IRFU Director of Sevens and Women’s Rugby, Anthony Eddy, has selected a 12-player Ireland Men’s squad for the trip to Spain. Fifteen players have been named in the Ireland Women’s panel as focus intensifies on the back-to-back World Series tournaments in Dubai in late November/early December.

Ireland Men, coming off the back of encouraging performances in World Series events in Vancouver and Edmonton last month, will face France, Spain, Germany, and invitational sides Zastava and Viator Barbarians at the Elche 7s, while Ireland Women will return to action against Belgium, Poland, Spain, and Viator Costa Blanca on Saturday and Sunday.

Eddy has selected an exciting mix of youth and experience in both panels, with Olympians Terry Kennedy, Jordan Conroy and Hugo Lennox included in the Men’s squad alongside Leinster Academy backs Niall Comerford and Chris Cosgrave, who impressed in Canada last month. Ireland U20 international Jude Postlethwaite is also named in the traveling party.

Lucy Mulhall will lead Ireland Women, who have plenty of World Series experience within their ranks, while Erin King and Katie Whelan will be among those hoping to showcase their talents on the international stage having stood out for Leinster during the recent U18 Women’s Inter-Provincial Series.

Speaking ahead of the tournament, Eddy said the Elche 7s tournament will provide both squads with a valuable opportunity to build towards the campaign ahead:

“The Elche Tournament is always a good event, and the players are looking forward to it. This tournament provides us with a good opportunity to see some new faces as we prepare for the new HSBC World Sevens Series season.

“There is good depth in both the Men’s and Women’s squads and competition for places in World Series Tournaments will be a real contest so it is important that we go to Elche with an attitude of performing well.”

A Youtube live stream of the Elche 7s is available here.

Ireland Men’s Sevens Squad:

Jordan Conroy (Buccaneers RFC)

Niall Comerford (UCD RFC/Leinster)

Chris Cosgrave (UCD RFC/Leinster)

Sean Cribbin (Suttonians RFC)

Fergus Jemphrey (Blackheath RFC/IQ Rugby)

Sean Kearns (Irish Sevens)

Terry Kennedy (St Mary’s College RFC)

Hugo Lennox (Skerries RFC)

Matthew McDonald (IQ Rugby)

Aaron O’Sullivan (Blackrock College RFC)

Jude Postlethwaite (Banbridge RFC/Ulster)

Zac Ward (Ballynahinch RFC).

Ireland Women’s Sevens Squad:

Claire Boles (Railway Union)

Megan Burns (Blackrock College)

Amee-Leigh Murphy Crowe (Railway Union)

Katie Heffernan (Mullingar/Railway Union)

Eve Higgins (Railway Union)

Brittany Hogan (DCU/Old Belvedere)

Erin King (Old Belvedere)

Emily Lane (Blackrock College)

Maeve Liston (Blackrock College)

Kate Farrell McCabe (Suttonians)

Grace Moore (Railway Union/IQ Rugby)

Lucy Mulhall (Rathdrum)

Béibhinn Parsons (Blackrock College)

Aoibheann Reilly (Blackrock College)

Katie Whelan (Enniscorthy).

Elche 7s Schedule:

Saturday, 16th October:

Women’s team v Belgium, 10:20 Irish time

Men’s team v Zastava, 11:00 Irish time

Women’s team v Poland, 12:00 Irish time

Men’s team v Germany, 13:20 Irish time

Women’s team v Viator Costa Blanca, 13:40 Irish time

Men’s team v France, 15:00 Irish time

Women’s team v Spain, 16:00 Irish time.

Sunday, 17th October:

Men’s team v Spain, 10:40 Irish time

Men’s team v Viator Barbarians, 12:00 Irish time

Play-Off Matches, TBC.

To read more in-depth and up-to-date Irish and international rugby news, click here.

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Anthony Eddy‘s squad are currently finalising their preparations for a maiden Olympics campaign in Tokyo.

As excitement builds for the start of the Rugby 7s competition on Monday 26 July, a huge opportunity awaits for Irish Rugby and the shortened format of the game in Ireland.

The realisation of their Olympic Dream promises to be a watershed moment for Irish Sevens Rugby, elevating the players, sport and programme to a whole new level in front of a global audience.

“The Ireland Men’s Sevens team qualifying for the Olympics is a huge opportunity for us to be able to build a sustainable pathway for Sevens Rugby in Ireland,” IRFU Performance Director, David Nucifora, says.

