O'Connell names 11 uncapped players for Ireland tour to Georgia and Portugal
These include Shayne Bolton, Nathan Doak, Hugh Gavin, Ben Murphy and Tommy O'Brien in the backs. And forwards Stephen Smyth, Michael Milne, Paddy McCarthy, Darragh Murray, Tom Ahern and Alex Kendellan.
Smyth, a 20 year-old hooker, has made just four appearances for Leinster this season, all of them from the bench and totalling just 65 minutes of competitive action.
Their common denominator is that O'Brien, Gavin, Bolton, Doak, Murray and Kendellan started Ireland's A game against England at Bristol in late February while Smyth (who came on in the sixth minute) and McCarthy were on the bench.
Elsewhere there will be satisfaction in Ulster that Stuart McCloskey and Jacob Stockdale made the cut while Munster fans will be happy to see both their cause celebres, Tom Ahern and Gavin Coombes, in the fold.
Leinster, who have 11 players down for Lions duty and for whom Caelan Doris and Robbie Henshaw are injured, provide a further dozen to this squad although only Sam Prendergast, Jimmy and Tommy O'Brien and Jamie Osborne could be considered 'front-liners'.
Osborne travels as the most 'complete' back in the history of Irish rugby - nobody has ever started at full-back, left and right wing, inside and outside centre for a province in one season before.
This was part possible when following playing on the right-wing for Ireland against France in the Six Nations, he started the Champions Cup Last 16 game against Glasgow in the same position, the first time he had won that shirt for the club.
However it took until last Saturday to complete the full-hand when selected at no13 against Scarlets, playing outside Jordie Barrett in the absence of Garry Ringrose and Robbie Henshaw through injury.
Not that Osborne was seen simply as a 'fill-in' as the option was there to use Barrett as the outside centre but not exercised, possibly because management likes to keep the All Black on Sam Prendergast's shoulder, near his ear.
'Jamie came on for Garry in the game against Zebre, so he played there. He has had repetitions in there, it is something he has been exposed to since the Zebre game so he naturally continued on there.'
'He did really well," said Jacques Nienaber. "So last year he played mostly no12 for us and he did really well last weekend.
"I had seen him in training there before and maybe if there was a little bit of injuries there during other games he would move there towards the end.
"But this is the first time I saw him playing there and I just monitored him defensively, Tyler (Bleyendaal, Attack Coach) will have opinions on his attack, but defensively I thought he did really well.'
Farrell and Osborne had been smiling earlier in the day too when they were named in the URC 2024/25 Elite XV alongside clubmates Craig Casey, Tadhg Beirne and RG Snyman.
Meanwhile there is set to be a fantastic battle to see who will prosper at no6 in Portugal and Georgia, to lay a claim to the retiring Peter O'Mahony's spot, between Cormac Izuchukwu and Ryan Baird.
The Ulster player was handed the no6 in the Autumn Series game with Fiji but it was his Leinster rival who started the opening Six Nations game against England and who remained on the bench for the next four games.
Baird has been growing into the Leinster season and is expected to start against Glasgow in the URC semi-final at the Aviva.
"I just kept my head down, kept pounding the rock, as Stu Lancaster would have preached to us many years ago," says Baird.
'Are they actually downs in the grand scheme of things? If you ask me, how has my year been compared to last year in which I would have played a lot more games, Ryan Baird has had as good of a year as a person than he has had last year.
'As a rugby player, I've grown, I've learned loads. I'm not a pessimist, I'm an optimist but there's a realism in there as well. But for sure I just try to see the positives in things.
'I would be a believer that not so much everything happens for a reason but you have a choice when something happens how you react and if you react in a positive way, you're more likely to get a positive reaction and then you just bounce off that. Overall, another great year, but we are not done yet.'
Meanwhile of those left out, Munster's Tom Farrell must feel most hard done by following truly remarkable season where he stood out week in, week out for th Reds, starting all 26 of their games and gaining one of the four nominations for Rugby Players Ireland's Player of the Year.
