Irish Rugby

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Leinster flanker Will Connors will join Connacht on a two-year deal next summer, the provinces have confirmed.

The 29-year-old has won 62 caps for Leinster having made his debut in February 2018 and started the 2024 Investec Champions Cup final loss to Toulouse.

He has nine caps for Ireland, the last of which came in the 2021 Six Nations.

Connors is the second Ireland international to swap Leinster for Connacht in recent weeks after the western province confirmed a deal to bring Ciaran Frawley in ahead of the 2026-27 season.

"I've had a fantastic nine seasons with Leinster, and am very grateful for all that was achieved in that time," said Connors.

"I look forward to finishing the season strongly before making the move West in the summer and joining up with a really exciting and talented group.

"After chatting to Stuart and the team, it's clear there's enormous ambition in the club to be successful in the years ahead."

Connacht head coach Stuart Lancaster said Connors will be a "big asset" having previously worked with him at Leinster.

"His tackling ability and defensive work rate is well known, but he has real attacking strengths too which I am looking forward to developing," said Lancaster.

"He also has a positive personality who brings great energy to the group and real potential as a leader."

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Ulster have confirmed utility back Stewart Moore is set for an extended spell on the sidelines after sustaining an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury.

Moore, who posted about his injury on social media last week, will undergo surgery in early February, likely ruling him out until next season.

Full-back Mike Lowry is following return to play protocols after sustaining a concussion in the opening minute of last weekend's defeat by the Scarlets and will not be available to face Cardiff in Saturday's United Rugby Championship game in Belfast (19:45 GMT).

With Jacob Stockdale away on Ireland duty, Ulster head coach Richie Murphy, there may be an opportunity at full-back for Ethan McIlroy, who has made one substitute appearance for the province this season or Jake Flannery, who replaced Lowry last weekend.

"Jacob's not here, Ethan McIlroy's back, he played AIL (All-Ireland League) last weekend. Jake Flannery has played there as well and there's a couple of young lads knocking around as well," said Murphy.

"We still have some options and it'd be nice to see some other guys put their hand up because our team has been quite settled over this period."

There is a similar dilemma in the front row with Rory McGuire ruled out for the next number of weeks because of a shoulder injury.

With Tom O'Toole's Ireland call-up, Murphy is without two of his tight-head props before Saturday's United Rugby Championship game at home to Cardiff (19:45 GMT).

Murphy also said that in-form wing Rob Baloucoune has carried a "light strain" into Ireland camp before next week's Six Nations opener against France in Paris.

"He's travelled with Ireland and they're looking after him," he said.

"I don't think there will be any problem with availability for him for next Thursday's game."

He added: "He's not in our hands so it's hard to know but looking at what showed up and how he presented after the game, people are quite positive that he'll be available."

Murphy is also without Cormac Izuchukwu, Tom Stewart, Nick Timoney, Nathan Doak, Bryn Ward and Stuart McCloskey, who are with the Ireland squad in Portugal.

After the Portugal camp, training panellist Ward will link up with the Ireland XV squad before the 6 February game against England A at Thomond Park.

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Captain Caelan Doris says Ireland are determined to atone for a disappointing end to last year's Six Nations, starting with next week's tournament opener against holders France.

Ireland beat England, Scotland and Wales to secure the 2025 Triple Crown before their bid for a third successive title fell apart in a hugely demoralising 42-27 loss to France in Dublin.

While Ireland endured a mixed autumn campaign that included losses to New Zealand and South Africa, Doris says the squad are targeting a statement win over Les Bleus in the Thursday night curtain-raiser at Stade de France.

"The way the fixtures fell last year we obviously had the Triple Crown after three games and it was the last two games that let us down," the 27-year-old Leinster back row told the BBC.

"We obviously won in Rome but the nature of the performance wasn't where we would have liked it and having lost to France the week before, it left a bit of a sour taste in the mouth.

"So there's excitement for upping the performances and getting the results we're after from the start this year."

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Doris, who has made 23 Six Nations appearances, will lead Ireland out against a France side shorn of some high-profile players.

While fit-again captain Antoine Dupont is back, head coach Fabien Galthie opted not to select France's all-time top try-scorer Damian Penaud, veteran centre Gael Fickou and back row Gregory Alldritt, who skippered the side in Dupont's absence last year.

