Ireland Under-20s Preparing For Next Challenge

We spoke to several members of the Ireland Under-20 squad and head coach Nigel Carolan as they prepare for the next phase of the Under-20 RBS 6 Nations. Carolan outlines the challenges for the squad and the age-grade structure in Ireland.

The Ireland Under-20s trained with the senior squad at an open session in Mullingar RFC last Friday – a chance to measure themselves against the best. We spoke to local boy Conor O’Brien and his team-mate Johnny McPhillips about the experience.

This week the Ireland U-20s are preparing for Friday’s match against England in Newcastle. We caught up with head coach Nigel Carolan who assessed the performances so far in the campaign and spoke about where Ireland stands in comparison to the other teams in the U-20 Championship in terms of age-grade structures.

Finally, we spoke to promising Connacht lock Peter Claffey about the difficult start to the tournament and the work being done to build on some of the positives in their performances.