Ireland head coach Declan Kidney has named his preliminary 43-man World Cup squad, including a number of players battling back from long-term injuries. The squad will meet up to go through a conditioning program ahead of their pre-World Cup warm-up games this summer, before being whittled down to the 30 players that will travel to New Zealand to take on the world's best.
Long-term injury victims Stephen Ferris and Rob Kearney have been included despite not playing for lengthy spells. Shane Jennings and Tony Buckley have also been named in the party after recovering from their short-term spells on the sidelines. Injury has robbed Ireland of the experienced Shane Horgan who has been ruled out with a knee injury. Ulster duo Ian Humphreys and Nevin Spence have also been left out after undergoing surgery on their respective injuries. Those following the Rugby World Cup odds 2011 will know this will be a blow for the side.
Of those in the squad, there have been call-ups for Munster's uncapped full-back Felix Jones and scrum-half Conor Murphy after impressing this season for the southern Irish club. The two Munster players will join other uncapped players named in the squad, Connacht's Mike McCarthy and Brett Wilkinson.
Ireland will begin their World Cup campaign against the USA in their opening Pool C clash, before going on to face Australia, Russia and finally Italy, looking to earn their place in the knock-out phase from a modest group they are widely expected to qualify from.
0 Comments:
Post a Comment