Share
13th June 2022
05:46pm BST
Stuart McCloskey pictured during a 2021 match between Ireland and USA at the Aviva Stadium. (Photo by Ramsey Cardy/Sportsfile)[/caption]
"It's New Zealand you're touring, so you don't want to get hosed. I'd say it will be a mixture of blooding some young guys and a good few experienced lads."With the Irish provinces now wrapped for the season - Leinster and Ulster fell at the United Rugby Championship semi-final stage - all that remains are preparations for the tour to face Ian Foster's men in New Zealand. O'Shea and Hennessy discussed a couple of Ulster centres that made consistent cases to get on that plane to Auckland. O'Shea commented:
"Stuart McCloskey had an unbelievable game. I would love to see him get on the plane to New Zealand. He deserves it... Him and James Hume are playing great. The lines they're cutting are just so good to see. The only issue is, I don't know how all these centres can go, as so many are playing well.""He's having one of his best seasons in a long time," Hennessy agreed. "He's not just a threat, using his size. You are expecting him to come at you, but he also has lovely hands... he's just creating space for others. [caption id="attachment_264091" align="aligncenter" width="800"]
Harry Byrne, Ross Byrne and Jimmy O'Brien of Leinster after their side's recent victory over Munster. (Photo by Harry Murphy/Sportsfile)[/caption]
Since we first had a crack at predicting a 42-man squad for the tour to New Zealand, back in March, the inevitable injuries and dates with the surgeon's knife have struck.
From our original selection, Dave Kilcoyne (neck) is definitely out, while Rónan Kelleher (shoulder), Rob Baloucoune (hip) and Michael Lowry (facial injury) are all doubtful. Jack Carty (wrist) is out of contention after undergoing surgery.
Loosehead, second row and centre will all be fascinating areas of selection. There will be a few surprises, no doubt, with our list even omitting the excellent likes of Stuart McCloskey, Jimmy O'Brien, Conor Oliver and Jack O'Donoghue.
If Ireland can bring most of these men [below], they could well take at least one of the three Tests against the All Blacks.
Explore more on these topics:
