Ireland head coach Andy Farrell has sprung multiple surprises in his first matchday squad for the Guinness Six Nations, with Jacob Stockdale and Cian Prendergast handed rare starts for the opening round game against France in Paris on Thursday.
Stockdale comes onto the left wing, where he replaces James Lowe, to earn his 41st cap for Ireland, with the Ulster star making his first Six Nations start since the final round of the 2021 championship.
Cian Prendergast is rewarded for his impressive November form with the number six shirt, as Tadhg Beirne stays in the second row, and with Sam Prendergast starting at out-half, it will be the first time the brothers start a Test for Ireland together.
Tadhg Furlong misses out, with Thursday coming too soon for the tighthead prop in his bid to recover from a calf injury, as Thomas Clarkson starts in his place.
Munster’s Jeremy Loughman (above) holds off his provincial team-mate Michael Milne to start at loosehead prop, while Dan Sheehan is at hooker, with Rónan Kelleher on the bench.
Beirne joins Joe McCarthy at lock, with James Ryan in reserve on a 6:2 bench split. Farrell has resisted the temptation to hand Munster’s Edwin Edogbo a debut, with Nick Timoney and Jack Conan the extra forwards in reserve.
Caelan Doris captains the side from number 8, with Josh van der Flier at openside flanker.
Jamison Gibson-Park and Sam Prendergast start in the half-back spots as expected, with Craig Casey and Jack Crowley covering the backline off the bench.
Stuart McCloskey teams up with Garry Ringrose in the centres, with Stockdale and Tommy O’Brien on the wings, while Jamie Osborne has been passed fit to start at full-back, having been out since November with a shoulder injury.
“I’ve been pleased with the application of the squad since we linked up last week and we’ve a good body of work under our belts from our training camp in Portugal as we face into an exciting test match against France,” Farrell (below) said.
“The Six Nations is an amazing tournament to compete in and it brings out the best in players.
We have played at the Stade de France many times and it’s a terrific stadium with an incredible atmosphere. We know from our experiences on the road how proud and vocal the travelling Irish support can be and it’s a huge motivator for the squad knowing that we have so many Irish supporters behind us.”
Ireland: Jamie Osborne; Tommy O’Brien, Garry Ringrose, Stuart McCloskey, Jacob Stockdale; Sam Prendergast, Jamison Gibson-Park; Jeremy Loughman, Dan Sheehan, Thomas Clarkson; Joe McCarthy, Tadhg Beirne; Cian Prendergast, Josh van der Flier, Caelan Doris (capt)
Replacements: Rónan Kelleher, Michael Milne, Finlay Bealham, James Ryan, Jack Conan, Nick Timoney, Craig Casey, Sam Prendergast
Follow a live blog on France v Ireland in the Six Nations on Thursday from 8.10pm. Listen to live commentary on RTÉ Radio 1
Watch France v Ireland in the Under-20 Six Nations on Saturday from 7.50pm on the RTÉ News Channel and RTÉ Player