Barbarians Named For Ireland Clash

Shane Jennings will captain the Barbarians against Ireland at Thomond Park on Thursday night.

The Leinster and Ireland flanker retires from the professional game this summer after a distinguished career in which he has won 13 caps for Ireland, PRO12 and European Cup titles for Leinster and an Aviva Premiership title with Leicester Tigers.

He captains a starting side containing nine different nationalities with 466 international appearances between them for the game at Thomond Park in Limerick this Thursday.

It includes his Leinster team-mates Zane Kirchner and Jimmy Gopperth with Ulster scrum-half Ruan Pienaar also starting for the famous invitational club celebrating its 125th anniversary this year.

Head coach Robbie Deans has assembled a side with a sharp cutting edge containing the likes of Toulon’s leading try scorer David Smith, New Zealand’s Joe Rokocoko and British & Irish Lions wing Alex Cuthbert.

Lions tight head Adam Jones anchors a scrum containing a powerful second row combination in Uruguay’s Rodrigo Capo Ortega and Georgia’s Konstantin Mikautadze while Japan’s Ryu Koliniasi Holani is a dynamic No.8 from Deans’s club side Panasonic Wild Knights.

Tickets for the Ireland v Barbarians match are priced from €;30 and family (1 adult & 1 junior) terrace packs from €;25 or you can call 0818 719 300.

BARBARIANS XV
15 Zane Kirchner (Leinster & South Africa) 29
14 Alex Cuthbert (Cardiff Blues & Wales) 32
13 Joe Rokocoko (Bayonne & New Zealand) 68
12 Wynand Olivier (Montpellier & South Africa) 38
11 David Smith (Toulon)
10 Jimmy Gopperth (Leinster)
9 Ruan Pienaar (Ulster & South Africa) 80

1 Roberto Tejerizo (Tucuman & Argentina) 4
2 Deon Fourie (Lyon)
3 Adam Jones (Cardiff Blues & Wales) 95
4 Rodrigo Capo Ortega (Castres & Uruguay) 38
5 Konstantin Mikautadze (Toulon & Georgia) 31
6 Shane Jennings (Leinster & Ireland, Captain) 13
7 Gerhard Vosloo (Toulon)
8 Ryu Koliniasi Holani (Panasonic Wild Knights & Japan) 38

Replacements
16 David Ward (Harlequins)
17 Saimone Taumoepeau (Castres & New Zealand) 3
18 Matias Diaz (Pampas & Argentina) 8
19 George Whitelock (Panasonic Wild Knights & New Zealand) 1
20 George Smith (Lyon & Australia) 111
21 Tomas Cubelli (Belgrano Ath & Argentina) 34
22 Tusi Pisi (Suntory Sungoliath & Samoa) 20
23 Gio Aplon (Grenoble & South Africa) 17