One Change To Under-20 Side

Another bumper crowd is expected at Dubarry Park in Athlone, the venue for Ireland’s recent 19-16 win over France, as Eric Elwood’s youngster go in search of their third straight win of the championship.

For Friday’s clash, Sean O’Brien has recovered from the hamstring injury he suffered in the opening game of the championship against Wales and returns at number 8. Team aptain David Pollock moves from number 8 to openside, with Tommy O’Donnell shifting down to the replacements bench instead of Kevin Sheahan.

IRELAND UNDER-20 TEAM AND REPLACEMENTS (v England U-20, Dubarry Park, Friday, February 23, kick-off 7.30pm):

 Player                                      Club/Province                                    

15 – Felix Jones                          Seapoint/Leinster

14 – Shane Monahan                  Dublin University/Leinster

13 – Darren Cave                        Belfast Harlequins/Ulster

12 – Aidan Wynne                       Buccaneers/Connacht

11 – Keith Earls                          Thomond/Munster

10 – Ian Keatley                          UCD/Leinster

9 – Paul O’Donohoe                     UCD/Leinster

1 – Cian Healy                            Clontarf/Leinster

2 – Richard Sweeney                  St. Mary’s College/Leinster

3 – Jamie Hagan                         Greystones/Leinster

4 – Conor McInerney                  UCD/Leinster

5 – Andrew Browne                    Galwegians/Connacht 

6 – Thomas Anderson                 Dungannon/Ulster

7 – David Pollock  (capt)          QUB/Ulster

8 – Sean O’Brien                         UCD/Leinster

Replacements:

16 – Ger Slattery                        Young Munster/Munster

17 – Ruaidhri Murphy                  Lansdowne/Leinster

18 – Neilus Keogh                       UCC/Munster

19 – Tommy O’Donnell                UL Bohemians/Munster

20 – David Drake                        Ballymena/Ulster

21 – Niall O’Connor                     Belfast Harlequins/Ulster

22 – Kyle Tonetti                         Blackrock College/Leinster

Management:

Manager – Phil Orr

Coach – Eric Elwood

Assistant Coach – Dan McFarland

Six Nations Under-20 Fixtures:

Ireland U-20 v England U-20, Friday, February 23, Dubarry Park Athlone, 7.30pm

Scotland U-20 v Ireland U-20, Friday, March 9, Falkirk Stadium 7.30pm

Italy U-20 v Ireland U-20, Friday, March 16, Santa Colomba Stadium, Benevento, kick-off tbc