There is one change to the starting XV as Keith Earls returns to the starting XV having missed out on the game against Wales last Sunday. Fergus McFadden moves to the bench in place of David Kearney.

IRELAND Team & Replacements

(v France, RBS 6 Nations Championship 2012, Stade de France, Saturday, February 11th, kick-off 9pm/8pm Irish time):

15 – Rob Kearney (UCD/Leinster)
14 – Tommy Bowe (Ospreys)
13 – Keith Earls (Young Munster/Munster)
12 – Gordon D’Arcy (Lansdowne/Leinster)
11 – Andrew Trimble (Ballymena/Ulster)
10 – Jonathan Sexton (St. Mary’s College/Leinster) 
9 – Conor Murray (Garryowen/Munster)

1 – Cian Healy (Clontarf/Leinster)
2 – Rory Best (Banbridge/Ulster)
3 – Mike Ross (Clontarf/Leinster)
4 – Donncha O’Callaghan (Cork Constitution/Munster)
5 – Paul O’Connell (Young Munster/Munster) Captain
6 – Stephen Ferris (Dungannon/Ulster)
7 – Sean O’Brien (Clontarf/Leinster)
8 – Jamie Heaslip (Naas/Leinster)

Replacements:
16 – Sean Cronin (St. Mary’s College/Leinster)
17 – Tom Court (Malone/Ulster)
18 – Donnacha Ryan (Shannon/Munster)
19 – Peter O’Mahony (Cork Constitution/Munster)*
20 – Eoin Reddan (Lansdowne/Leinster)
21 – Ronan O’Gara (Cork Constitution/Munster)
22 – Fergus McFadden (Old Belvedere/Leinster)

*Denotes uncapped player

No. No, it is not.

In fact, for most countries it’s not even a new dawn.

There always seems to be lots of predictions about this new player getting brought in or building a new team for the next 4 year cycle and what I’ve realised as the build-up for this tournament continues is that it’s a load of bollocks. International coaches have spent ages with their squad, honing it obsessively, to get it ready for the World Cup – they’re not going to chuck that away now that it’s been done. No, they’ll be seeing the season out with their teams if possible. The summer tours will be different, particularly as many senior players will be very tired and deserving a break, but right now this is a continuation of business. Even in England and Italy, the two countries with the most changes in their squad, the majority of the squad have been here before – albeit briefly.

So no new dawn.

Is it at least going to be a good tournament?

I wouldn’t put any large amounts of money on this being a classic of good rugby. Robinson is still picking Parks and Morrison, Italy still look short of distributors in the backs, Saint-Andre tends to play a fairly boring style of rugby, while Kidney is so bloody conservative he probably regards fire as a dangerous new innovation. That leaves Lancaster’s England and Wales. Lancaster says he wants a team that spreads the ball, but as he is relying on the frequently stodgy Saracens model to get this, I am very sceptical. It’s a bit like asking a vegetarian to butcher an animal really; technically plausible, and you know it’s been done before, but push comes to shove you know its unnatural for them. Wales played some very good stuff at the World Cup, but seemingly every Welsh peak is followed by a Welsh trough very quickly, plus their injury list looks fairly heavy.

There will be good games. The intensity and passion of the Six Nations is its main selling point anyway, not its technical prowess, and I do not see any shortage of that. Nor do I believe every team will play poor rugby simply because it’s highly unlikely I’ll be right about all of them. The majority of it though will be, I believe, fairly poor.

Is the Six Nations suffering in comparison with the Heineken Cup?

I think so, at least on the forums I use. It’s an unfair comparison really as the Heineken has six times as many games and is therefore always going to throw up more classics and genuinely exciting games. The Six Nations is still throwing up its share of classics – Scotland’s last minute loss to Wales springs to mind – and even when the standard isn’t as high in terms of flinging the ball around, you can always rely on there being a good number of very absorbing games. For intensity and drama, the Six Nations still has no superior. I’d rather watch a random Six Nations game than a random Heineken Cup game.

One thing where the Heineken Cup does have the Six Nations at present though is quality of rugby. Obviously club teams and provinces spend longer together, which does help. But I think that conceals the main reason which is the presence of some very conservative and ordinary coaching tickets, perhaps combined with a few too many players who do alright in European rugby but don’t have what is required for internationals. Therefore I live in hope that in a few years we might see coaches sending out teams who can really run the ball. Just not this year.

So, can Lancaster really turn England around?

