Exiles Feature in British Universities Final
Irish Exiles players Robbie Shaw and Mike McCarthy are in the Wasps U21 squad to play Bristol in the final of U21’s play offs at Twickenham on Saturday.
The game, which will be televised on Sky Sports, is a prelude to the Zurich Final between Gloucester and Bristol.
Scrum half Shaw, who played for Ireland U19’s in the Junior World Cup, is returning from injury after being sidelined for 4 weeks with a broken nose. Shaw, at 18 the “baby of the squad”, will be competing for the starting slot with England U21 scrum half, Alex Page.
Page and Shaw have been rotating the starting slot this season with Shaw starting 11 times to Page’s 14 starts. Academy Director Rob Smith says “the choice will be made between Page’s experiences and Shaw’s ability to make something happen”.
Exiles lock McCarthy featured in the Ireland U21 squad before being injured. This restricted his opportunities for both Wasps and Ireland and he didn’t make Ireland U21’s Six Nations squad. McCarthy has been competing all season with Wasps 2 other locks, who both play for England U21’s. An injury to one of them, Green, gave McCarthy a consolidated run in the Wasps side and allowed him to hit a rich run of form. He is expected to start alongside England U21 Lock Purdy with Green on the bench. Rob Smith expects McCarthy to “continue his excellent ball carrying form”.
Both players are expected to play for the Exiles U21 side next season in potential fixtures with Ulster U21’s and the Welsh Exiles.