Japan comes to a close, Leinster and Ireland’s Sean O’Brien will be playing his club rugby abroad with English side London Irish.  For a one-club man like O’Brien, who has spent all of his professional career with Leinster, there will be some difficulty when he finally has to say goodbye. The 32-year-old was speaking …