Connacht players Robbie Henshaw and David McSharry are two of the possible debutants for the O2 Ireland Wolfhounds when they take on the England Saxons in Galway this Friday Evening (K.O. 7.45pm) after being named in a match squad of 23 players.
Both Henshaw and McSharry have had strong seasons for their province and were called into the overall training squad last week by the Ireland management.
There are a further seven players in the Wolfhounds squad who are uncapped at full international level, but the group can also boast a return to a green jersey for Leinster outside back Luke Fitzgerald after an absence of over a year.
Andrew Trimble, Tom Court and Isaac Boss will also bring a vital level of international experience to the team.
Some of the newer faces called up the Ireland squad have an opportunity to impress this Friday in Galway before the squad to prepare for the opening game against Wales is announced, with Iain Henderson, David Kilcoyne and Michael Bent all included.
The starting team and replacements will be confirmed at Thursday lunchtime. Tickets for the game are available on Ticketmaster.ie
O2 Ireland Wolfhounds Squad (club/province/international caps):
Michael Bent (Dublin University/Leinster/2)
Isaac Boss (Terenure College/Leinster/15)
Darren Cave (Belfast Harlequins/Ulster/3)
James Coughlan (Dolphin/Munster)*
Tom Court (Malone/Ulster/29)
Luke Fitzgerald (Blackrock College/Leinster/23)
Declan Fitzpatrick (Dungannon /Ulster/2)
Iain Henderson (Ballynahinch/Ulster/2)
Robbie Henshaw (Buccaneers/Connacht)*
Paddy Jackson (Dungannon/Ulster)*
Ian Keatley (Young Munster/Munster/2)
David Kilcoyne (UL Bohemians/Munster/2)
Ian Madigan (Blackrock College/Leinster)*
Paul Marshall (Ballymena/Ulster)*
Kevin McLaughlin (St.Mary’s College/Leinster/5)
Dave McSharry (UCD/Connacht/)*
Tommy O’Donnell (UL Bohemians/Munster)*
Rhys Ruddock (St. Mary’s College/Leinster/1)
Mike Sherry (Garryowen/Munster)*
Lewis Stevenson (Malone/Ulster)*
Devin Toner (Lansdowne/Leinster/3)
Andrew Trimble (Ballymena/Ulster/49)
Damien Varley (Garryowen/Munster/2)
N.B. *denotes uncapped player