I’m not particularly hopeful but am not ruling it out. It depends slightly on how he does it. The tools are certainly there for England to kick their way to victory and for all the talk of going wide, I really won’t be surprised if that’s what happens. A genuine jackal and harder-nosed wingers would have been nice for that approach though. The other is that Lancaster really is looking to put some width on the ball. If he can get this happening, given everything he’s had to work with, and turn attacking intent into wins, then he probably deserves the England job.

In his way though are two rather hefty obstacles. The first is the perennial English failing of quick ball. Now this pack is about as good as we can field to accomplish the task and although I’m not optimistic, I believe it can happen. The second and more difficult problem is fixing and breaking the Scottish line. This England team seems rather short of scary ball carriers in the pack. The backline will possess quite a few players who don’t offer much of a running threat, which might be Youngs’ route into the team. My main worry about England trying to move the ball is that Scotland will just drift us from one touchline to another, and I’m interested to see how Lancaster will deal with it.

Does Andy Robinson know what he’s doing?

For the past couple of years, Scotland have been doughty underdogs undone by a very serious failing, namely an inability to score tries. The reason for this failing was very obvious and I don’t think anyone blamed him too much when the likes of Parks and Morrison were genuinely the best options available, more or less. However, Edinburgh and Glasgow have been showing off some cracking attacking talent this season. Yes, a lot of them are raw youngsters, but they can score tries. Scotland went out in the World Cup because they could not put teams away when they were on top; tries are a large part of that.

Robinson’s team has Parks starting and Morrison on the bench.  Lamont at 12 is not a great improvement over Morrison in that while he’s quicker, that’s about it. A weakened England team at Murrayfield is practically the stuff of Scottish dreams and a win there would be the ideal platform in which to actually do well for once. There’s no reason this Scotland team can’t win some games, even with Paterson’s guaranteed three pointers gone, and if it doesn’t, I imagine there’ll  be loud questions over Robinson’s fitness for the job. On the other hand, a few wins (particularly against England) and Robinson will get the time to bed in the new players and create a Scotland that can genuinely score. Whatever happens, this is a big test of his coaching talents.

Are there any excuses for Declan Kidney if Ireland don’t enjoy a good Six Nations?

Having constructed a loaded question, I’ll fire off the round – no, no there aren’t.

Ireland’s three major provinces are collectively as strong as they have ever been. Confidence will be running high and a number of fringe players have been making strong cases for inclusion. He has an experienced squad, built by himself, with only minimal injury problems. France and England away is not ideal, but as both sides are somewhat in a position of flux, both are targetable. I don’t think there’s an international coach in the Northern Hemisphere in a better position to succeed.

Yet there is considerable doubt as to whether Ireland will do well. Ireland’s record over the past year has been substandard. It was Kidney’s decisions that have taken them there however, and it is Kidney’s decision to name virtually the same side as undertook most of last year. Just as it was presumably Kidney’s decision to let go of backs coach Alan Gaffney (a good decision) and then not appoint a new one (a questionable decision). He’s had a long time to think about where things went wrong last time, where the Irish attack got blunted so successfully by Wales. Irish rugby is riding high. Kidney has staked everything on the same group he’s always worked with. If this doesn’t work out, it’s hard to see why Kidney should be given another chance to give them another chance.

Are Wales really as good as people say?

We British love a gallant loser. Wales were very gallant at the World Cup but unfortunately, also very much the loser. They might argue they didn’t get the rub of the green, they might dream about what had happened had Hook’s kicks gone over. Nevertheless, they lost the majority of their games against top opposition. However, Wales won’t have to beat Australia or South Africa to win the Six Nations. Surely if the improvement there is as good as people say, then Wales have to be favourites.

Now this is a question that mightn’t get fully answered. Wales have appalling depth and a number of key men struggling to regain fitness. No Priestland and Roberts would be the biggest blow to Wales I think; they should be back fairly soon even if they miss the first game, and I hope they go well as they have potential Lions 10-12 written all over them, but nothing is certain. Even if they are lining out, there is no way a Welsh pack minus Rees, Jenkins, Jones the lock and Charteris can be called full strength. In particular I think they’ll miss Jenkins and Charteris’ work in the loose. The Guardian has suggested that the intensity of Wales’ pre-season in Poland has left them incredibly unfit; if this is true, expect a lot more broken players by the end of the Six Nations. This will make it even more difficult to work out if they’re up to the hype. Injuries however are part and parcel of the modern game. The inability to ride a few is in itself a black mark against a team. If Wales truly are the coming force some of their fans state, it’s time for them to show it.