“The interest that the Olympics will bring gives us the opportunity to be able to grow the game of Sevens throughout the country.”

The IRFU want to ensure that there is a clear pathway for young children to get into Sevens rugby.

Sevens is an accessible sport for all ages and the value of Sevens programmes and competitions in schools and colleges and Age-Grade Interprovincial Structures cannot be underestimated with Irish Rugby fully aligned and committed to ensuring Tokyo 2020 is truly a watershed moment for the sport in Ireland.

“The opportunity created by the Men’s Sevens being in the Olympics enables us to be able to connect the Domestic Participation part of the game for young boys and girls to be able to see an opportunity to follow their Olympic Dreams,” Nucifora continues.

“Our ambition is to be able to make the game of Sevens a sustainable game within its own right, with the ambition of qualifying our Men’s and Women’s teams for the 2024 and 2028 Games in Paris and LA and our Men’s and Women’s U18s teams for the 2026 Youth Olympics in Dakar.”

For Nucifora, the goal is clear: to build a pathway that connects the Participation and Domestic components of the game with the High Performance Programmes.

This will enable young boys and girls to play the sport in their school and club, granting them access to selection for Provincial teams, National Underage squads and then the National Sevens squads, leading them into Olympic Games opportunities in the future.

“We’re focused on leaving a legacy as a result of the team’s qualification for Tokyo,” he says.

“We want to build a Participation Pathway for the game of Sevens through the schools and clubs to open up the sport to non-traditional areas and players. It is a true pathway for a rugby player and we’re striving to get the development part of it right and truly open up the game for all and make it as accessible as possible. We’ll see the grow game in Ireland off the back of that.

“Tokyo is on our mind right now but looking towards Paris, it is only a three year turnaround and our ambition is to be there with both our Men’s and Women’s teams. We’re hugely excited for what’s ahead and know we can achieve all of these goals and ambitions in the years ahead.”

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The national side will be competing to earn a spot at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo.

The tournament will take place from June 19th to June 20th in Stade Louis II.

Head coach Anthony Eddy selected a 14-man squad for the tournament that is filled with experience.

He spoke about his selections after the announcement on Friday.

#Ireland7s

The Ireland squad for next week's 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗹𝗱 𝗥𝘂𝗴𝗯𝘆 𝗦𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻𝘀 𝗥𝗲𝗽𝗲𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗴𝗲 has been named, with Anthony Eddy announcing an experienced 14-player panel for Monaco

Full details: https://t.co/S9QJn3n1JK#IrishRugby #ShoulderToShoulder @TritonLake pic.twitter.com/kzyL4Ksu33

— Irish Rugby (@IrishRugby) June 11, 2021

Ireland’s most-capped sevens player Harry McNulty will return to the side.

La Giltinis, McNulty’s club, granted the Major League Rugby player the opportunity to play international level sevens this summer.

McNulty comes back into a side that has been through the highs and lows of recent years together.

Billy Dardis captains the side once again as he tries to take the team to the Olympics.

Furthermore, two uncapped players are part of the squad.

Gavin Mullin and Aaron Sexton will earn their first caps this weekend after being with the squad for an extended period.

Eddy also picked top try-scorer Jordan Conroy.

The Tullamore speedster will be a dangerous offensive weapon for the Irish and will want to extend his try-scoring record.

The outstanding Terry Kennedy is also part of the 14-man squad.

Anthony Eddy’s side will begin the tournament in Pool A alongside Samoa, Tonga, Zimbabwe and Mexico, per Irish Rugby.

The team will play Zimbabwe, Tonga and Mexico on June 19th and Samoa on June 20th.

Games beyond the group stage will also take place on June 20th.

Every side in Pool A will be gunning for their first appearance at the Olympic games.

Sevens heavyweights Samoa is the toughest challenge in Pool A for Anthony Eddy’s side on paper.

The Samoans came closer than Ireland to qualification in 2016 but fell to the same foe in Spain at the final hurdle.

They will want to right the wrongs of 2016 and reach the Olympics for the first time.

Led by the legendary Brian Lima, the side will be hungry for success after a year out.

France provides competition for the Irish if they are to get through the pool stage.

The France national sevens team has already played at the Olympic level in 2016 and will want to do so again.

Jérôme Daret will want to take his side to Tokyo this summer.

Ireland may have to get past Daret’s side if they are to reach their goal.

Olympic qualification would be a massive achievement for the Irish sevens programme, but can it be done?

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