Farrell Selects 34-Player Squad For Guinness Men’s Six Nations

The Ireland squad will assemble at the IRFU High Performance Centre in Dublin next Monday to begin preparations for their opening match against France at Marseille’s Stade Velodrome on Friday, February 2 (kick-off 9pm local time/8pm Irish time).

Back rower O’Mahony, who has captained Ireland on 10 previous occasions, will lead the squad into the Championship, taking over from Jonathan Sexton who called time on his career following last year’s Rugby World Cup.

Farrell has selected three further training additions – Munster duo Oli Jager and Thomas Ahern, and Leinster out-half Sam Prendergast – who will travel with the Ireland squad to Portugal next Wednesday for their pre-tournament training camp in Quinta do Lago.

Following a Friday night showdown with France in round 1, Ireland have back-to-back matches at the Aviva Stadium against Italy on Sunday, February 11 (kick-off 3pm), and Wales on Saturday, February 24 (kick-off 2.15pm).

Farrell’s side then travel to London to face England at Twickenham in round 4 on Saturday, March 10 (kick-off 4.45pm), before concluding the Championship against Scotland at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday, March 16 (kick-off 4.45pm).

Commenting on today’s squad announcement, Farrell said: “The forthcoming Guinness Men’s Six Nations presents an opportunity for us to grow and develop. The Six Nations is one of the biggest stages in world rugby and this year’s competition will be keenly fought.

“I am pleased with the quality of performances by the extended group over the last number of weeks and believe that the squad is in good shape.

“I would like to congratulate all those who have been selected, especially those who are at the beginning of their international journeys.

“It doesn’t get much tougher than France away in the opening weekend, but it is a challenge that we will approach in a positive frame of mind.

To our new captain Peter O’Mahony, he is a born leader and someone who has been an influential figure for Munster and Ireland for many years. I am confident that the squad will continue to benefit from his leadership skills, both on and off the field.

“He is thoroughly deserving of this honour, and I know that he will relish working closely with the wider leadership group and squad over the coming campaign. I would like to congratulate him and his family at this special time.”

On his appointment as captain for the 2024 Championship, O’Mahony commented: “Ever since I was a boy starting off in the game, I have always dreamed of captaining Ireland.

“I have been asked to lead Ireland on a number of occasions previously, and each of those 10 matches were special days. To be now asked to captain Ireland ahead of the Six Nations is without doubt one of the proudest moments of my life and I would like to thank Andy for this show of faith in me.

“We have a strong core of leaders who will all play a key role in driving the highest standards for the team over the coming weeks.

“Competition is red hot across the squad, and we’re all hugely motivated to work hard when we meet up next week ahead of the opening game in Marseille.”

All three of Ireland’s home matches at the Aviva Stadium are sold out, with RTÉ and Virgin Media providing free-to-air live TV coverage of the Guinness Men’s Six Nations in Republic of Ireland, while BBC and ITV are broadcasting the games in the United Kingdom.

IRELAND MEN’S Squad (2024 Guinness Six Nations Championship):

Player/Club/Province/Caps –

Backs (15):

Bundee Aki (Galwegians/Connacht) 52
Harry Byrne (UCD/Leinster) 2
Craig Casey (Shannon/Munster) 13
Jack Crowley (Cork Constitution/Munster) 9
Ciaran Frawley (UCD/Leinster) 1
Jamison Gibson-Park (Leinster) 30
Robbie Henshaw (Buccaneers/Leinster) 62
Hugo Keenan (UCD/Leinster) 36
Jordan Larmour (St. Mary’s College/Leinster) 30
James Lowe (Leinster) 26
Stuart McCloskey (Bangor/Ulster) 15
Conor Murray (Garryowen/Munster) 112
Calvin Nash (Young Munster/Munster) 1
Garry Ringrose (UCD/Leinster) 57
Jacob Stockdale (Lurgan/Ulster) 37

Forwards (19):

Ryan Baird (Dublin University/Leinster) 15
Finlay Bealham (Buccaneers/Connacht) 36
Tadhg Beirne (Lansdowne/Munster) 46
Jack Conan (Old Belvedere/Leinster) 41
Caelan Doris (St. Mary’s College/Leinster) 36
Tadhg Furlong (Clontarf/Leinster) 72
Cian Healy (Clontarf/Leinster) 125
Iain Henderson (Academy/Ulster) 79
Ronan Kelleher (Lansdowne/Leinster) 26
Jeremy Loughman (Garryowen/Munster) 4
Joe McCarthy (Dublin University/Leinster) 5
Peter O’Mahony (Cork Constitution/Munster) (capt) 101
Tom O’Toole (Ballynahinch/Ulster) 12
Andrew Porter (UCD/Leinster) 59
James Ryan (UCD/Leinster) 59
Dan Sheehan (Lansdowne/Leinster) 21
Tom Stewart (Ballynahinch/Ulster) 2
Nick Timoney (Banbridge/Ulster) 3
Josh van der Flier (UCD/Leinster) 57

Training Panellists:

Oli Jager (Munster) *
Thomas Ahern (Shannon/Munster) *
Sam Prendergast (Lansdowne/Leinster) *

* Denotes uncapped player