Will Italy start actually scaring people?

On previous evidence, Italy are as scary as finding out you accidentally put a bottle of foul tasting diet red bull into your supermarket trolley instead of non-diet; irritating and worth watching out for, but not worth worrying about at all in the grand scheme of things. This paragraph is in no way influenced by realising I made that very mistake and wondering why it tasted worse than usual until I read the label. France had a similarly bad experience last year, but I think they’ll be as bothered by me. Essentially Italy will not get anywhere until they start repeating that sort of feat year in year out. The rugby gods have been kind to Italy – a shaky England and Scotland at home. There’s two victories there if they can take them.

Can they though? The Italian pack is heralded, but it’s the same beast that never quite does enough year in year out. It won’t lose them any games but neither will it win anyway and in my opinion the locks need replacing, if it was possible. Some quality strike runners are coming through to supplement what was already there and I’m looking forwards to watching how Benevuti goes at 13. However, the big question lies over their distributors, the 9-10-12 link. If that functions, I think Italy are on a definite upswing. The big decider there is their new coach. I can’t say I know much about Brunel, except I’m sure he played bass in the Stranglers, but it will be up to him to coax out what skills are there. Sgarbi seems to be a step in the right direction but there is a fair possibility I’m talking out of my arse here. Whatever happens though, if Italy are to rise, they need to do so quickly. Most of the home nations have been rather in the doldrums lately but it must be too much to hope so from Italy’s point of view that they’ll stay that way for a prolonged period. Italy can’t afford to be left behind when the upswing comes. That might be another few seasons, but the best way to keep up is to improve now.

Does anyone have a clue how France are going to go?

No.

…

Ok, fine. France have a new coach and a deserved reputation for inconsistency. A number of their players have put in impressive domestic performances but have either not played at, or been inconsistent at, international level. They do have a lot of talent and three games, so it seems to be pointing their way, but no one can truthfully say. Insightful I know, but I’m not Nostradamus.

What are Social Pundit’s predictions?

Predictions are a loser’s game, particularly when no one knows what to expect. How, I’d be wussing out if I wasn’t to have a stab of sorts, so I’ll predict the first round and then see what happens before doing anymore.

France will beat Italy. That’s a given. I think France will beat Italy quite handily. It’ll take them a while to bring down the resistance, but I think the French will be up for it and pile them on once the breakthrough comes

I’m backing England to beat Scotland, possibly because I couldn’t bear to predict otherwise. I think there’ll be a desultory period in which both sides pretend they can play rugby but the game will become more and more kick based, at which point us having Farrell and them not having Paterson will prove crucial. At which point the media will fawn disgracefully over Farrell and ignore the fact that if he could run maybe we wouldn’t have needed his boot so much. I’d really love Farrell to remember his running game. That would be great.

If Roberts and Priestland were fit (I’m assuming they won’t be), I’d be very uncertain, but I reckon Irish home advantage will tell in the last match. Everyone seems to forget how much territory and possession Ireland had in that quarter-final. Kidney’s had a long time to brood on how to change things and usually gets a result when under pressure. So Ireland to win. If Wales get to repeat smashing Roberts off good ball into D’Arcy, with a good kicker in the team, I will recant that though.

Whatever happens, I can’t wait  - flawed or not.

There are three changes to the side that lined out against the same opposition in Ireland’s last game in the 2011 Rugby World Cup.

Keith Earls will start at centre alongside Gordon D’Arcy with Andrew Trimble coming into the team on the left wing. In the half-backs Jonathan Sexton will win his 25th cap and he is partnered by Conor Murray.

The pack is unchanged from the last game with Paul O’Connell wearing the captain’s armband. The uncapped Peter O’Mahony is named in the replacements.

