Ireland v Scotland, Donnybrook, 7.35pm, Friday, RTÉ 2
The is symmetry between tonight’s protagonists: they share the same points total (four), number of wins (two) and have beaten the same teams, England and Italy.
Scotland will be without their influential captain and secondrow Scott Cummings, who has been recalled to the Glasgow Warriors team for tonight’s Pro12 clash with Leinster. He is one of four changes to the team that lost in France.
Ireland coach Nigel Carolan has made three changes to the team that beat Italy, with James Bollard and Seán O'Connor starting in this tournament for the first time and scrumhalf Stephen Kerins back after missing the last game with a knee injury.
Quite apart from the immediate context, the game represents a final chance for the players to stake a claim for the Junior World Championship in Manchester in June. A number of players who missed the Six Nations through injury will come into consideration for the summer tournament.
Ireland’s performances have been fitful and the challenge is once again to be accurate and precise in the basics to provide a foundation for more elaborate patterns.
IRELAND UNDER-20: B Connon (Newcastle Falcons); H Keenan (Leinster), S Daly (Munster), C O'Brien (Leinster), J Stockdale (Ulster); J McPhillips (Ulster), S Kerins (Connacht); J Bollard (Leinster), A McBurney (Ulster), C O'Donnell (Connacht); S O'Connor (Munster), J Ryan (Leinster, capt); C Gallagher (Connacht), W Connors (Leinster), G Jones (Leinster). Replacements: H Kean (Leinster), A Porter (Leinster), A Coyle (Leinster), Peter Claffey (Connacht), M Deegan (Leinster), J Poland (Munster), P Kiernan (Munster), M Byrne (Leinster).
SCOTLAND UNDER-20: T Galbraith; D Graham, R Hutchinson, G Taylor, B Robbins; A Hastings, H Fraser; M McCallum, J Kerr, C Sheldon; C Hunter-Hill; S Ainslie; S Burnside, M Smith, A Miller. Replacements: L Anderson, G Thornton, A Nicol, H Bain, L Scott, R Dawson, R Nairn, R Howarth.
