Furlong, Conan and Henshaw to start against Munster
- 1022
The Leinster Rugby team, proudly sponsored by Bank of Ireland, to take on Munster in Round 6 of the BKT United Rugby Championship tomorrow evening in Aviva Stadium has been named by Head Coach Leo Cullen (KO: 6:30pm, live on TG4 and Premier Sports 1).
Over 48,000 tickets are already sold for the game, and the last remaining tickets can still be bought HERE.
It has also been confirmed that former Leinster and Ireland star Johnny Sexton will be introduced to the crowd before the game, with the Official Leinster Supporters Club making a special presentation to him. The victorious Women’s Interpro team will also be introduced to the crowd at half-time and will be invited to parade the trophy around the pitch to celebrate their achievement.
In team news and after featuring for Ireland at the Rugby World Cup, Robbie Henshaw and Jack Conan are set for their first appearances of the season, while Tadhg Furlong is set for this first start of the campaign.
Garry Ringrose and James Ryan co-captain the team that includes 15 Ireland internationals, in a lineup that sees five changes from the team that defeated Scarlets last weekend.
The back three remains the same, with Hugo Keenan starting at full-back, as Jordan Larmour and Jimmy O’Brien start on the wing. Ringrose and Henshaw are paired together for the first time this season.
After becoming the third player in the history of Leinster Rugby to reach 1,000 points last weekend, Ross Byrne returns to the starting lineup, as he is joined by Jamison Gibson-Park in the half-backs.
Andrew Porter, Dan Sheehan and Furlong pack down in the front row for the first time since Ireland’s Rugby World Cup quarter-final against New Zealand.
Ryan and Joe McCarthy form the heart of the pack for the second week in a row, as Conan joins Josh van der Flier and Caelan Doris in the back-row.
In the replacements, Academy players Jack Boyle, James Culhane and Ben Murphy are set to feature tomorrow evening.
Leinster Rugby (caps in brackets)
15. Hugo Keenan (57)
14. Jordan Larmour (93)
13. Garry Ringrose (117) CO-CAPTAIN
12. Robbie Henshaw (77)
11. Jimmy O’Brien (73)
10. Ross Byrne (150)
9. Jamison Gibson-Park (128)
1. Andrew Porter (109)
2. Dan Sheehan (48)
3. Tadhg Furlong (135)
4. Joe McCarthy (21)
5. James Ryan (74) CO-CAPTAIN
6. Jack Conan (133)
7. Josh van der Flier (129)
8. Caelan Doris (69)
Replacements:
16. Rónan Kelleher (48)
17. Jack Boyle (7)
18. Michael Ala’alatoa (50)
19. Ross Molony (166)
20. James Culhane (6)
21. Ben Murphy (6)
22. Ciarán Frawley (72)
23. Scott Penny (61)
Referee: Chris Busby (IRFU)