Two Ireland debutants in team to play Georgia on Saturday
He is only the third scrum-half to captain Ireland in the professional era after Niall Hogan (three times) and Eoin Reddan (once). Saturday's game in Tbilisi will be Ireland's 764th Men's Test and it will be broadcast live on Virgin Media.
The Munster star will be leading a team selected by Men's interim Head Coach Paul O'Connell in the opening game of the two-Test Summer series on Saturday evening, against Georgia in Mikheil Meskhi Stadium, Tbilisi (kick off 9pm local, 6pm Irish time).
Casey forms a half-back partnership with Sam Prendergast, with Stuart McCloskey and Jamie Osborne set to link up in midfield.
Winger Tommy O'Brien will make his debut in a back three which includes his provincial colleague Jimmy O'Brien and Jacob Stockdale who is set to earn his 39th cap.
McCloskey, who turns 33 in August, will be the eldest Ireland player on the team.
'I don't think I'm doing a lot wrong,' he says.
'I think when I've played I've went well, it's just there's four very good centres in the lads, two of them are away [with the Lions, Bundee Aki and Garry Ringrose] and you could argue Robbie [Henshaw] would've been away as well if he wasn't injured, so I don't think I'm too far off it.
'What can I do better? Keep improving on a few things, probably a bit more physicality in defence, I think I've got most things in attack. Add a few more strings to my bow, whether that's breakdown or poach threat, but overall I don't think there's a lot in it. A few decisions go my way, I'm sitting here with a few more caps."
Stockdale needs one more try to become the 21st Irish player to score 100+ points for Ireland and the first since Jack Crowley. It would also move him to Ireland's outright 6th leading try scorer and he currently shares that position with Girvan Dempsey and Geordan Murphy.
The second starting debutant sees Connacht's Darragh Murray form a second-row partnership alongside Cormac Izuchukwu. Jack Boyle, hooker Gus McCarthy and Thomas Clarkson start in the front row with Ryan Baird, Nick Timoney and number eight Gavin Coombes named in the back-row to complete the starting pack.
In all there are potentially four further debutants on the replacements bench with Munster duo Michael Milne and Tom Ahern as well as Connacht pair Jack Aungier and scrum-half Ben Murphy set to make their respective international bows.
This quartet are joined by previously capped Tom Stewart, Cian Prendergast, Jack Crowley and Calvin Nash. Only two players on the bench, Crowley and Nash have been capped 10 or more times.
Continued O'Connell "I have been impressed by the application of the squad ahead of this two-Test tour and Saturday's game presents an exciting opportunity for this group of players.
"I would like to congratulate Craig Casey on his first game as captain. Craig has taken to captaincy impressively. He's going to relish leading his country and I know how keen he is to make his mark alongside the rest of the players.
"This weekend is also an extra special one for six players who are set to make their international debuts.
"To Tommy and Darragh, who get the chance to start, as well as the four others who will be ready to make their mark from the bench, I wish them well and the squad are determined to make it a memorable occasion for them and their families.
"Though light in terms of international caps in some areas, there's also a nice blend of experience in the squad.'
From the new to the, er, experienced, McCloskey and O'Connell go back a long way.
Says the Ulster player: 'I think I was even in one Ireland training camp with him and I think I'm the only one in the squad to have played a game against him as well. We won down at Thomond that day for Ulster, I'll not mention that to him, hopefully that comes up and he sees that.
"As a player, Paulie was incredibly intimidating, you see some of the clips of him from back in the day and he'd be red carded basically every week for what he did but I think he knows that himself now. It was a different time.
'Intimidating as a player, as a coach he has that intimidation factor but I think he's very personable. He lets the young guys come out of their shell, a bit like what Faz is like.
"He's watched Faz over the past three, four years and learned a lot from that. How has he put his own stamp on it? There hasn't been a great deal different.
"He's seemed quite laidback to me, but with me being the oldest in the group it's easy to feel a bit more laidback when you're 32, not 20.'
McCloskey can even remember playing against O'Connell - and it was quite the memorable game:
'Ulster sent down the biggest B team of all time because it was a dead rubber at the end of the season and Munster had their best team out. I remember it very well. Michaell Heaney scored a try, they were trying to get to second and we were fourth, couldn't go up or down, it was back in the Pro12 days and we got the win, I think it was my fourth cap.
