Head coach Andy Farrell’s Ireland side take on Scotland this afternoon in the Guinness Men’s Six Nations at a sold-out Aviva Stadium (kick-off 2.10pm).
The game is live on Virgin Media One television, with live radio commentary on RTÉ Radio One.
Captain Caelan Doris leads Ireland into their final match of this season’s Guinness Six Nations Championship.
Jamie Osborne, Rob Baloucoune and Tommy O’Brien are the three Irish backs.
Stuart McCloskey and Garry Ringrose are once again named in midfield, with Jamison Gibson-Park and Jack Crowley at half-backs.
In the front row, Tom O’Toole, Dan Sheehan and Tadhg Furlong are chosen. Joe McCarthy and Tadhg Beirne will start in the engine room.
Jack Conan is the choice for the blindside flanker role, Josh van der Flier will start at openside, while Caelan Doris completes the Irish starting team at number eight.
Bank of Ireland
Andy Farrell has some solid options on the bench.
Rónan Kelleher, Michael Milne, Finlay Bealham, Darragh Murray – who is in contention for his Six Nations debut – and Nick Timoney make up the advanced replacements.
Substitutes at fullback are Craig Casey, Ciaran Frawley and Bundee Aki.
Trophy to win
Speaking during the week as he looked forward to this afternoon’s match, Andy Farrell said:
“It’s an incredible privilege for the team to be playing at home in front of a packed Aviva Stadium with a trophy up for grabs. We know the challenge ahead of us on Saturday and Scotland will travel with confidence. You’ll see two teams who love to attack and we’ll be looking to implement our game plan to get the performance we want. Factor in strong local support and the game being played over St Patrick’s Day weekend, it really has all the ingredients for a shock competition. “
Ireland team
15. Jamie Osborne, 14 years old. Rob Baloucoune, 13 years old. Garry Ringrose, 12 years old. Stuart McCloskey, 11 years old. Tommy O’Brien, 10 years old. Jack Crowley, 9 years old. Jamison Gibson-Park.
1. Tom O’Toole, 2. Dan Sheehan, 3. Tadhg Furlong, 4. Joe McCarthy, 5. Tadhg Beirne, 6. Jack Conan, 7. Josh van der Flier, 8. Caelan Doris (captain).
Replacements in Ireland:
16. Ronan Kelleher, 17. Michael Milne, 18. Finlay Bealham, 19. Darragh Murray, 20. Nick Timoney, 21. Craig Casey, 22. Ciaran Frawley, 23. Bundee Aki.
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