Ireland head coach Andy Farrell has named a 34-man squad for this year’s Six Nations Championship.The reigning champions and last year’s Grand Slam winners begin their title defense against 2023 runners-up France in Marseille on Friday, February 2 (8pm)
Wednesday 17 January 2024, UK, 14:24
Peter O’Mahony will lead Ireland’s Six Nations title defense in 2024.
The flanker took over the captaincy from Johnny Sexton, who took time out to pursue an international career after last year’s Rugby World Cup.
O’Mahony has captained Ireland 10 times and will lead the team when they begin their 2024 Six Nations campaign away to France in Marseille on Friday 2 February.
O’Mahony said: “Ever since I started playing games as a young boy, I’ve always dreamed of being captain of Ireland.” “I’ve been asked to coach Ireland many times over the years and all 10 games have been special days.
“Being asked to captain Ireland ahead of the Six Nations was undoubtedly one of the proudest moments of my life and I would like to thank Andy.” [Farrell, head coach] For this demonstration of trust in me.
“We have strong leaders who will play a key role in driving the highest standards of the team over the coming weeks.
“The competition across the team is intense and everyone is very motivated to work hard when we meet next week ahead of our opening game in Marseille.”
Farrell has named a total of 34 players ahead of the tournament’s opening game and will begin preparations when they gather at the IRFU High Performance Center in Dublin on Monday.
All players in the main group have at least one international cap, but Farrell has selected uncapped players Oli Jaeger, Thomas Ahern and Sam as training panelists who will travel to Portugal with the squad for a pre-competition training camp. -Includes the Prendergast trio.
“The upcoming Six Nations is an opportunity for growth and development for us,” Farrell said. “The Six Nations is one of the biggest stages in world rugby and this year’s tournament will be fiercely contested.
“I am satisfied with the quality of the expansion group’s performances in recent weeks and believe that the team is in good shape.
“It will not be as tough as the away game against France on the opening weekend, but we will go into it with a positive mindset.”
Ireland’s 34 Six Nations squad
Forward (19): Ryan Baird, Finlay Bealham, Tajig Bairn, Jack Conan, Caelan Doris, Tajig Furlong, Cian Healy, Ian Henderson, Ronan Kelleher, Jeremy Loughman, Joe McCarthy, Peter O’Mahony (c ), Tom O’Toole, Andrew Porter, James Ryan, Dan Sheehan, Tom Stewart, Nick Timane, Josh Van Der Flier.
Bucks (15): Bundy Aki, Harry Byrne, Craig Casey, Jack Crowley, Ciaran Frawley, Jamison Gibson Park, Robbie Henshaw, Hugo Keenan, Jordan Larmour, James Rowe, Stuart McCloskey, Conor Murray , Calvin Nash, Garry Ringrose, Jacob Stockdale.