'I think Michael Allen (played with me at centre). James McKinney was at 10. Good story because the coach said 'Ah, you'll play more next season' to him and he was actually leaving that summer. I won't say who the coach was, but you can figure that out.'
Ireland team & replacements *denotes uncapped
15. Jimmy O'Brien (Naas/Leinster) (8)
14: Tommy O'Brien (UCD/Leinster)*
13: Jamie Osborne (Naas/Leinster)(7)
12: Stuart McCloskey (Bangor/Ulster)(19)
11: Jacob Stockdale (Lurgan/Ulster)(38)
10: Sam Prendergast (Lansdowne/Leinster)(8)
9: Craig Casey (Shannon/Munster)(captain)(18)
1: Jack Boyle (UCD/Leinster)(2)
2: Gus McCarthy (UCD/Leinster)(4)
3: Thomas Clarkson (Dublin University/Leinster)(6)
4: Cormac Izuchukwu (Ballynahinch/Ulster)(1)
5: Darragh Murray (Buccaneers/Connacht)*
6: Ryan Baird (Dublin University/Leinster)(27)
7: Nick Timoney (Banbridge/Ulster)(3)
8: Gavin Coombes (Young Munster/Munster)(2)
Replacements:
16: Tom Stewart (Ballynahinch/Ulster)(2)
17: Michael Milne (UCD/Munster)*
18: Jack Aungier (Clontarf/Connacht)*
19: Tom Ahern (Shannon/Munster)*
20: Cian Prendergast (UCD/Connacht)(4)
21: Ben Murphy (Clontarf/Connacht)*
22: Jack Crowley (Cork Constitution/Munster)(24)
23: Calvin Nash (Young Munster/Munster)(10)
Ireland Men's Squad – Summer Tour 2025Player/Club/Province/CapsBacks (14): Shayne Bolton (Connacht)*, Craig Casey (Shannon/Munster)(captain)(18), Jack Crowley (Cork Constitution/Munster)(24), Nathan Doak (Banbridge/Ulster)*, Ciaran Frawley (UCD/Leinster)(8), Hugh Gavin (Galwegians/Connacht)*, Stuart McCloskey (Bangor/Ulster)(19), Ben Murphy (Clontarf/Connacht)*, Dermot Kilgallon (Munster)*, Jimmy O'Brien (Naas/Leinster)(8), Tommy O'Brien (UCD/Leinster)*, Jamie Osborne (Naas/Leinster)(7), Sam Prendergast (Lansdowne/Leinster)(8), Jacob Stockdale (Lurgan/Ulster)(38)
Forwards (18): Tom Ahern (Shannon/Munster)*, Jack Aungier (Lansdowne/Connacht)*, Ryan Baird (Dublin University/Leinster)(27), Jack Boyle (UCD/Leinster)(2), Thomas Clarkson (Dublin University/Leinster)(6), Gavin Coombes (Young Munster/Munster)(2), Max Deegan (Lansdowne/Leinster)(2), Cormac Izuchukwu (Ballynahinch/Ulster)(1), Alex Kendellen (UCC/Munster)*, Gus McCarthy (UCD/Leinster)(4), Paddy McCarthy (Dublin University/Leinster)*, Michael Milne (UCD/Munster)*, Darragh Murray (Buccaneers/Connacht)*, Tom O'Toole (Ballynahinch/Ulster)(16), Cian Prendergast (UCD/Connacht)(4), Stephen Smyth (Old Wesley/Leinster)*, Tom Stewart (Ballynahinch/Ulster)(2), Nick Timoney (Banbridge/Ulster)(3), Scott Wilson (Queens University/Ulster)*
IRELAND SUMMER TOUR SCHEDULESaturday, 5th July: Georgia v Ireland, Mikheil Meskhi Stadium, Tbilisi (kick off 9pm local time, 6pm Irish time);Saturday, 12th July: Portugal v Ireland, Estádio Nacional do Jamor, Lisbon (kick off 7pm local, same Irish time)Ireland Men's Squad – Summer Tour 2025, departing for Tbilisi on Wednesday, 2nd July.
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