He was also the winner of the URC's Playmaker of the Year, a new category for 2024/25, selected by awarding three points for try assists, two points for offloads and one for defenders beaten.
Notwithstanding Farrell's crossing for nine URC tries (a hat-trick at Ulster), there were five assists, 41 offloads and 61 defenders left behind finishing with nearly 50 per cent more points than nearest rivals Warrick Gelant (Stormers) and Quan Horn (Lions).
'I'm delighted to announce the Ireland squad for the Summer Tour," says O'Connell, "and I believe we have a strong blend of youth and experience for what will be a trip into relatively uncharted territories this July.
'Georgia have made great strides in recent years, and they have made significant investment in their rugby programme which has established them amongst the leading emerging sides in international rugby.
"Under the experience of Richard Cockerill they have built on a traditionally strong forward unit with a talented backline and they will provide a tough test for us.
"Portugal showcased their attacking prowess during the Rugby World Cup 2023 and Simon Mannix is a Coach I know having worked with him previously (at Munster). They play with confidence and we're expecting another tough test.
'With 15 players away with The British & Irish Lions, this tour presents an opportunity for those on the fringes to impress the coaching team.
"A number of players have been really close to selection in recent times and it's important that everyone grasps the challenge that's ahead of them.
"Every moment on the training field and across the two-match Series will count and there's a great opportunity for players to step up and impress.
'In welcoming the squad, I would like to congratulate Craig (Casey) on his selection as captain. He is a real leader with a strong personality and it is a huge personal honour for him and an opportunity that I know he will relish over the coming weeks.'
Ireland Men's Squad - Summer Tour 2025: Player/Club/Province/Caps
Forwards (18):
Tom Ahern (Shannon/Munster)*
Ryan Baird (Dublin University/Leinster)(27)
Finlay Bealham (Corinthians/Connacht)(51)
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)
Backs (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)*
Calvin Nash (Young Munster/Munster)(10)
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)
Training Panellists: James McNabney (City of Armagh/Ulster)*, Jude Postlethwaite (City of Armagh/Ulster)*, Zac Ward (Ballynahinch/Ulster)*
Ireland Summer Tour
Saturday, 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)
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Examiner
28 minutes ago
- Irish Examiner
Pádraig Harrington wins Senior Open to join double club
Pádraig Harrington has joined a select club who have won both the Open Championship and its senior equivalent, after completing victory at Sunningdale on Sunday. A -3 final round gave Harrington a three-shot win from Justin Leonard in second, having led by two going into the final round. It's double only previously done by Darren Clarke, Tom Watson, Gary Player and Bob Charles. Harrington becomes the third Irish winner of the Senior event, after Clarke and the late Christy O'Connor Jnr, a two-time winner. Harrington won the Senior US Open last month, his second victory in the event. Report to follow
Irish Daily Mirror
an hour ago
- Irish Daily Mirror
The 10 golden rules of having a successful Galway Races
THE Galway Races is truly one of the most unique events on the Irish sporting calendar. 53 races over seven days it's a Mardi Gras or a 'sane madness' as once described and has been a fixture at the Ballybrit racetrack for 155 years. The €270,000 Tote Galway Plate and Guinness Galway Hurdle are the main events on Wednesday and Thursday and around 125,000 punters are expected through the gates. Many things have changed at Galway over the years, some for the better and some for the worse, but it remains a summer highlight and the quality of the racing has improved. I've been going to the Galway Races for over 25 years, and here's my ten golden rules of having an enjoyable and indeed profitable week, whether you're a paying customer or a stay at home punter. 1 - Follow the smaller trainers that target Galway. 2016 was a significant year at the Galway races as champion jumps handler Willie Mullins achieved the then unthinkable by wrestling the leading trainers' prize away from Dermot Weld for the first time in over 20 years. Since then Mullins has won the award every year but he doesn't win every race and there are many progressive yards who target this meeting and are worth following. Ross O'Sullivan left last year with four winners from his six horses across the Festival and he'll have a strong team again with recent Tipperary winner Strong Link likely to go for a race on Thursday. Other trainers with good recent records are Ado McGuinness, Emmet Mullins and Peter Fahey, who trained four winners at the meeting in 2022 and 2023. 