Ireland meet Fiji for only the fourth time at Test level as head coach Joe Schmidt runs the rule over a number of young players and new combinations in the middle match of the 2017 GUINNESS Series.
2017 GUINNESS SERIES MATCH: Saturday, November 18
IRELAND v FIJI, Aviva Stadium, 5.30pm (live RTE Two/www.rte.ie/live (ROI only)/Sky Sports Main Event/RTE Radio 1/IRFU Live Blog)
Team News: Ireland head coach Joe Schmidt has named a team, which includes one new cap, for Saturday’s sold-out GUINNESS Series game against Fiji at the Aviva Stadium.
Munster’s Chris Farrell is set to win his first cap alongside Stuart McCloskey in a new-look and exciting centre partnership. It will be McCloskey’s first outing for Ireland since making his debut against England last year.
Andrew Conway, a try scorer on the right wing against South Africa, moves to full-back and is one of only two players retained in the starting XV from the 38-3 victory over the Springboks. Lock Devin Toner will also make it back-to-back November starts.
Darren Sweetnam, a debutant off the bench last week, comes in for his first start on the right wing and Dave Kearney returns on the left for his first international appearance since the 2016 Six Nations match away to France.
Connacht’s Kieran Marmion is the most-capped member of the starting back-line with 17 Tests to date. He is set for his fourth Ireland start of the calendar year, featuring at half-back alongside Joey Carbery whose only previous start at number 10 was against the USA in June.
In a team that shows 13 personnel changes, flanker Rhys Ruddock reprises his summer tour role as captain. It will be his fourth time to lead Ireland in the space of five months. The back row is completed by the fit-again Jordi Murphy, who returns for his first cap since last November’s win over New Zealand, and Jack Conan.
Ultan Dillane gets his second start in the engine room, combining with Toner, while Jack McGrath returns to the loosehead spot in a front row that also includes Rob Herring, a try-scoring replacement against the ‘Boks, and the 21-year-old Andrew Porter who is set for his first start and home debut for Ireland.
James Tracy, who made his debut last November against Canada, and Kieran Treadwell, who won his first cap on the recent summer tour, are included among the replacements. Cian Healy, Tadhg Furlong, CJ Stander and Robbie Henshaw are on bench duty after starting the South Africa match, while half-backs Luke McGrath and Ian Keatley completed a much-changed matchday 23.
Commenting on the team selection, Schmidt said: “We’re just hoping that these guys try to follow up the benchmark set last week. It’s a real challenge for them. There will be some really tough moments and it will be interesting to see how they work their way through it.
“We want to give them a really stern test now to see if that progression can continue under real stress. It’s always a concern, but I can’t fault the application of this group.
“If they can bring that into the game, start well, get early confidence, I’d hope they can acquit themselves really well. I’m hoping for variety, that they can link up and play with width, but also be direct when we need to be. A lot of energy defensively, they are well able to dominate the gain-line.”
He added: “It’s not even about a four-year (World Cup) cycle, it’s more about guys working hard and being given an opportunity. I said there are no guarantees for a Test jersey, a chance for you to come in, fit in and work your way through to impress us and the players that have been before you.
“Now they have that visible opportunity. There’s no better way to test people than to throw them into the arena. The only problem with a Test is that you are so visible, and any error is very visible, and you’re playing against players who will exploit any weakness.”
Meanwhile, this will be Fiji’s first visit to the Aviva Stadium – they played twice previously at the old Lansdowne Road in 1995 and 2002, and also at the RDS in 2009 – and only the fourth time that the nations have met at Test level.
Looking forward to Saturday’s clash, Fiji head coach John McKee said: “I expect a very strong challenge on Saturday from the Irish team here in Dublin. The flying Fijians will need to take a step up in the level of performance displayed during the Italy match last week.”
McKee has made four personnel changes to the team that lost 19-10 to Italy in Catania. Captain Akapusi Qera leads the pack from openside flanker, combining with Nemani Nagusa and the incoming Dominiko Waqaniburotu in an all France-based back row.
Racing 92’s Leone Nakarawa, the scorer of Fiji’s only try against Italy, features in an unchanged tight five, packing down alongside Api Ratuniyarawa and behind a front row made up of London Irish’s Manasa Saulo, hooker Tuapati Talemaitoga and Northampton Saints loosehead Campese Ma’afau.
Montpellier’s Timoci Nagusa and Nemani Nadolo will line out on opposite wings, with the latter, who tips the scales at nearly 20 stone, looking to follow up on the two tries he scored against Leinster in the Champions Cup last month.
