Farrell unveils his Ireland playmaker for Bok clash
TEAM ANNOUNCEMENT: Ireland head coach Andy Farrell has unveiled his matchday squad for Saturday’s Nations Series showdown against the Springboks in Dublin.
After a lot of debate in the media, Sam Prendergast gets the all-important playmaker role, and Jamison Gibson-Park continues at scrumhalf.
Captain Caelan Doris leads the side from the back row.
Mack Hansen continues at fullback, with Tommy O’Brien and James Lowe on either side of him on the wings.
There is a new centre pairing for Ireland this week as Bundee Aki partners the fit-again Garry Ringrose,
In the pack, Andrew Porter, Dan Sheehan and Tadhg Furlong are the starting front row, with James Ryan and Tadhg Beirne in the engine room, as Ryan Baird, Josh van der Flier and captain Doris complete the Ireland starting team in the back row.
Farrell has strong options on the bench with Rónan Kelleher, Paddy McCarthy, Finlay Bealham, Cian Prendergast and Jack Conan as the forward replacements, while Craig Casey, Jack Crowley and Tom Farrell provide the backline reinforcements.
Commenting ahead of Saturday, Farrell said: “South Africa are the world champions and we know the challenge that awaits us this weekend.
“Whenever you face a top side, you know that you have to be on top of your game and that you will be tested and we’ll look to build on the momentum from last weekend and approach the game positively.
“The players were galvanised by the support [last weekend] and it makes such a positive point of difference when you’re at home.
“There’s familiarity and respect between both teams and I know how excited the squad is to represent Ireland to the best of our ability for our last home game of 2025.”
Ireland: 15 Mack Hansen, 14 Tommy O’Brien, 13 Garry Ringrose, 12 Bundee Aki, 11 James Lowe, 10 Sam Prendergast, 9 Jamison Gibson-Park, 8 Caelan Doris (captain), 7 Josh van der Flier, 6 Ryan Baird, 5 Tadhg Beirne, 4 James Ryan, 3 Tadhg Furlong, 2 Dan Sheehan, 1 Andrew Porter.
Replacements: 16 Rónan Kelleher, 17 Paddy McCarthy, 18 Finlay Bealham, 19 Cian Prendergast, 20 Jack Conan, 21 Craig Casey, 22 Jack Crowley, 23 Tom Farrell.
Date: Saturday, November 22
Venue: Aviva Stadium, Dublin
Kick-off: 17.40 (19.40 SAST, 17.40 GMT)
Referee: Matthew Carley (England)
Assistant referees: Karl Dickson (England) & Christophe Ridley (England)
TMO: Andrew Jackson (England)