2 - A wide draw in the flat races can be curtains Galway is a sharp track with a relatively short uphill home straight and some horses drawn wide can nearly be ruled out of a race before it even begins. A low draw is a massive positive for horses in the contests run over seven furlongs and a mile as it helps jockeys get a good early position at a track where being prominent is crucial. The statistics show that winning from a high draw is tough to achieve. In the day two feature, the Colm Quinn Mile, last year's winner Mexicali Rose was drawn in stall one while the Corrib Stakes winner over 7f came from stall 5. Horses can win by being drawn wide but you're at a disadvantage before the race begins. 3 - Huge priced winners have been common in recent years. There are, incredibly, over fifty races over the seven days at the Galway Races and they won't all be won by the fancied horses. Ladies Day punters went home stunned 12 months ago when Brave Crogha became the Festival's biggest priced winner ever when winning the Bumper at odds of 200-1. It ended a five-year drought for local trainer Iggy Madden and was the longest priced bumper winner in Ireland or the UK since records began. There were also two 50-1 winners. Sirius in the opening day feature and Bessie Abbot giving Wesley Joyce a welcome return to the venue where he almost lost his life. Racegoers attempt to shield themselves from the rain during The Galway Races Summer Festival (Image: Niall Carson/PA Wire) 4 - Horses for courses Galway's undulations and twists and turns aren't for every horse and keeping an eye on animals with course form is a shrewd route to success. Jesse Evans is a fascinating runner this week. Noel Meade's gelding has finished second twice in the Galway Hurdle and was fourth in 2021. He won a Beginners' Chase here last year and holds entries for both the Plate and Hurdle. The Emmet Mullins-trained Teed Up has incredibly appeared eight times at Galway — winning three times and finishing second three times too. He's entered in the Boylesports Handicap Hurdle on Saturday. Sylkie, trained by Danny Howard, has posted three career successes with all three coming at Ballybrit. One of those wins was at last year's Galway Festival, in an extended mile handicap, and Howard is hoping Sylkie can repeat the feat this year. 5 - Back the Mee-owned horses It's no secret that horses owned by Galway natives, Pearse and Annette Mee, always demand close inspection at Galway. Mee is a software engineer, whose fortune was estimated at €139 million by the Sunday Times Rich List in the past, and the couple adore Ballybrit like nowhere else. Their green and purple silks have been in the winners' enclosure dozens of times in the past decade for trainers like Emmet and Willie Mullins and Henry de Bromhead. As mentioned above Teed Up is a regular here while other Mee owned horses to watch for are Arctic Gale, Sea Music, Enfranchise and Toll Stone — who ran a very good race in the Greatwood Hurdle at Cheltenham in November. 6 - Pace your punting Having a bet in all 53 races is definitely not recommended and some races are best left alone for punting purposes, the 7f Handicaps in particular. Punters need to be disciplined and patient and not be afraid to change their mind due to changing ground conditions or stable form or the draw. JP McManus' pre-Cheltenham advice is worth another look. He said: 'I have a more considered approach now. I used to have my mind made up about things. That's dangerous. When you have your mind made up, it means you can't change your mind. These days I would delay making a decision until one has to be made. A view of the crowds during the races (Image: ©INPHO/Tom Maher) 7 - Back Willie Mullins' runners in the Amateur Handicap on Monday Willie Mullins has a special relationship with Galway, his uncle Luke was manager for many years and he rode plenty of winners there himself, including the Amateur Handicap 40 years ago on Pargan. In more recent times he's dominated the opening night feature, winning it five times since 2017, interestingly with four different jockeys. Not many could have predicted David Dundsdon winning at 50-1 last year but Too Bossy For us looks very interesting for Closutton this year. The 330,000gns purchase was second on the flat at the Curragh on Derby weekend and was a useful hurdler last term, making the frame behind Lulamba at Punchestown and running well in the Triumph Hurdle at Cheltenham. 