IRELAND Team & Replacements (v Wales, RBS 6 Nations Championship 2012, Aviva Stadium, Sunday, February 5th, kick-off 3pm):
15 – Rob Kearney (UCD/Leinster)
14 – Tommy Bowe (Ospreys)
13 – Keith Earls (Young Munster/Munster)
12 – Gordon D’Arcy (Lansdowne/Leinster)
11 – Andrew Trimble (Ballymena/Ulster)
10 – Jonathan Sexton (St. Mary’s College/Leinster) 
9 – Conor Murray (Garryowen/Munster)
1 – Cian Healy (Clontarf/Leinster)
2 – Rory Best (Banbridge/Ulster)
3 – Mike Ross (Clontarf/Leinster)
4 – Donncha O’Callaghan (Cork Constitution/Munster)
5 – Paul O’Connell (Young Munster/Munster) Captain
6 – Stephen Ferris (Dungannon/Ulster)
7 – Sean O’Brien (Clontarf/Leinster)
8 – Jamie Heaslip (Naas/Leinster)

Replacements:
16 – Sean Cronin (St. Mary’s College/Leinster)
17 – Tom Court (Malone/Ulster)
18 – Donnacha Ryan (Shannon/Munster)
19 – Peter O’Mahony (Cork Constitution/Munster)*
20 – Eoin Reddan (Lansdowne/Leinster)
21 – Ronan O’Gara (Cork Constitution/Munster)
22 – Fergus McFadden (Old Belvedere/Leinster)

*Denotes uncapped player

"I was deeply honoured to be linked to the position of Head Coach for the Springbok team and having being involved with the team before, it was obviously something that I would have thought about very carefully.  A big part of that consideration would be my connection to the Ireland team as well as my desire to see out my contract as I am very happy here.

“Declan and the IRFU showed great faith in bringing me here and it has been a wonderful experience from a professional point of view, as well as for my family.  There is still such great potential and opportunities for the Ireland team and I have great faith in the players that we can achieve things together with the coaching staff.

"I have not given up on the possibility of coaching my country in the future, but my focus now is on Ireland and on our first game in The RBS 6 Nations Championship."

O’Connell made a try scoring international debut against Wales in Dublin in 2002, having made his first senior appearance for Munster against Edinburgh in August of the previous year.  Since then he has gone on to win 82 caps for his country and represent Munster on 127 occasions.

His Munster career has seen him win two Heineken Cups, one as captain, as well as two Magners league titles and a Celtic Cup.  His senior international career has seen him selected for three Rugby World Cup squads in 2003, 2007 and 2011 and was part of the sides that won five triple crowns, one RBS Six Nations Championship and Ireland’s second ever Grand Slam in 2009.

He has also represented the British & Irish Lions on two tours, to New Zealand in 2006 and as Captain to South Africa in 2011.

Commenting on the announcement, IRFU Chief Executive Philip Browne said: “The retention and development of Irish players is one of the top priorities for Irish Rugby to ensure continually competitive teams at provincial and international level.  Paul O’Connell is a prime example of this and I am delighted that he has further committed himself to Munster Rugby and the IRFU.  He has done so much to contribute to the success of the Munster and Ireland teams during his career and is a shining example for younger players.”

Ireland Coach Declan Kidney said: "It is a very strong message when you have a player of Paul’s standing opting to continue playing in Ireland with Munster.  Paul has been a very important player and leader for both Ireland and Munster during his career and I am especially pleased that he has come back so strongly after his injury troubles.”

Munster Coach Tony McGahan said: "I’m of course delighted that Paul has agreed an extension to his contract that sees him remain with Munster for the next two seasons. He’s an integral part of the squad whose influence goes way beyond his on-field performances. He is a leader both on and off the field, a quality recognised by his recent appointment as Irish captain and the perfect role model for those who aspire to play professional rugby."

Paul O’Connell said: "I have been lucky over the last ten years to play with a team like Munster which has such phenomenal support and I have enjoyed a lot of success during that time.  So much has changed since my first games for Munster and Ireland, with Heineken cup and Grand Slam wins, brand new stadiums and having the opportunity to play with so many good players, that it was always a very easy decision to remain in my home province.  I am feeling really good both mentally and physically, which in part goes down to how well we are looked after here in Ireland, so I am looking forward to the remainder of this season and beyond and doing all I can to help make Munster and Ireland as successful as possible.”

Career Details
Paul O’Connell
Born: 20th October 1979
Ireland Career
Debut: V Wales 3/02/2002
Caps: 82
Points: 30
Munster Career
Debut: V Edinburgh 17/08/2001
Caps: 127
Points: 80
British & Irish Lions
Debut: V Bay of Plenty 4/06/2005
Appearances: 11 (3 tests V NZ in 2005, 3 Test V South Africa in 2009 as captain)

Paddy Wallace has signed a one year deal which will see him contracted to the IRFU and Ulster Rugby until June 2013 while Tom Court has agreed a two year term which will see him wear Ulster colours until June 2014.

