Major changes as Ireland name team to take on England

Injuries to James Ryan and Garry Ringrose meant there were always going to be changes.

We all knew that there would be changes to the Ireland team to face England in their Six Nations finalé, but few would have guessed at how many. There are six alterations to the Ireland team that defeated Scotland 27-24, last Sunday, with three further positional switches. Let's start with the recalls:

• Dave Kilcoyne
• Josh van der Flier
• Jack Conan
• Conor Murray
• Jacob Stockdale
• Bundee Aki

Cian Healy and Jamison Gibson-Park are on the bench, with James Lowe and Will Connors, who had been in great form, missing out on the matchday squad entirely. The IRFU has confirmed that Connors injured his knee in a Wednesday training session. Heading into the game, which could see Ireland finish second if they snap their four-game losing streak against the English, captain Johnny Sexton said:

"As good a team as Scotland are, we have to look at ourselves first and foremost and need to improve. If you have a 14-point lead in international rugby, the next moment is the most important one and you can - not finish the game - but put a statement down.

https://twitter.com/IrishRugby/status/1372568330301796356 The game kicks off at 4:45pm on Saturday, followed by Wales vs. France in Paris.

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