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Ireland Stars Larmour and Farrell Ruled Out Of USA Game

JoeNa Connacht — Mon, 05 Jul 2021 12:11:23 +0000

Ireland internationals Jordan Larmour and Chris Farrell have been ruled out of this weekend’s match against the USA Eagles in Dublin after sustaining injuries in the 39-31 win over Japan.

Larmour went off after half an hour on Saturday afternoon after picking up a groin injury and was replaced by Munster’s Shane Daly.

Chris Farrell was taken off early into the second half after taking a knock to the head and failed his head injury assessment.

The Munster centre was replaced by Ulster’s Billy Burns for the remainder of the game.

Both players will not feature this weekend as a result of the injuries they picked up at the weekend.

Ireland flanker Peter O’Mahony will also be unavailable for the match against the USA Eagles after he was released from the camp to begin his off-season.

The Munster star played 71 minutes in the win over Japan and was replaced by debutant and Munster Player of the Year Gavin Coombes.

It is likely that we see a less experienced side play against the USA than we did against Japan.

The news that these three international regulars will not be available guarantees that there will be a higher chance of this.

To view the full Irish squad for the Vodafone Summer Series, click here.

The post Ireland Stars Larmour and Farrell Ruled Out Of USA Game appeared first on SportsNewsIreland.

Japan Side Announced For Match in Dublin

JoeNa Connacht — Thu, 01 Jul 2021 13:43:47 +0000

Japan have announced their team to face Ireland this Saturday at 1 pm in Dublin.

The side will play their first test against another country since the 2019 Rugby World Cup quarter-final against South Africa.

Few changes have been made to the Japan team that played the British and Irish Lions for the first time ever.

Seven of the pack that faced off against the Lions start in Dublin.

Inagaki, Sakate and Koo line up in the front row with Wimpie Wan Der Walt and James Moore behind them in lock forward.

Captain Michael Leitch and Pieter Labuschagne are once again starting at flanker.

Last week’s try-scorer Kazuki Himeno comes into the starting XV at number eight, replacing Amanaki Mafi.

Naoto Saito comes into the side at scrum-half with the ever-reliable Yu Tamura beside him in the fly-half position.

Ryoto Nakamura and Timothy Lafaele will be the centre partnership for the second week in a row.

30-year-old Semisi Masirewa will start at 14 alongside Siosaia Fifita and Kotaro Matsushima.

Kaito Shigeno and Asaeli Ai Valu are among the players on the bench.

Japan Team v Ireland

15. Kotaro Matsushima (Clermont Auvergne)

14. Semisi Masirewa (Kinetsu Liners)

13. Timothy Lafaele (Kobelco Steelers)

12. Ryoto Nakamura (Suntory Sungoliath)

11. Siosaia Fifita (Kintetsu Liners)

10. Yu Tamura (Canon Eagles)

9. Naoto Saito (Suntory Sungoliath)

Forwards

1. Keita Inagaki (Panasonic Wild Knights)

2. Atsushi Sakate (Panasonic Wild Knights)

3. Ji-won Koo (Honda Heat)

4. Wimpie van der Walt (NTT Docomo Red Hurricanes)

5. James Moore (Munakata Sanix Blues)

6. Michael Leitch C (Toshiba Brave Lupus)

7. Pieter Labuschagne (Kubota Spears)

8. Kazuki Himeno (Highlanders)

Replacements

16. Kosuke Horikoshi (Suntory Sungoliath)

17. Craig Millar (Panasonic Wild Knights)

18. Asaeli Ai Valu (Panasonic Wild Knights)

19. Jack Cornelsen (Panasonic Wild Knights)

20. Tevita Tatafu (Suntory Sungoliath)

21. Kaito Shigeno (Toyota Verblitz)

22. Rikiya Matsuda (Panasonic Wild Knights)

23. Shane Gates (NTT Communications Shining Arcs)

The post Japan Side Announced For Match in Dublin appeared first on SportsNewsIreland.

Ireland Team Announced For Japan Test

JoeNa Connacht — Thu, 01 Jul 2021 13:18:00 +0000

Ireland have announced their side to face Japan in the Aviva Stadium on Saturday, July 3rd at 1 pm.

The 23-man matchday squad was carved out of the 36-man squad available for selection.

