Head Coach Andy Farrell has today named a 35-player Ireland Men’s squad for the upcoming Summer Tour to South Africa, captained by Peter O’Mahony.
The squad will assemble at the IRFU High Performance Centre in Dublin on Thursday to begin preparations for the two-match Test Series against the Springboks, before departing for Johannesburg from Tuesday, 25 June.
Farrell has included three uncapped players in the squad, as Leinster duo Jamie Osborne and Sam Prendergast are rewarded for their performances at Provincial level, while Ulster’s Cormac Izuchukwu earns his first senior call up.
Farrell’s side will go head-to-head with the Springboks in the opening Test at Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria on Saturday, 6 July (Kick-off 5pm local time/4pm Irish time), with Hollywoodbets Kings Park in Durban hosting the second Test a week later on Saturday, 13 July (Kick-off 5pm local time/4pm Irish time).
Looking ahead to the Summer Tour, Farrell said: “Travelling to South Africa to play a Test Series against the defending world champions provides no greater test for us, and it is another valuable opportunity for us to further grow and develop from the Guinness Six Nations.”
Ireland captain Peter O’Mahony added: “I am proud to be asked to lead Ireland in South Africa, a country which provides one of the toughest challenges in world rugby.
“As reigning world champions, South Africa will provide the sternest of tests and we know that we will have to perform at a high level to get the results we want. There’s a lot of respect and familiarity between both countries in recent years at international and Club levels, since they were invited to join the URC and European Cup competitions, and we know the challenge that awaits.”
Ireland Squad – Summer Tour 2024:
Player/Club/Province/Caps
Forwards:
Ryan Baird (Dublin University/Leinster) 20
Finlay Bealham (Buccaneers/Connacht) 40
Tadhg Beirne (Lansdowne/Munster) 50
Caelan Doris (St Mary’s College/Leinster) 41
Tadhg Furlong (Clontarf/Leinster) 76
Cian Healy (Clontarf/Leinster) 129
Rob Herring (Ulster/Ballynahinch) 39
Cormac Izuchukwu (Ulster/Ballynahinch)*
Oli Jager (Munster) 1
Ronan Kelleher (Lansdowne/Leinster) 31
Joe McCarthy (Dublin University/Leinster) 10
Peter O’Mahony (Cork Constitution/Munster)(captain) 105
Tom O’Toole (Ballynahinch/Ulster) 13
Andrew Porter (UCD/Leinster) 64
Cian Prendergast (UCD/Connacht) 3
James Ryan (UCD/Leinster) 62
Dan Sheehan (Lansdowne/Leinster) 26
Nick Timoney (Banbridge/Ulster) 3
Josh van der Flier (UCD/Leinster) 62
Backs:
Bundee Aki (Galwegians/Connacht) 56
Caolin Blade (Galwegians/Connacht) 2
Craig Casey (Shannon/Munster) 14
Jack Crowley (Cork Constitution/Munster) 14
Ciaran Frawley (UCD/Leinster) 4
Robbie Henshaw (Buccaneers/Leinster) 72
Jordan Larmour (St Mary’s College/Leinster) 32
James Lowe (Leinster) 31
Stuart McCloskey (Bangor/Ulster) 17
Conor Murray (Garryowen/Munster) 116
Calvin Nash (Young Munster/Munster) 6
Jimmy O’Brien (Naas/Leinster) 8
Jamie Osborne (Naas/Leinster)*
Sam Prendergast (Lansdowne/Leinster)*
Garry Ringrose (UCD/Leinster) 58
Jacob Stockdale (Lurgan/Ulster) 37
* denotes uncapped player
Unavailable: Jamison Gibson-Park (hamstring injury) and Jack Conan (personal reasons).