Ireland head coach Andy Farrell has named Tadhg Beirne as captain for Saturday’s Nations Championship fixture against Fiji at the Aviva Stadium, headlining seven changes to the side that defeated Argentina.
The reshuffled lineup features the return of Bundee Aki in the midfield and a start for Nick Timoney at number eight, while Mack Hansen is set to feature at fullback. The squad, sponsored by Vodafone, will contest the clash with kick-off scheduled for 8.10pm.
Beirne, who captains the side for the second time, is joined in the second row by James Ryan. The pack sees Rónan Kelleher replace the injured Dan Sheehan at hooker, while Andrew Porter and Tadhg Furlong retain their places in the front row.
The backrow consists of Ryan Baird, Josh van der Flier, and Timoney. Among the replacements, Ulster back-row James McNabney is in line to make his Test debut. Other bench options include Tom Stewart, Tom O’Toole, Sam Illo, Darragh Murray, Craig Casey, Ciarán Frawley, and Stuart McCloskey.
Addressing the selection, Farrell said: “I don’t think there’s that many changes. There’s a few that we would have had to have made, but I think in this game in particular I like the look of the team. I like the look of last week’s team, but this, I wouldn’t say it’s an experimental team by any stretch of the imagination, this is a good side that should perform on Saturday.”
Congrats to our six Ulster players named in the @IrishRugby squad to face Fiji this Saturday night at Aviva Stadium 👏☘️ James McNabney is set to make his international debut 🙌 Full team news ➡️ https://t.co/rdBcj8OMKK pic.twitter.com/qPWuscRgie
Regarding Aki, who has recovered from illness, Farrell added: “It’s good to have him back. He was locked in a room. But he’s back and healthy and looking forward to the game.”
“Just being himself really. I think whatever position you see Mack play, he'll just be himself. There are not many wingers that play like Mack does,” Ireland head coach Andy Farrell said on the selection of Hansen at fullback.
The fixture marks the latest stage of the Nations Championship Northern Hemisphere Series, with over 46,000 tickets sold for the encounter at the Home of Irish Rugby. The match kicks off at 8.10pm.
Leading in green ☘️ Munster captain Tadhg Beirne will lead @IrishRugby on Saturday night with Craig Casey among the replacements.#SUAF ☘️ pic.twitter.com/jvQETRpi3t
