Ireland v Wales: Facts & Figures
All roads lead to Dublin for three massive encounters in the opening rounds of the Men’s, Women’s and Under-20 RBS 6 Nations Championships this weekend. The Ireland Under-20s and Women have both made Donnybrook their new home.
UNDER-20 RBS 6 NATIONS: Friday, February 5
IRELAND UNDER-20s v WALES UNDER-20s, Donnybrook, 7.35pm (live RTÉ Two/www.rte.ie/live (island of Ireland only))
– The Ireland Under-20s finished in seventh place in last year’s World Rugby U-20 Championship, while in the Six Nations they won their opening two fixtures but lost their last three
– The Ireland U-20s lost their most recent home game against England at Donnybrook and have only once before lost successive home games at this level (to France and England in 2011)
– The Wales U-20a were sixth in the World Rugby U-20 Championship in Italy last summer and finished the Six Nations with a won three, lost two record
– The Wales U-20s won in round 4 and 5 in the tournament last year, and have not won three games in a row in the U-20 Six Nations since 2013
– The two sides have met on 13 previous occasions at this level with Wales having the edge by seven wins to five, plus a drawn game
– The Ireland U-20s’ only win with their last five encounters with Wales was 35-21 in Pukekohe, New Zealand in June 2014
Match Ticket Info: Click here to buy tickets for all of the Ireland Under-20 three home games. Tickets are priced at €;20 for unreserved seating, €;15 for terrace standing, €;10 for children and €;7.50 for a family (two adults and two children).
IRELAND U-20: Jack Power (UCD/Leinster); Matthew Byrne (Terenure College/Leinster), Shane Daly (Cork Constitution/Munster), Jimmy O’Brien (UCD/Leinster), Hugo Keenan (UCD/Leinster); Johnny McPhillips (Queen’s University/Ulster), John Poland (Cork Constitution/Munster); Andrew Porter (UCD/Leinster), Adam McBurney (Ballymena/Ulster), Conan O’Donnell (Sligo/Connacht), Peter Claffey (Galwegians/Connacht), James Ryan (Lansdowne/Leinster) (capt), Cillian Gallagher (Sligo/Connacht), Will Connors (UCD/Leinster), Max Deegan (Lansdowne/Leinster).
Replacements: Shane Fenton (Young Munster/Munster), James Bollard (Dublin University/Leinster), Conor Kenny (Buccaneers/Connacht), Sean O’Connor (Cashel/Munster), Kelvin Brown (Shannon/Munster), Stephen Kerins (Sligo/Connacht), Brett Connon (Newcastle Falcons/Exile), Conor O’Brien (Clontarf/Leinster).
WALES U-20: Rhun Williams (RGC); Elis-Wyn Benham (Cardiff Blues), Harri Millard (Cardiff Blues), Owen Watkin (Ospreys), Keelan Giles (Ospreys); Dan Jones (Scarlets), Declan Smith (Scarlets); Corey Domachowski (Cardiff Blues), Dafydd Hughes (Scarlets), Dillon Lewis (Cardiff Blues), Shane Lewis-Hughes (Cardiff Blues), Adam Beard (Ospreys), Tom Phillips (Scarlets) (capt), Shaun Evans (Scarlets), Harrison Keddie (Newport Gwent Dragons).
Replacements: Ifan Phillips (Scarlets), Robert Lewis (Cardiff Blues), Leon Brown (Newport Gwent Dragons), Bryce Morgan (Newport Gwent Dragons), Morgan Sieniawski (Cardiff Blues), Reuben Morgan-Williams (Ospreys), Jarrod Evans (Cardiff Blues), Joe Thomas (Ospreys).
Referee: Thomas Charabas (France)
Assistant Referees: Sébastien Minery, Paul-Henri Courbier (both France)
Television Match Official: Vincent Azoulay (France)
WOMEN’S RBS 6 NATIONS: Saturday, February 6
IRELAND WOMEN v WALES WOMEN, Donnybrook, 1pm (live stream on www.IrishRugby.ie/live RTÉ Radio 1 Extra)
– Ireland are the reigning Women’s RBS 6 Nations champions, having taken the title in two of the past three years
– Ireland’s only defeat in the Women’s RBS 6 Nations last season was at home to France in round 2
– This game is Ireland Women’s first outing at Donnybrook since they lost to Wales there in 2006
– The Wales Women have finished in fifth place for the past two seasons and in 2015 began their campaign with a pair of victories, over England and Scotland, before being defeated in the last three rounds
– The two countries have met on 20 previous occasions with Ireland Women winning seven and Wales thirteen, however Ireland have won the last four since Wales’ 15-14 victory at Cross Keys in 2011
Match Ticket Info: Click here to buy tickets for all of the Ireland Women’s three home games. Tickets are priced at €;15 for unreserved seating, €;10 for terrace standing, €;5 for children and €;5 for a family (two adults and two children).
Women’s RBS 6 Nations Fixtures
IRELAND WOMEN: Niamh Briggs (UL Bohemians/Munster) (capt); Elise O’Byrne White (Old Belvedere/Leinster), Aine Donnelly (Cill Dara/Leinster), Sene Naoupu (Galwegians/Connacht), Mairead Coyne (Galwegians/Connacht); Nikki Caughey (Railway Union/Ulster), Larissa Muldoon (Skewen); Ailis Egan (Old Belvedere/Leinster), Zoe Grattage (Tralee/Munster), Ruth O’Reilly (Galwegians/Connacht), Sophie Spence (Old Belvedere/Leinster), Marie Louise Reilly (Old Belvedere/Leinster), Paula Fitzpatrick (Toulouse), Claire Molloy (Bristol), Heather O’Brien (Toulouse).
