Zebre at home, 23 Oct. 19:35

[mildlyinterested]

With so many players unavailable to Cullen and his coaching team ahead of a relentless block of games, the depth in the squad will be tested, and several new faces may get a chance to impress.

“It places a different sort of challenge for us now. We’ll get to see a lot of our younger Academy players step into the breach. There’s lots of challenges with that at the moment with the ‘bubbles’ and all the different challenges going on in society as well. We’ll look forward to the challenge now. We’ll spend a bit of time now trying to upskill a number of the younger players.”

[mildlyinterested]

Possible side:

1. Dooley
2. Cronin
3. Bent
4. Molony
5. Toner
6. Murphy
7. Penny
8. Ruddock
9. McGrath
10. H Byrne
11. Kelleher
12. Frawley
13. ROL
14. Kearney
15. JOB

[mildlyinterested]

Available players:

LH Prop
Peter Dooley(26/Birr RFC/Lansdowne)
Michael Milne(21/Birr RFC-Roscrea/UCD)

TH Prop
Michael Bent(34)
Tadhg Furlong(27/New Ross RFC/Clontarf) - injured?
Ciaran Parker(24/Exile)
Tom Clarkson(20/Blackrock/DUFC)

Hooker
Sean Cronin(34)
James Tracy(29/Newbridge/UCD) - ireland training squad
Dan Sheehan(22/Clongowes/Lansdowne) - injured
John McKee(20/Campbell/Old Belvedere)

Lock
Scott Fardy(36)
Devin Toner(34/Castleknock/Lansdowne)
Ross Molony(26/St. Michaels/UCD)
Jack Dunne(21/St. Michaels/DUFC)
Charlie Ryan(21/Blackrock/UCD)
Brian Deeny(20/Wexford RFC/Clontarf)
Joe McCarthy(19/Blackrock/DUFC)

Backrow
Rhys Ruddock(29/Exile/St. Marys)
Dan Leavy(26/St. Michaels/UCD) - injured?
Josh Murphy(25/St. Michaels/UCD)
Scott Penny(21/St. Michaels/UCD)
Martin Moloney(21/Athy RFC/Clontarf)
Sean O'Brien(20/Blackrock/UCD)
Alex Soroka(19/Belvedere/Clontarf)

Scrumhalf
Luke McGrath(27/St. Michaels/UCD)
Rowan Osborne(23/Clongowes/DUFC)
Hugh O'Sullivan(22/Belvedere/Clontarf)
Paddy Patterson(21/Blackrock/UCD)
Cormac Foley(20/St. Gerards/Lansdowne)

Outhalf
Harry Byrne(21/St. Michaels/Lansdowne) - ireland training squad
David Hawkshaw(21/Belvedere/Clontarf)

Centre
Rory O'Loughlin(26/St. Michaels/UCD)
Ciaran Frawley(22/Skerries RFC/UCD)
Tommy O'Brien(22/Blackrock/UCD)
Liam Turner(21/Blackrock/DUFC)

Back Three
Dave Kearney(31/Clongowes/Lansdowne)
James Lowe(28) - ireland training squad
Cian Kelleher(26/St. Michaels/Lansdowne)
Jimmy O'Brien(23/Newbridge/UCD)
Michael Silvester(22/Clongowes/DUFC)
Aaron O'Sullivan(20/Exile/Blackrock)
Andrew Smith(20/St. Michaels/Clontarf)
Niall Comerford(20/Blackrock/UCD)
Max O'Reilly(20/St. Gerards/DUFC)

[Oldschool]

Would it be better to play this game in Donnybrook?
Is there any financial benefit to Leinster Rugby in doing so?

[Jonny tight lips]

Conor O Brian -

[mildlyinterested]

Conor O Brian -

?

[Ruckedtobits]

This may well be the perfect opportunity to get Dan Leavy back in harness, possibly for a 20 minute closing piece. Not under the radar so much as playing a Zebre team without their Italian internationals. Who knows but it would be great to see him.

[Serb]

I think we’ll use Frawley as a 10 in this block of games if Conor O’Brien is available. A 12/13 of O’Brien and O’Loughlin would be pretty decent with Frawley and H. Byrne taking the 10/22 roles.

Hawkshaw has also mostly been used as a centre in the A games so maybe he would be used in there at some point too?

Hard to call a team for this at this point anyway.

[Jonny tight lips]

Conor O Brian -

?

Just he wasn’t on the list and he’s injured

[mildlyinterested]

Long term injured not listed along with players in 6 nations squad.

