Preview: Ireland A vs. Canada
Ulster scrumhalf Isaac Boss will captain the Ireland A team in their opening game of the Churchill Cup against Canada at Glendale, Colorado on Wednesday.
Eleven players that took part in Ireland’s senior tour to North America recently have remained on for the Churchill Cup and nine of those will be involved at Infinity Park.
In the pack Bryan Young and Sean Cronin start at prop and hooker respectively with Tony Buckley, who scored a try in the senior side’s 25-6 win over Canada in Vancouver last month, selected at tighthead.
Donnacha Ryan and Devon Toner make up the second row partnership with Chris Henry, another member of the senior tour party, selected at No.8.
John Muldoon, after starting both Tests against Canada and USA last month, is picked among the replacements with Neil Best and Sean O’Brien selected after helping Northampton Saints and Leinster respectively to European success.
Niall O’Connor is handed his first start of the summer at flyhalf to be partnered Boss, who is one of only two members in the backline to be capped, with full back Denis Hurley the other.
Canadian coach Kieran Crowley meanwhile has made three personnel and one positional change.
Canada opened the tournament with an emphatic 42-10 victory over Georgia – making it the first pool win of the seven year old Churchill Cup for Canada.
And the former All Black leaves the scrum untouched other than slotting in Dan Pletch at the loosehead spot after his weekend arrival and a leg injury to Kevin Tkachuk.
Phil Mack will start at scrumhalf – with Ed Fairhurst moving to the replacements bench, while Justin Mensah-Coker gets a start on the right wing.
James Pritchard, who had a sparkling kicking performance on the weekend at the fullback spot – replaces Sean Duke on the wing, while Matt Evans, who impressed in a second half burst that saw him score a pair of tries, will take up Pritchard’s fullback role.
New into the replacements bench will be flank Jebb Sinclair, who has been carrying a slight injury since playing against Ireland on May 23, and Newfoundland’s Frank Walsh will cover a front row spot.
Sean Duke will be cover for the wing – while John Moonlight – who won his first cap against Georgia, will be a replacement after having a storming twenty minute run on Saturday.
Doug Wooldridge will be the loosehead replacement for young Andrew Tiedemann, who has won his third straight start since a good effort against Welsh loose-head Duncan Jones on May 30.
Canada: 15 Matt Evans (Hartpury College/Cowichan, BC), 14 Justin Mensah-Coker (Moseley RFC/Vancouver, BC), 13 Ciaran Hearn (Castaway Wanderers/Conception Bay, Nfld), 12 DTH van der Merwe (Glasgow Warriors/Regina, SK), 11 James Pritchard (Bedford Blues), 10 Ander Monro (Colorno, Italy), 9 Phil Mack (James Bay AA/Victoria, BC), 8 Aaron Carpenter (Brantford Harlequins/Coventry/Brantford, ON), 7 Adam Kleeberger (University of Victoria/White Rock, BC), 6 Nanyak Dala (Castaway Wanderers/Saskatoon, SK), 5 Mike Burak (Unattached/Vancouver, BC), 4 Tyler Hotson (UBC Old Boy Ravens/Vancouver, BC), 3 Andrew Tiedemann (University of Victoria), 2 Pat Riordan (captain, University of Victoria/Burnaby, BC), 1 Dan Pletch (Niagara Thunder/London, ON)
Replacements: 16 Mike Pletch (Velox Valhallians/London,ON), 17 Frank Walsh (Dogs RFC/St. John’s, NFLD), 18 Doug Wooldridge (Cowichan RFC/Lindsay, ON), 19 Jebb Sinclair (Castaway Wanderers/Frederiction, NB), 20 John Moonlight (University of Victoria/Ajax, ON), 21 Ed Fairhurst (Cornish Pirates/Victoria, BC), 22 Sean Duke (University of Victoria/Vancouver, BC)
Ireland A: 15 Denis Hurley (Cork Constitution/Munster)14 Fionn Carr (Galwegians/Connacht)13 Fergus McFadden (UCD/Leinster)12 Keith Matthews (Buccaneers/Connacht)11 Johne Murphy (Leicester)10 Niall O’Connor (Belfast Harlequins/Ulster)9 Isaac Boss (capti, Ballymena/Ulster) 8 Chris Henry (Ballymena/Ulster)7 Sean O’Brien (Clontarf/Leinster)6 Neil Best (Northampton Saints)5 Devon Toner (Lansdowne/Leinster)4 Donnacha Ryan (Shannon/Munster)3 Tony Buckley 2 Sean Cronin (Buccaneers/Connacht)(Shannon/Munster)1 Bryan Young (Ballymena/Ulster)
Replacements: 16 Dennis Fogarty (Cork Constitution/Munster), 17 Cian Healy (Clontarf/Leinster), 18 Trevor Hogan (Blackrock College/Leinster), 19 John Muldoon (Buccanneers/Connacht), 20 Frank Murphy (Buccaneers/Connacht), 21 Jonathan Sexton (St.Mary’s College/Leinster), 22 James Downey (Northampton Saints)