Having faced Alldritt on several occasions for both club and country, Doris admits he was surprised by the 28-year-old's omission.

"If you look at the Top 14 week in, week out, there's so many quality players at the top level, they've got an abundance of talent to choose from," added Doris.

"I was surprised Alldritt wasn't in it. I obviously faced him and La Rochelle a few weeks ago. I rate him very highly but they've got quality across the back row and I'm sure [Anthony] Jelonch will represent the eight shirt very well.

"It's always a big threat playing against France, especially away from home at a hostile place like Stade de France, so looking forward to it."

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Ireland head coach Andy Farrell has called Cormac Izuchukwu and the uncapped Billy Bohan into his squad for their Six Nations opener against France in Paris on 5 February.

Izuchukwu was described as "not currently available" when Ireland named their original 37-man panel on Wednesday and he did not feature in Ulster's defeat by Scarlets on Saturday.

However, he was part of the group that assembled at the Irish Rugby Football Union's (IRFU) High Performance Centre on Sunday, replacing Munster's Thomas Ahern.

Loose-head prop Bohan comes in to the panel after Jack Boyle became Ireland's latest injury worry up front.

Already without Andrew Porter and Paddy McCarthy, Leinster's Boyle suffered a leg injury after 20 minutes of his province's win over Connacht on Saturday.

After coming off at half-time for Ulster in Parc y Scarlets, Ireland say wing Robert Baloucoune will "continue to be assessed over the coming days".

Ireland will start their Six Nations on Thursday, 5 February in the Stade de France before hosting Italy and travelling to England in rounds two and three.

After a one-week break, they conclude with a pair of home games against Wales and Scotland.

Farrell's side will travel to Portugal on Tuesday for their final preparations before the championship.

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Dublin-born Joshua Brennan has been called into the France squad for their Six Nations opener against Ireland in Paris on 5 February.

The Toulouse lock, who is the son of former Ireland second row Trevor Brennan, has been added to Fabien Galthie's squad as a replacement for his club-mate Thibaud Flament.

On Thursday Flament said he would miss the game because it clashes with his wife's fertility treatment.

The 24-year-old Brennan made his France debut against the All Blacks in July, appearing twice on the tour of New Zealand when Galthie rested many of his front-line players.

He has again been a regular at the Stade Ernest Wallon this season, starting nine games for Toulouse and coming off the bench in a further three.

While primarily a lock, he has also appeared in the back row.

Trevor Brennan won 13 caps for Ireland between 1998 and 2001 before moving to play in France with Toulouse in 2002.

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Ulster head coach Richie Murphy said his side "need to be better" at taking their opportunities after they were beaten by a last-play try against Scarlets on Saturday.

The Irish province had led 22-20 as the clock went red at Parc y Scarlets but fell to their third United Rugby Championship (URC) loss of the season when Ellis Mee went over in the 83rd minute.

Prior to the dramatic finish, Ulster had dominated the second half but failed to put the game away.

"Coming away to Wales is never easy. It's always tough," said Murphy after the loss to a side who had gone into the game bottom of the league.

"If you leave the game in the balance, you know that these Welsh clubs will come back at you later on. So when we look at from 40 minutes to probably 60 minutes, we had opportunities to take the game away from them there and we couldn't quite do that.

"So we need to be better in that area. We had plenty of opportunity across the game."

Murphy said it was "hard to believe" that Scarlets centre Eddie James was not shown a first-minute yellow card for a tackle on Mike Lowry and described the officiating around the maul as "interesting".

The former Ireland under-20s coach was also unsure of whether there was sufficient evidence to disallow a Jake Flannery score for a forward pass in the second half.

Despite his view on some of the big decisions, he felt his team were "just slightly under the level" they had previously shown this season.

"We've just got to keep trying to get better. This is a step backwards at the moment, but we can use that and learn from it and move on," he said.

"Our goal at the start of the season was always to get into the top eight and make sure that we get back into the Champions Cup. That goal hasn't changed."

Ulster have fallen to sixth in the table and are next in action at home to Cardiff on 24 January (19:45 GMT).

