The Ireland Under-20 team has been named for their penultimate fixture of the RBS Under 20 Six Nations Championship, where they take on their Scottish counterparts at Dubarry Park.
There have been a few changes to the squad but all the Ulster players from the last outing remain in place.
Ballynahinch’s Kyle McCall is joined in the front row by James Rael and Peter Reilly. Queen’s Iain Henderson moves from five to four and will partner Daniel Qualter in the second row.
Dungannon’s Patrick Jackson (C) and Chris Farrell stay at out half and outside centre respectively with the only change in the back line being Luke McGrath’s promotion from the bench to take the scrum half spot.
Belfast Harlequin’s Stuart Olding keeps his place on the bench and will likely get a longer run out this game than he got on his début a fortnight ago.
Commenting on his selection and of the task at hand, Ruddock said:
We have reinstated a few of the lads that were involved in the win against France. We felt that they deserved to come back into the equation for this test.
We certainly don’t underestimate the Scottish side, I have looked at their tapes and realise that our defence are going to have to work very hard to stop them crossing the line.
We have prepared to the best of our ability and are ready to front up to a very talented Scotland team. Ireland Coach, Mike Ruddock
Friday’s game will be broadcast live from Dubarry Park on RTÉ Two.
IRELAND U20’s: Shane Layden, Conor Finn, Chris Farrell, JJ Hanrahan, Foster Horan, Paddy Jackson, Luke McGrath, Kyle McCall, James Rael, Peter Reilly, Iain Henderson, Daniel Qualter, Conor Gilsenan, Aaron Conneely, Jack Conan. Replacements: Callum O’Connell, Des Merrey, Jake Cawley, Tadhg Beirne, Jordan Coghlan, Kieron Marmion, Cathal Marsh, Stuart Olding.
As They Stand
| TEAM | PL | W | PD | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| England | 3 | 3 | 122 | 6 |
| Ireland | 3 | 3 | 25 | 6 |
| France | 3 | 2 | 22 | 4 |
| Wales | 3 | 1 | (23) | 2 |
| Italy | 3 | 0 | (68) | 0 |
| Scotland | 3 | 0 | (78) | 0 |