Both players were part of the Ireland Squad that reached the quarter-final stage of this year’s Rugby World Cup in New Zealand.

Paddy Wallace, currently the longest serving member of the Ulster squad made his debut against Swansea in August 2001. Educated at Campbell College Belfast, Paddy was part of Ireland’s U19 Rugby World Cup winning side in 1999 and represented Ireland at U21, A and Sevens level before winning his first senior cap  when he came on a replacement against South Africa in November 2006. He was a member of Irish squad who won the Six Nations Grand Slam in 2009.

Tom Court joined Ulster Rugby from Australia at the start of the 2006-07 season. Irish qualified through ancestry, he was one of the best shot-putters in Australia and was a late convert to rugby union, taking up the game at the University of Queensland. From there he was invited to join the Queensland Reds Rugby Academy and played for New Zealand Province Manawatu, before returning to Australia to feature in the Reds Super 14 squad. No sooner had he arrived in Belfast than he was taken to the USA and Canada as part of the Ireland A Churchill Cup Squad and having won his first full Irish cap in the 2009 Six Nations Championships he is now a regular member of Ireland’s match day squad.

“I’ve had a great run here so far and Belfast is very much home now for my young family, so I’m delighted to have signed a new contract with Ulster.” commented Court. “I think we’ve made some real progress over the past 2-3 seasons, the Ulster team is as tight as ever and it’s a brilliant boost for me to sign a new deal and ensure that I’m part of that set-up.”

“It’s great to get the contract agreed early, and to have the certainty about where I’m going to be for the foreseeable future. Now I can just concentrate on the rugby.  Winning silverware with Ulster will be my main goal, and if things go well with Ulster then hopefully Ireland will fall into place.”

There are a few changes to the team that defeated Bath last weekend with Eoin Reddan (fresh from winning his 50th Leinster cap in The Rec last Sunday) partnering Jonathan Sexton at half back and Shane Jennings coming into the back row alongside fellow Ireland internationals Sean O’Brien and Jamie Heaslip. Devin Toner partners another Ireland international, skipper Leo Cullen, at second row.

Luke Fitzgerald continues in the back three alongside Rob Kearney and Isa Nacewa. Meanwhile, Eoin O’Malley (who will make his 40th Leinster appearance on Saturday) forms a centre partnership with Fergus McFadden for the first time in the Heineken Cup.

Gordon D’Arcy, limited by a minor niggle in training earlier this week, will provide extra firepower from a replacements bench which includes six Ireland internationals.

With over 46,000 tickets now sold, Saturday evening’s game will be played in front of the second largest crowd for a Pool match in the history of the Heineken Cup, surpassing the attendance figure (45,892) at Saracens v Leinster in Wembley Stadium last season.

LEINSTER:

15: Rob Kearney
14: Isa Nacewa
13: Eoin O’Malley
12: Fergus McFadden
11: Luke Fitzgerald
10: Jonathan Sexton
9: Eoin Reddan

1: Heinke van der Merwe
2: Richardt Strauss
3: Mike Ross
4: Leo Cullen CAPTAIN
5: Devin Toner
6: Sean O’Brien
7: Shane Jennings
8: Jamie Heaslip

REPLACEMENTS:

16: Sean Cronin
17: Cian Healy
18: Nathan White
19: Kevin McLaughlin
20: Rhys Ruddock
21: Isaac Boss
22: Ian Madigan
23: Gordon D’Arcy

REFEREE: Romain Poite (FFR), ASSISTANT REFEREES: Patrick Péchambert, Eric Soulan (both FFR), 4th OFFICIAL: Kevin Beggs (IRFU), 5th OFFICIAL: Dermot Blake (IRFU), TMO: Daniel Gillet (FFR)

Tommy Bowe comes onto the right wing in place of Fergus McFadden. Captain Brian O’Driscoll and Gordon D’Arcy are named as the centre pairing in place of Paddy Wallace and Keith Earls, who retains his place in the side and moves to the left wing. Conor Murray is named at scrumhalf in place of Isaac Boss.

Hooker Rory Best and prop Mike Ross return to the starting front row with Paul O’Connell coming into the second row in place of Leo Cullen.  The final change sees Stephen Ferris named in the back row instead of Donnacha Ryan who moves into the replacements.