The starting lineup is filled with players familiar with the Irish setup and the bench features some international prospects.

Dave Kilcoyne and Finlay Bealham will line up on either side of Ronan Kelleher, who had recently with Warren Gatland’s British and Irish Lions.

James Ryan returns to the starting lineup as captain and is paired with Ultan Dillane at lock forward.

Peter O’Mahony, Josh Van Der Flier and Caelan Doris round off the starting forwards in the back row.

Jamison Gibson-Park will wear the number nine shirt while Joey Carbery makes his first appearance in green since the 2019 Rugby World Cup in Japan.

Stuart McCloskey and Chris Farrell provide a veteran presence at inside and outside centre.

Jacob Stockdale, Jordan Larmour and Hugo Keenan fill out the back three.

Rob Herring and Billy Burns are joined by the uncapped Gavin Coombes and others on the bench.

The game will be available to watch on RTÉ 2 with coverage starting at 12:30 pm.

Ireland Team v Japan

Backs

15. Hugo Keenan (Leinster/UCD) 11 caps
14. Jordan Larmour (Leinster/St Mary’s College) 29 caps
13. Chris Farrell (Munster/Young Munster) 14 caps
12. Stuart McCloskey (Ulster/Bangor) 4 caps
11. Jacob Stockdale (Ulster/Lurgan) 34 caps
10. Joey Carbery (Munster/Clontarf) 22 caps
9. Jamison Gibson Park (Leinster) 9 caps

Forwards

1. Dave Kilcoyne (Munster/UL Bohemians) 43 caps
2. Ronan Kelleher (Leinster/Lansdowne) 11 caps
3. Finlay Bealham (Connacht/Buccaneers) 14 caps
4. Ultan Dillane (Connacht/Corinthians) 18 caps
5. James Ryan (Leinster/UCD) 35 caps Captain
6. Peter O’Mahony (Munster/Cork Constitution) 75 caps
7. Josh van der Flier (Leinster/UCD) 31 caps
8. Caelan Doris (Leinster/UCD) 7 caps

Replacements
16. Rob Herring (Ulster/Ballynahinch) 21 caps
17. Ed Byrne (Leinster/UCD) 4 caps
18. John Ryan (Munster/Cork Constitution) 23 caps
19. Ryan Baird (Leinster/Dublin University) 3 caps
20. Gavin Coombes (Munster/Young Munster) uncapped
21. Craig Casey (Munster/Shannon) 1 cap
22. Billy Burns (Ulster) 6 caps
23. Shane Daly (Munster/Cork Constitution) 1 cap

The post Ireland Team Announced For Japan Test appeared first on SportsNewsIreland.

Lions: Japan Side Announced For Murrayfield Clash

JoeNa Connacht — Fri, 25 Jun 2021 17:07:03 +0000

Japan have announced their side for Saturday’s Murrayfield warm-up test, the 1888 Cup, against the British and Irish Lions.

Click here for the Lions side, which now includes Justin Tipuric and Tadhg Furlong in the starting XV.

Head Coach Jamie Joseph has named a strong side for his side’s first test since their Rugby World Cup 2019 quarter-final loss to South Africa.

Michael Leitch captains the side as he did for their defeat to South Africa and will start at blindside flanker.

His opposite for their most recent test, Pieter Labuschagne, will don the number 7 shirt for the side.

10 players in total who started the Brave Blossoms’ last game will start at Murrayfield.

Keita Inagaki and Koo Ji-Won start on either side of hooker Atsushi Sakate, who replaces the multi-faceted Shota Horie.

Wimpie Wan Der Walt and James Moore are in the second row with Amanaki Mafi in the number eight position.

30-year-old Kaito Shigeno and Yu Tamura fill the scrum-half and fly-half positions.

Centres Ryoto Nakamura and Timothy Lafaele occupy the midfield while 22-year-old Siosaia Fifita gets the nod at 11 alongside Kataro Matsushima and fullback Ryohei Yamanaka.

Super Rugby Aotearoa Rookie of the Year Kazuki Himeno is on the bench with Asaeli Ai Valu and others.

Japan Team To Face British and Irish Lions:

Backs

15. Ryohei Yamanaka (Kobelco Steelers)

14. Kotaro Matsushima (Clermont Auvergne)