[Serb]

Would it be better to play this game in Donnybrook?
Is there any financial benefit to Leinster Rugby in doing so?

This keeps coming up. I believe the stance is that we are contracted into playing a number of games at the RDS each season.

There may be other factors at play too such as better facilities, a grass pitch rather than the all weather pitch in Donnybrook etc

[mildlyinterested]

I think we’ll use Frawley as a 10 in this block of games if Conor O’Brien is available. A 12/13 of O’Brien and O’Loughlin would be pretty decent with Frawley and H. Byrne taking the 10/22 roles.

Hawkshaw has also mostly been used as a centre in the A games so maybe he would be used in there at some point too?

Hard to call a team for this at this point anyway.

Hawkshaw played 10 in the recent A game.

[ronk]

Possible side:

1. Dooley
2. Cronin
3. Bent
4. Molony
5. Toner
6. Murphy
7. Penny
8. Ruddock
9. McGrath
10. H Byrne
11. Kelleher
12. Frawley
13. ROL
14. Kearney
15. JOB

That's a good strong side. I expect that theres a need to keep tge guys who were closest to the international squad warm but for many of the squad this is the real start to the season. Normally they start without the internationals.

[cormac]

This is, on paper at least, the easiest of the fixtures we'll have in the international window. Might be the ideal time to throw in a couple of the youngsters and give a few of the older players a week off.

For example I could see Clarkson getting a start here with either Bent or Parker on the bench.

[awaaf]

Would it be better to play this game in Donnybrook?
Is there any financial benefit to Leinster Rugby in doing so?

This keeps coming up. I believe the stance is that we are contracted into playing a number of games at the RDS each season.

There may be other factors at play too such as better facilities, a grass pitch rather than the all weather pitch in Donnybrook etc

Yes and probably easier to manage social distancing for teams, officials, media etc.

[Blue Man]

Our famous squad depth is starting to look stretched. Shame Sheehan is injured (presume that’s why Tracy is training with the Ireland squad, rather than him?). I see nothing coming through at scrum half, that is anywhere near the required standard so let’s hope Luke can play himself back into form after a bad end to the season. I’d love to see Harry Byrne start but if he’s training with the Ireland squad Leo might go with Frawley which is doubly frustrating as I want to see Frawley play in the center or preferably fullback, as a second playmaker. Stretched in the centre but ROL is quality and TOB looked good against the Dragons. Lots of options in the back three, it will be interesting to see who plays at full back. I’d like to see something like:

Dooley
Cronin
Clarkson
Molony
Dunne
Josh Murphy
Penny
Rhys
Luke
Harry Byrne
Kelleher
Frawley
O’Loughlin
Silvestre (DK is in Irl camp)
J O’Brien

[mildlyinterested]

Our famous squad depth is starting to look stretched. Shame Sheehan is injured (presume that’s why Tracy is training with the Ireland squad, rather than him?). I see nothing coming through at scrum half, that is anywhere near the required standard so let’s hope Luke can play himself back into form after a bad end to the season. I’d love to see Harry Byrne start but if he’s training with the Ireland squad Leo might go with Frawley which is doubly frustrating as I want to see Frawley play in the center or preferably fullback, as a second playmaker. Stretched in the centre but ROL is quality and TOB looked good against the Dragons. Lots of options in the back three, it will be interesting to see who plays at full back. I’d like to see something like:

Dooley
Cronin
Clarkson
Molony
Dunne
Josh Murphy
Penny
Rhys
Luke
Harry Byrne
Kelleher
Frawley
O’Loughlin
Silvestre (DK is in Irl camp)
J O’Brien

Bent, Toner, Fardy, Lowe?

[mildlyinterested]

There is a welcome return to full training for three players as Dave Kearney (hamstring), Ciarán Frawley (facial injury) and Dan Sheehan (cheekbone) will all take to the field in UCD today.

Dan Leavy is also expected to step up his training load this week as he continues his return from a knee injury.

There was no new injury update from Cullen on Ryan Baird (adductor), Max Deegan (knee), Tadhg Furlong (calf), Vakh Abdaladze (back), Conor O’Brien (hamstring) and Adam Byrne (hamstring) who all remain unavailable for selection.

[mildlyinterested]

After training with the Ireland squad at the IRFU High Performance Centre last week, Craig Casey, Harry Byrne, Dave Kearney, James Tracy and Fineen Wycherley have returned to their provinces. James Lowe will remain with the National squad.

[cormac]

Furlong's calf injury is taking a long time to heal.