IRELAND Team & Replacements (v Italy, 2011 Rugby World Cup Pool C, Otago Stadium, Sunday, October 2, kick-off 8:30pm local time/8:30am Irish time):

15 – Robert Kearney (UCD/Leinster)
14 – Tommy Bowe (Ospreys)
13 – Brian O’Driscoll (UCD/Leinster) Captain
12 – Gordon D’Arcy (Lansdowne/Leinster)
11 – Keith Earls (Young Munster/Munster)
10 – Ronan O’Gara (Cork Constitution/Munster)
9 – Conor Murray (Garryowen/Munster)
1 – Cian Healy (Clontarf/Leinster)
2 – Rory Best (Banbridge/Ulster)
3 – Mike Ross (Clontarf/Leinster)
4 – Donncha O’Callaghan (Cork Constitution/Munster)
5 – Paul O’Connell (Young Munster/Munster)
6 – Stephen Ferris (Dungannon/Ulster)
7 – Sean O’Brien (Clontarf/Leinster)
8 – Jamie Heaslip (Naas/Leinster)

Replacements:
16 – Sean Cronin (Leinster)
17 – Tom Court (Malone/Ulster)
18 – Donnacha Ryan (Shannon/Munster)
19 – Denis Leamy (Cork Constitution/Munster)
20 – Eoin Reddan (Lansdowne/Leinster)
21 – Jonathan Sexton (St. Mary’s College/Leinster)
22 – Andrew Trimble (Ballymena/Ulster)

Rob Kearney (bruised knee), Keith Earls (bruised leg) and Sean O’Brien (bruised arm) all sat out the session as a precaution to give another 24 hours rest to allow their injuries to settle, but all three are expected to return to training tomorrow.

Tommy Bowe (calf) and Paul O’Connell (hamstring) both took part in some light training and it is hoped that they will both be able to step up their training levels at tomorrow’s session.

Gordon D’Arcy has also continued his recovery programme from a hamstring strain and took a full part in the session today without any reaction.

The Ireland team and replacements for the Rugby World Cup Pool C match against Russia in Rotorua International Stadium on Sunday (kick-off 6.00 pm local time/6:00am Irish time) has been announced and shows ten changes, one of which is a positional switch, to the starting XV from Ireland’s game against Australia.

Fergus McFadden makes his first appearance in a Rugby World Cup and starts on the right wing.  Keith Earls moves from the wing to outside centre alongside Paddy Wallace, who also makes his debut in the tournament.  Andrew Trimble is named on the left wing, while Ronan O’Gara and Isaac Boss start as the halfback partnership.

Sean Cronin makes the switch with Rory Best from the replacements to start at hooker, with Tony Buckley also making his first start at tight head prop. There is a change in the back row as Donnacha Ryan starts at blind side in place of Stephen Ferris.  The final change to the side is Leo Cullen, who comes into the team in place of Paul O’Connell and will also have the honour of captaining the team in his first Rugby World Cup appearance.

IRELAND Team & Replacements

(v Russia, 2011 Rugby World Cup Pool C, Rotorua International Stadium, Sunday, September 25, kick-off 6:00pm local time/6:00am Irish time):

15 – Robert Kearney (UCD/Leinster)
14 – Fergus McFadden (Old Belvedere/Leinster)*
13 – Keith Earls (Young Munster/Munster)
12 – Paddy Wallace (Ballymena/Ulster)*
11 – Andrew Trimble (Ballymena/Ulster)
10 – Ronan O’Gara (Cork Constitution/Munster)
9 – Isaac Boss (Terenure College/Leinster)
1 – Cian Healy (Clontarf/Leinster)
2 – Sean Cronin (Leinster)
3 – Tony Buckley (Sale)
4 – Donncha O’Callaghan (Cork Constitution/Munster)
5 – Leo Cullen (Blackrock College/Leinster)* Captain
6 – Donnacha Ryan (Shannon/Munster)
7 – Sean O’Brien (Clontarf/Leinster)
8 – Jamie Heaslip (Naas/Leinster)

Replacements:

16 – Rory Best (Banbridge/Ulster)
17 – Mike Ross (Clontarf/Leinster)
18 – Denis Leamy (Cork Constitution/Munster)
19 – Shane Jennings (St.Mary’s College/Leinster)
20 – Eoin Reddan (Lansdowne/Leinster)
21 – Jonathan Sexton (St. Mary’s College/Leinster)
22 – Geordan Murphy (Leicester)

*Denotes RWC Debut