Joel Bell
BBC Sport NI

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Ulster prop Tom O'Toole says it is an "extreme honour" to play for Ireland after being named in Andy Farrell's squad for the forthcoming Six Nations.

The focus this weekend is on the United Rugby Championships, but on 5 February, Ireland kick off their Six Nations campaign against the current holders France in Dublin.

With 18 caps under his belt, O'Toole will be hoping to play a role in helping Ireland secure the title they won back-to-back in 2023 and 2024 after being named this week in Andy Farrell's wider panel for the championship.

''I think every player would love to get the opportunity to play in green, and I've been fortunate enough to play in it. It is an extreme honour to be back within that group.'' he told BBC Sport NI.

''I went in from early in my career and I got that experience and exposure from a young age with some incredible players like Jonny Sexton.

''The amount of experience you get from those guys, you can take into your day-to- day and how you carry yourself and how you get around your business. That's something I took from that experience.''

The tight-head prop, who joined the Ulster Academy in 2017, made his senior debut a year later and has been a key player in Richie Murphy's side ever since.

This weekend he will embrace the challenge of continuing their fine form against Scarlets at the Parc y Scarlets in Wales (15:00 GMT on Saturday).

''It's been incredible, it's been a great buzz. It was difficult last year for supporters and players, but it's really good this year with a great buzz about the place,'' added the 27-year-old.

''The new coaches have come in, they've been really good for the squad and we're playing an exciting brand of attacking rugby.

''It's really enjoyable to be a part of and it's the rugby I enjoy playing. It just took one or two performances to get that belief within ourselves and to prove we can do it and play.''

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Cian Prendergast will captain a Connacht side which shows three changes to their starting team from that which beat Montauban in the Challenge Cup last week for Saturday's United Rugby Championship clash with a Leinster at a sold-out Dexcom Stadium (17:30 GMT).

There are two changes in the half-backs as fit-again Caolin Blade links up with Josh Ioane at nine and 10, while Dylan Tierney-Martin comes in at hooker following Dave Heffernan's injury.

Cian Prendergast captains the side from blindside flanker in a strong back row with Paul Boyle and Sean Jansen. Josh Murphy and Darragh Murray continue in the second row, while Academy prop Billy Bohan starts in a front row with Dylan Tierney-Martin and Sam Illo.

Forde and West keep their places in midfield after impressive Challenge Cup outings, with Treacy, Jennings and Gilbert making up the back three. Buckley, Carty and Aki add experience from the bench.

Connacht currently sit 12th in the URC table and have lost their last three league outings.

Connacht: S Gilbert; S Jennings; H West, C Forde; F Treacy, J Ioane; C Blade; B Bohan, D Tierney-Martin, S Illo; J Murphy, D Murray; C Prendergast (capt), P Boyle, S Jansen.

Replacements: E de Buitléar, D Buckley, J Aungier, Joe Joyce, S O'Brien, B Murphy, J Carty, B Aki.

Doris set to captain Leinster on his 100th appearence

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Caelan Doris will captain Leinster as he is set to make his 100th appearence in blue during Saturday's visit to Connacht.

Niall Smyth is set to make his debut for the province and will be joined in the front row by Gus McCarthy and Jack Boyle.

James Lowe returns for his first appearance since last month's win over Munster and lines out on the wing, one try shy of equalling Shane Horgan's Leinster record of 69, with Joshua Kenny on the opposite flank and Ciaran Frawley named at full-back.

South African RG Snyman and James Ryan combine in the second row, with centurion Caelan Doris joined by Will Connors and Alex Soroka.

Harry Byrne and Fintan Gunne start in the half-backs, with Charlie Tector partnering Garry Ringrose in midfield.

Leinster sit fifth in the URC table, Leo Cullen's side have won nine games in a row in all competitions, their last defeat coming against Munster in October last year.

Leinster: C Frawley; J Kenny, G Ringrose, C Tector, J Lowe; H Byrne, F Gunne; J Boyle, G McCarthy, N Smyth; RG Snyman, J Ryan; A Soroka, W Connors, C Doris (capt).

Replacements: R Kelleher, J Cahir, A Sparrow, B Deeny, D Mangan, S Penny, L McGrath, R Moloney.