Nadolo, La Rochelle centre Levani Botia and scrum half Henry Seniloli are the three changes to the Fijian back-line, replacing Josua Tuisova, Asaeli Tikoirotuma and Frank Lomani respectively. Seniloli will team up at half-back with Ben Volavola, who recently signed as a medical joker for Bordeaux-Begles.
IRELAND: Andrew Conway (Garryowen/Munster); Darren Sweetnam (Cork Constitution/Munster), Chris Farrell (Young Munster/Munster), Stuart McCloskey (Bangor/UIster), Dave Kearney (Lansdowne/Leinster); Joey Carbery (Clontarf/Leinster), Kieran Marmion (Corinthians/Connacht); Jack McGrath (St. Mary’s College/Leinster), Rob Herring (Ballynahinch/Ulster), Andrew Porter (UCD/Leinster), Ultan Dillane (Corinthians/Connacht), Devin Toner (Lansdowne/Leinster), Rhys Ruddock (St. Mary’s College/Leinster) (capt), Jordi Murphy (Lansdowne/Leinster), Jack Conan (Old Belvedere/Leinster).
Replacements: James Tracy (UCD/Leinster), Cian Healy (Clontarf/Leinster), Tadhg Furlong (Clontarf/Leinster), Kieran Treadwell (Ballymena/Ulster), CJ Stander (Shannon/Munster), Luke McGrath (UCD/Leinster), Ian Keatley (Young Munster/Munster), Robbie Henshaw (Buccaneers/Leinster).
FIJI: Kini Murimurivalu (La Rochelle); Timoci Nagusa (Montpellier), Jale Vatubua (Pau), Levani Botia (La Rochelle), Nemani Nadolo (Montpellier); Ben Volavola (Bordeaux-Begles), Henry Seniloli (Timisoara Saracens); Campese Ma’afu (Northampton Saints), Tuapati Talemaitoga (Southland), Manasa Saulo (London Irish), Apisalome Ratuniyarawa (Northampton Saints), Leone Nakarawa (Racing 92), Dominiko Waqaniburotu (Brive), Akapusi Qera (Agen) (capt), Nemani Nagusa (Aurillac).
Replacements: Sunia Koto (Macon), Peni Ravai (Bordeaux-Begles), Kalivati Tawake (Fijian Drua), Sikeli Nabou (Biarritz Olympique), Peceli Yato (Clermont Auvergne)/Semi Kunatani (Toulouse), Niko Matawalu (Glasgow Warriors), Asaeli Tikoirotuma (London Irish), Vereniki Goneva (Newcastle Falcons).
Referee: Paul Williams (New Zealand)
Assistant Referees: Angus Gardner (Australia), Alexandre Ruiz (France)
Television Match Official: Graham Hughes (England)
Match Odds (Paddy Power): Ireland to win: 1/25; Draw: 40/1; Fiji to win: 14/1
Pre-Match Quotes: Stuart McCloskey (Ireland) – “I felt I worked hard this year and there were things to work on and I’m glad to get the opportunity. Coming into this year I was just trying to stay fit and play my own game. I think that’s been rewarded and hopefully I can go out and show what I can do.
“I think the last time I played together (with Chris), we would have been 19 or 20 for Dungannon or Ulster ‘A’. We have both come on leaps and bounds since then.
“The team that is playing this week trained through last week. We have got a bit of continuity through that with experienced guys like Marms (Kieran Marmion) and Joey Carbery has played a few games now.”
John McKee (Fiji) – “Nemani (Nadolo) has been playing a lot of games for Montpellier and I think it was good for him to get a week off last week and get into a different sort of training from what he’s been doing with his club, and that’s really sharpened him up for this week.
“He had a good game against Leinster over at the RDS (last month), so hopefully he can repeat that at the Aviva tomorrow. One of the things with working with Fiji is you get a lot of satisfaction working with players. They’ve got a great vision for the game, great natural talent, but they’ve also got a good open mind to try different things.
“With this group, they understand the balance between structure and playing a freestyle game. They know we need to have structure to build pressure or opportunities, but certainly there’s no other team in the world that could unleash the unusual play, the-off-the-cuff play.
“So you don’t want to coach that out of them, you want to keep that, but at the same time the players need to understand we do need a structure to put ourselves in better positions to score.”
Pre-Match Links –
This Is An Exciting Opportunity – Feek
Irish Rugby TV: Ultan Dillane On Facing Fiji
Previous Meetings –
1995: Autumn Test: Ireland 44 Fiji 8, Lansdowne Road
2002: Autumn Test: Ireland 64 Fiji 17, Lansdowne Road
2009: Autumn Test: Ireland 41 Fiji 6, the RDS
Support Ireland on www.irishrugby.ie/facebook or search #TeamOfUs, #ShouldertoShoulder and #IREvFIJ on www.twitter.com/irishrugby.
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