Three Uncapped Players Included In Ireland Men’s Squad For London Sevens
Young winger Peter Sullivan, who turns 21 next month, is pictured in action for the Ireland Under-20s last season ©INPHO/Ryan Byrne
Anthony Eddy, the IRFU Director of Sevens Rugby, has named a 13-man squad for this weekend’s HSBC London Sevens tournament at Twickenham Stadium.
Fresh from qualifying for next season’s HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series, Ireland are the invitational team at the next two World Rugby Sevens Series events. This weekend in London and next week in Paris will be used as preparation for the upcoming Rugby Europe Olympic qualifying Tournament which takes place on July 13-14 in Colomiers in France.
Ireland will compete in Pool C in London with New Zealand, Scotland and hosts England. The side will be captained by Billy Dardis, who led them to World Series qualification in Hong Kong last month, and sees three players in line to win their first Ireland Sevens caps – Jack Daly, Jack Kelly and Peter Sullivan.
Speaking ahead of this weekend’s tournament, Eddy said:
To win the tournament in Hong Kong and secure a place on next season’s World Series was a great outcome for all the hard work many players have contributed over a short time.
“It is great to have the opportunity in London and Paris to test ourselves against the top sides in the world as we build towards the Rugby Europe Olympic qualifying tournament in July.
“We’ll be up against quality opposition in our pool, so it will be a real challenge, particularly as core teams are fighting for a top four position to secure Olympic qualification through the series.”
In between games at Twickenham, spectators can enjoy live music and DJ sets, fairground rides, children’s entertainers, garden games and chill-out zones, creating a rare and unique sporting occasion for all. Adult tickets start from £30, with tickets for accompanied children under 15 starting from £10. Children under two are admitted free-of-charge. For more information on tickets, please visit www.englandrugby.com/tickets.
For more information on the series, visit www.world.rugby/sevens-series and follow @WorldRugby7s. The London Sevens matches will be broadcast on Sky Sports Arena on Saturday and Sky Sports Action on Sunday. There will also be live streaming in non geo-blocked regions via www.world.rugby/sevens-series.
IRELAND MEN’S SEVENS Squad (HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series – London Sevens, Twickenham Stadium, London, Saturday, May 25-Sunday May 26):
Jordan Conroy (Buccaneers)
Jack Daly (Garryowen/Munster) *
Billy Dardis (Terenure College) (capt)
Foster Horan (Lansdowne)
Jack Kelly (Dublin University/Leinster) *
Terry Kennedy (St. Mary’s College)
Adam Leavy (Lansdowne)
Hugo Lennox (Clontarf)
Mick McGrath (Clontarf)
Harry McNulty (UCD)
Bryan Mollen (Blackrock College)
Peter Sullivan (Lansdowne) *
Mark Roche (Blackrock College)
* Denotes uncapped player at this level
IRELAND MEN’S SEVENS – London Sevens Fixtures
Saturday, May 25
POOL C:
England v Ireland, Twickenham Stadium, 12.04pm
New Zealand v Ireland, Twickenham Stadium, 2.48pm
Scotland v Ireland, Twickenham Stadium, 5.54pm
Sunday, May 26
PLAY-OFFS