8 — Classy horses now win the Galway Plate The Galway Plate is no longer a race for good summer jumpers. The days of horses like Sir Frederick winning off a mark of just 126 appear to be long gone. A mammoth prize-fund of €270,000 has made the big boys send the heavy artillery and 2022 Plate hero Hewick went on to win a King George at Kempton Balko Des Flos went on to capture the Grade 1 Ryanair Chase at Cheltenham. Other recent winners like Carlingford Lough and Road To Riches went on to win big winter Grade 1 contests while 2016 Grand National winner Rule The World would have went very close in the 2015 Plate only for slipping up in the dip. Runners and riders during the 2023 Galway Hurdle (Image: ©INPHO/Tom Maher) 9 - Watch the the traffic It may seem obvious but Galway's weather patterns are increasingly unpredictable. It can go from summer sunshine to downpours in minutes and because the crowds are so big there's not much cover for punters who come unprepared. Bringing a brolly is the best tip anyone can get going to Ballybrit for the first time. Traffic in Galway is also horrendous, even outside race week. So leaving early should be part of everyone's plan. Even those that have spent months preparing their outfits. For those who can't afford a helicopter, the shuttle buses in and out of Eyre Square are a usually reliable service and much cheaper than a taxi. 10 - Go racing Monday or Tuesday night The Monday and Tuesday night at Galway are two of the most enjoyable race meetings of the year and well worth checking out for any first time visitor. They usually have a more gentle and relaxed atmosphere than the madness of Ladies Day or the Friday night and the crowd is usually a bit older. There is a bit more room in some of Galways's great pubs like Tigh Neachtain or Taaffe's apres racing and there's time for a nice lie-in the next morning too.
The Irish Sun
an hour ago
- The Irish Sun
Man, 70s, dies in hospital after getting into difficulty swimming off Co Donegal coast
A MAN who got into difficulty while swimming and was rescued by the coast guard has passed away in hospital. The incident happened off the coast of Bundoran in Co Advertisement 1 The man got into difficulty off the coast of Donegal Credit: Gallo Images - Getty At around 5.20pm yesterday, Saturday July 26, the Irish coast guard were sent an alert. They were told that someone had got into difficulty in the water at The spot is hugely popular among surfers, swimmers, and Marine Rescue Sub Centre Malin Head sent the Bundoran Advertisement READ MORE IN IRISH NEWS It's understood that the lifeguards on duty at the beach also came to the man's assistance. He had run into difficulty in the water near the diving boards area of the beach. The man, aged in his 70s, was rescued from the water by the dispatched RNLI. He was rushed to Advertisement MOST READ IN THE IRISH SUN Gardai confirmed that he has since passed away. They said: "Gardaí were alerted to man in water in Bundoran, Co. Donegal on Saturday evening 26th July, 2025 at approximately 5.20pm. PASSED AWAY "RNLI removed the man, aged in his 70s, from water and he was taken to Sligo University Hospital in a serious condition. "This man subsequently passed away in hospital." Advertisement No foul play is suspected. The incident comes just over ten days after five young siblings were The rescue took place on the evening of July 14. The five family members were saved on Minerstown beach at around 9.30pm. Advertisement It's believed that the group were caught by a rising tide. Two reports were made of the incident and emergency services raced to the scene. Newcastle team, Kilkeel Coastguard team and Newcastle 's inshore lifeboat attended. BEACH RESCUE They found that the children had been brought ashore by two off duty nurses. Advertisement Rescuers then waded into the water to bring the kids to safety. The children received the varying degrees of care required before being taken to a nearby house for warmth. They then travelled with paramedics to Ulster Hospital. Newcastle Advertisement ""They showed remarkable bravery and fortitude in a rapidly deteriorating situation to calmly bring the three youngest children to shore before wading out up to their chests in water to rescue the two oldest children. "They then looked after the They added: "The women displayed outstanding courage, ignoring their own safety to ensure the children were not only brought ashore but cared for until the arrival of the emergency services. "We would like to thank the owner of the nearby house for opening their doors to the children while we waited for the paramedics to arrive and to the shore team at Newcastle RNLI who brought additional supplies of oxygen to the scene by road." Advertisement