Replacements: Cliodhna Moloney (Railway Union/Leinster), Lindsay Peat (Railway Union/Leinster), Fiona Reidy (UL Bohemians/Munster), Ciara Cooney (Railway Union/Leinster), Ciara Griffin (Tralee/Munster), Mary Healy (Galwegians/Connacht), Nora Stapleton (Old Belvedere/Leinster), Jackie Shiels (Richmond).
WALES WOMEN: Adi Taviner (Skewen/Ospreys); Elen Evans (Caernarfon/Scarlets), Kerin Lake (Skewen/Ospreys), Hannah Jones (Penybanc/Scarlets), Bethan Dainton (Bristol/Dragons); Robyn Wilkins (Llandaff North/Ospreys), Keira Bevan (Skewen/Ospreys); Megan York (Ynysddu/Dragons), Carys Phillips (Skewen/Ospreys), Amy Evans (Skewen/Ospreys), Rebecca Rowe (Richmond/Dragons), Sioned Harries (Whitland/Scarlets), Rachel Taylor (Caernarfon/Dragons) (capt), Sian Williams (Worcester/Dragons), Shona Powell-Hughes (Skewen/Ospreys).
Replacements: Amy Price (Skewen/Ospreys), Catrin Edwards (Llandaff North/Scarlets), Cerys Hale (Pontyclun/Dragons), Siwan Lillicrap (Skewen/Ospreys), Alisha Butchers (Penybanc/Scarlets), Elinor Snowsill (Bristol/Dragons), Gemma Rowland (Wasps/Dragons), Dyddgu Hywel (Pontyclun/Scarlets).
Referee: Leah Berard (USA)
Assistant Referees: Joy Neville, Paul Haycock (both Ireland)
RBS 6 NATIONS CHAMPIONSHIP: Sunday, February 7
IRELAND v WALES, Aviva Stadium, 3pm (live RTÉ Two/ITV/RTÉ Radio 1/IRFU Live Blog)
STATS & FACTS
– Ireland’s only defeat at RWC 2015 came in the quarter-finals to Argentina
– Joe Schmidt starts his third RBS 6 Nations campaign having carried off the title in the previous two
– Ireland’s only two RBS 6 Nations defeats under his tenure were away to England in 2014 and on a trip to Wales last season
– Ireland have won their last five matches at the Aviva Stadium in the RBS 6 Nations since drawing there 13-all with France 2013. Their only defeat in the Championship at the venue since the opening round of 2012 was to England in 2013
– Ireland have lost only once in round 1 of the RBS 6 Nations since 2004: to Wales at the Aviva Stadium in 2012
– Wales have lost their two most recent Test matches at RWC 2015, in a pool game to Australia and the quarter-final to South Africa
– Wales have begun the RBS 6 Nations with an opening weekend defeat in four of the last six years but in 2013 they still went on to take the title and last season they won their remaining four matches
– Wales have won their last five games played on opposition turf and in last season’s RBS 6 Nations won all their three away games, in Scotland, France and Italy
– The two countries met in two World Cup warm-up games last year with each winning away from home
– Wales have won three times in Dublin in the RBS 6 Nations, doing so at the old Lansdowne Road in 2000, at Croke Park in 2008 and at the Aviva Stadium in 2012
IRELAND: Simon Zebo (Cork Constitution/Munster); Andrew Trimble (Ballymena/Ulster), Jared Payne (Ulster), Robbie Henshaw (Buccaneers/Connacht), Keith Earls (Young Munster/Munster); Jonathan Sexton (St. Mary’s College/Leinster), Conor Murray (Garryowen/Munster); Jack McGrath (St. Mary’s College/Leinster), Rory Best (Banbridge/Ulster) (capt), Nathan White (Connacht), Mike McCarthy (Lansdowne/Leinster), Devin Toner (Lansdowne/Leinster), CJ Stander (Munster), Tommy O’Donnell (UL Bohemians/Munster), Jamie Heaslip (Dublin University/Leinster).
Replacements: Sean Cronin (St. Mary’s College/Leinster), James Cronin (Dolphin/Munster), Tadhg Furlong (Clontarf/Leinster), Donnacha Ryan (Shannon/Munster), Rhys Ruddock (St. Mary’s College/Leinster), Kieran Marmion (Corinthians/Connacht), Ian Madigan (Blackrock College/Leinster), Dave Kearney (Lansdowne/Leinster).
WALES: Gareth Anscombe (Cardiff Blues); George North (Northampton Saints), Jonathan Davies (Clermont Auvergne), Jamie Roberts (Harlequins), Tom James (Cardiff Blues); Dan Biggar (Ospreys), Gareth Davies (Scarlets); Rob Evans (Scarlets), Scott Baldwin (Ospreys), Samson Lee (Scarlets), Luke Charteris (Racing 92), Alun Wyn Jones (Ospreys), Sam Warburton (Cardiff Blues) (capt), Justin Tipuric (Ospreys), Taulupe Faletau (Newport Gwent Dragons).
Replacements: Ken Owens (Scarlets), Gethin Jenkins (Cardiff Blues), Tomas Francis (Exeter Chiefs), Bradley Davies (Wasps), Dan Lydiate (Ospreys), Lloyd Williams (Cardiff Blues), Rhys Priestland (Bath), Alex Cuthbert (Cardiff Blues).
Referee: Jérôme Garcès (France)
Assistant Referees: Glen Jackson, Ben O’Keeffe (both New Zealand)
Television Match Official: Graham Hughes (England)
– Compiled by SFMS Limited (Stuart Farmer Media Services)