Ireland U18 Men’s Squad Named For Six Nations Festival

The Ireland U-18 Men’s Squad , sponsored by PwC, has been named for the upcoming Six Nations Men’s U18 Festival in Parma (March 29 – April 7).

The 26-man squad includes two players who featured in last year’s tournament which took place in Dublin – Charlie Molony and Luke McLaughlin, younger brother of Ireland U20 player Hugo.

There are several players who picked up a Schools Cup medal recently, named in the squad including Molony, Brian O’Flaherty, Conor O’Shaughnessy, Donnacha McGuire, and Michael Walsh from Blackrock College, James O’Leary from Pres. Cork and RBAI players Blake McClean and Josh Gibson.

Ireland face France in their opening match on March 30^th, followed by hosts Italy on April 3^rd and finish the tournament against Portugal on April 7^th.

All matches will be live streamed by Six Nations and will be available on IrishRugby.ie and Youtube.

Speaking about the tournament Wayne Mitchell, National Talent Squad & Talent ID Manager, said, “The Six Nations festival is a traditional part of the rugby calendar for our young players. It offers a wonderful opportunity for them get a taste of what it is like to play at an elite level. We’re really looking forward to seeing how the squad goes.”

Ireland U18 Schools Squad (U18 Six Nations Festival 2024, Parma, Italy, March 29-April 7)

Chris Barrett (CBC Cork/Munster Rugby)
Ethan Black (St. Michael’s College/Leinster Rugby)
Noah Byrne (Gonzaga College/Leinster Rugby)
Jamie Conway (Castletroy College/Munster Rugby)
Paddy Curry (Terenure College/Leinster Rugby)
Jack Deegan (CC Roscrea College/Leinster Rugby)
Max Doyle (Clongowes Wood College/Leinster Rugby)
Joe Finn (Roscrea College/Munster Rugby)
Rory Gavin (Colaiste Iognaid/Galwegians RFC/Connacht Rugby)
Josh Gibson (RBAI/Ulster Rugby)
Bill Hayes (CC Roscrea College/Munster Rugby)
Conor Magee (Banbridge Academy/Ulster Rugby)
Luke McLaughlin (Gonzaga College/Leinster Rugby)
Blake McClean (RBAI/Ulster Rugby)
Donnacha McGuire (Blackrock College/Leinster Rugby)
Dylan McNeice (St. Michael’s College/Leinster Rugby)
Charlie Meagher (CBC Monkstown/Leinster Rugby)
Charlie Molony (Blackrock College/Leinster Rugby)
Diarmuid O’Connell (Carrick on Shannon RFC/Sligo Grammar/Connacht Rugby)
James O’Dwyer (Gonzaga College/Leinster Rugby)
Brian O’Flaherty (Blackrock College/Leinster Rugby)
James O’Leary (PBC Cork/Munster Rugby)
Conor O’Shaughnessy (Blackrock College/Leinster Rugby)
Cian Walsh (CBC Cork/Munster Rugby)
Michael Walsh (Blackrock College/Leinster Rugby)
Tom Wood (St. Munchins College/Munster Rugby)

Ireland U18 School Management

Neil Doak – Head Coach
Brendan O’Connor – Assistant Coach
Michael Hodge – Assistant Coach
Stephen O’Hara – Team Manager
James O’Leary – Athletic Development Coach
David Lyons – Team Physio
Prof. John Ryan – Team Doctor
Brandon Shanahan – Team Analyst
Mo Dempsey – Team Logistics

U18 Six Nations Festival 2024 – Fixtures

Ireland u18 vs. France u18 (30^th March 2024) @ 15.30pm

Ireland u18 vs. Italy u18 (3^rd April 2024) @ 17.45pm

Ireland u18 vs. Portugal u18 (7^th April 2024) @ 11.00am