England Saxons vs Ireland LIVE
These ‘A’ Internationals could be great if they selected the real up and coming stars who were just chomping at the bit to make their breakthrough into the full international squad. The form players of the moment who need to be tested at a higher level.
You can follow the fortunes of Ireland 'A' this afternoon with our O2 MatchDay Live service. Get up-to-the-minute text commentary from the England Saxons v Ireland 'A' clash in Bath here.
These ‘A’ Internationals could be great if they selected the real up and coming stars who were just chomping at the bit to make their breakthrough into the full international squad. The form players of the moment who need to be tested at a higher level.
Unfortunately the International bodies seem to treat them as something different, and while, going down the list on an individual basis, there is probably a good reason for each selection (well apart form Tony Buckley), I can’t help but feel disappointed with Ireland line up for this game.
I’m not holding my breath!
| Saxons | v | Ireland A |
| Alex Goode (Saracens) | 15 | Gavin Duffy (Connacht) |
| David Strettle (Harlequins) | 14 | Fionn Carr (Connacht) |
| Dominic Waldouck (Wasps) | 13 | Fergus McFadden (Leinster) |
| Brad Barritt (Saracens) | 12 | Keith Matthews (Connacht) |
| Noah Cato (Saracens) | 11 | Ian Dowling (Munster) |
| Shane Geraghty (Northampton) | 10 | Paddy Wallace (Ulster) |
| Ben Youngs (Leicester) | 9 | Peter Stringer (Munster) |
| Nick Wood (Gloucester) | 1 | Marcus Horan (Munster) |
| David Paice (London Irish) | 2 | Rory Best (Ulster) |
| Paul Doran-Jones (Gloucester) | 3 | Tony Buckley (Munster) |
| Dave Attwood (Gloucester) | 4 | Mick O’Driscoll (Munster) (C) |
| (C) George Skivington (Wasps) | 5 | Devin Toner (Leinster) |
| Tom Wood (Worcester Warriors) | 6 | Shane Jennings (Leinster) |
| Andy Saull (Saracens) | 7 | Sean O’Brien (Leinster) |
| Phil Dowson (Northampton Saints) | 8 | John Muldoon (Connacht) |
| Tom Mercey (Saracens) | 16 | John Fogarty (Leinster) |
| Rob Webber (Wasps) | 17 | Mike Ross (Leinster) |
| Geoff Parling (Leicester) | 18 | Ryan Caldwell (Ulster) |
| Luke Narraway (Gloucester) | 19 | Niall Ronan (Munster) |
| Micky Young (Newcastle) | 20 | Isaac Boss (Ulster) |
| Jon Clarke (Northampton) | 21 | Ian Humphries (Ulster) |
| Miles Benjamin (Worcester) | 22 | Darren Cave (Ulster) |
