Bradley in Irish plans for Japan

CONNACHT coach Michael Bradley appears likely to join the Irish coaching team for the tour to Japan this summer.

With Ireland's head coach Eddie O'Sullivan spending the summer as part of the coaching team with Clive Woodward's Lions in New Zealand, it is expected that Ireland's forward coach Niall O'Donovan will assume the head coach role for the Japanese tour, which takes place at the same time as the Lions trip. It now appears that Bradley will travel to Japan as an assistant to O'Donovan, along with Ulster's Mark McCall.

A spokesman for the IRFU said last night that no final decision on the coaching staff to travel to Japan, where Ireland will play tests against their hosts on June 12 and 19, in Osaka and Tokyo respectively, and would probably not be firmed up before the end of the ongoing Six Nations tournament.