IRFU Live Blog: South Africa v Ireland
Join us for live text commentary of Ireland’s opening Test match against South Africa at Newlands Stadium today (kick-off 5pm local time/4pm Irish time), as they launch their summer tour in Cape Town..
On the couch, in the clubhouse, on the move? You can follow all the action from South Africa v Ireland with our IRFU Live Blog this evening.
You can keep track of the game (kick-off 5pm local time/4pm Irish time) courtesy of our IRFU Live Blog updates, featuring:
– All the build-up, live match tracking and stats direct from Newlands
– Your tweets and photos
– Post-match reaction from Joe Schmidt and the players
Today’s summer tour opener is being broadcast live on Sky Sports 1 HD and RTÉ Radio 1. You can follow every tackle and try on the IRFU Live Blog – #ShouldertoShoulder and #RSAvIRE.
Ulster duo Jared Payne and Paddy Jackson slot in at full-back and out-half respectively in the absence of the injured Rob Kearney and Jonathan Sexton, while Robbie Henshaw and Luke Marshall will form a new centre pairing.
Prop Mike Ross wins his 60th cap in an Irish pack that sees the return of Iain Henderson and Jordi Murphy to the second row and back row respectively, the pair winning their first caps since last year’s Rugby World Cup quarter-final loss to Argentina.
Ireland are aiming for their first ever Test win on South African soil after seven previous tour defeats between 1961 and 2004, including three at Newlands – 24-8 (1961), 23-15 (1981) and 26-17 (2004).