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Jacob Stockdale has not been included in Ulster's matchday squad to face Scarlets in the United Rugby Championship at Parc Y Scarlets on Saturday (15:00 GMT).

The Ireland wing has been following World Rugby's return-to-play protocols after he developed delayed concussion symptoms following last week's Challenge Cup win over Stade Francais at Affidea Stadium.

The Irish province's starting team for the meeting with Scarlets shows four changes from the side which defeated their French opponents in European competition.

Michael Lowry returns from an ankle injury to replace Stockdale at full-back, while Werner Kok is drafted in on the right wing.

Australia loose-head prop Angus Bell is named in the front row after being forced to withdraw from the starting team to face Stade Francais last week because of illness.

Charlie Irvine has overcome a calf injury and comes into the second row to partner captain Iain Henderson, with Harry Sheridan dropping to the replacements' bench.

The match will see scrum-half Nathan Doak, who was selected in the Ireland squad this week for the forthcoming Six Nations, make his 100th appearance for Ulster.

Ulster sit on 31 points in the upper echelons of the URC table going into the weekend.

Ulster: Lowry; Baloucoune, Hume, McCloskey, Kok; Murphy, Doak; Bell, Stewart, O'Toole; Henderson (c), Irvine; McCann, Timoney, Ward.

Replacements: Herring, O'Sullivan, Wilson, Sheridan, Dalton, McKee, Flannery, Postlethwaite.

Joel Bell
BBC Sport NI

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Munster have made eight personnel changes to their starting line-up for Friday's United Rugby Championship game against the Dragons at Musgrave Park as they aim to bounce back from last week's disappointing defeat by Castres which saw them eliminated from the Champions Cup after the pool stages.

Clayton McMillan's side dropped down to the Challenge Cup after the narrow two-point home loss to the French side.

Sean Edogbo, 21, is set to make his first competitive start this weekend as he is joined in a new-look back three by Ruadhán Quinn and Brian Gleeson, who recently signed a two-year contract extension.

Edogbo follows in the footsteps of his brother Edwin as the second player from Cobh Pirates to play for Munster in the professional era, with Edwin subsequently called into the Ireland squad for the Six Nations this week.

Captain Diarmuid Barron is named in the front row, joined by Jeremy Loughman and Michael Ala'alatoa, as Mike Haley, Dan Kelly, JJ Hanrahan and Ethan Coughlan all come into the back-line.

Daly moves to the wing, with Haley and Thaakir Abrahams completing the back three. Alex Nankivell and Kelly form the midfield pairing with Coughlan and Hanrahan the half-backs.

The second row partnership of Jean Kleyn and Fineen Wycherley remains unchanged.

Munster sit sixth in the URC table, level on points with neighbouring province Leinster, while Dragons, who are 13th, come into this match off the back of a win over Newcastle in the European Challenge Cup.

Lee Barron, Josh Wycherley and Oli Jager provide the front row back-up among the replacements, while 21-year-old second row Evan O'Connell is in line for his first appearance since November off the bench.

Gavin Coombes completes the back-row cover, as Paddy Patterson, who has completed the return-to-play protocols, Tony Butler and Diarmuid Kilgallen are the replacement options among the backs.

Munster Rugby: Mike Haley; Thaakir Abrahams, Dan Kelly, Alex Nankivell, Shane Daly; JJ Hanrahan, Ethan Coughlan; Jeremy Loughman, Diarmuid Barron (C), Michael Ala'alatoa; Jean Kleyn, Fineen Wycherley; Seán Edogbo, Ruadhán Quinn, Brian Gleeson.

Replacements: Lee Barron, Josh Wycherley, Oli Jager, Evan O'Connell, Gavin Coombes, Paddy Patterson, Tony Butler, Diarmuid Kilgallen.

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Ulster's European Challenge Cup last-16 tie against Ospreys at the Affidea Stadium in Belfast is to take place on Saturday 4 April, with a 20:00 BST kick-off.

Munster will travel to face Exeter Chiefs at Sandy Park in the same competition on the same day, with that match starting at 12:30.

In the last 16 of the Champions Cup, Leinster, the sole remaining Irish province, will be at home to Edinburgh on Sunday 5 April at 17:30.

Connacht will host the Sharks on Friday 3 April in the Challenge Cup, that game starting at 20:00.