Club players take on Scotland

IRISH club players get their day in the sun at Donnybrook on Friday when they take on Scotland in the AIB Club international.

Nine of the squad named yesterday will feature for the first time.

Newcomers in the starting line-up behind the scrum are David McKethnie, Greg Stafford, Eric Moloney, Max Rantz McDonald and Ruairí Cushion and they will be guided by the experience of Cronan Healy and Barry Keeshan, who were both part of the squad that played and beat England Counties last year only to lose their final game against Scotland in Edinburgh (18-11).

In the forwards, prop Martin Gatley is another new cap who will be supported by Simon Shawe and Damian Varley in the front row. Both were involved in last year’s squad.

Former Ireland U21 second-row Shane O’Connor and back rows John Ed O’Connor and Hugh Hogan are the final new caps.

The game will be televised live on RTE 2 and the side will be captained for the first time by Lansdowne second-row Alan Maher, who has been part of every AIB Club International side since the first game in 2006.

AIB Club International coach Brian Walsh said: “This year’s team has a lot of new faces to this level and, hopefully, that will bring the same sort of enthusiasm that the previous sides have shown. The couple of sessions that we have had have been excellent, so Friday’s game should be another entertaining match.

“Our aim now is to not only enjoy the game and occasion, but to win the game and show the high level of commitment and skill that the club game has to offer,” he said.

IRELAND: D McKethnie (Greystones); C Healy (Cork Constitution), G Stafford (Lansdowne), E Moloney (Dolphin), M Rantz McDonald (Clontarf); B Keeshan (Dolphin), R Cushion (Old Belvedere); M Gatley (Highfield), D Varley (Garryowen), S Shawe (Ballymena); A Maher (Lansdowne), S O’Connor (Cork Constitution); S Crawford (Clontarf), J E O'Connor (U.L. Bohemians), H Hogan (St. Mary's College)

Replacements: D Murray (Cork Constitution), R Sweeney (St. Mary's College), M O'Connell (Cork Constitution), P Malone (Garryowen), S Cronin (UCC), A Kinsley (Garryowen), A Finn (Shannon)