Waterford's Thomas Ahern will take part in a pre-tournament training camp with Ireland ahead of the upcoming Six Nations.
The Munster utility forward has starred for the province this season, with the Ardmore man scoring six tries in twelve outings.
Head Coach Andy Farrell has today named a 34-player Ireland squad for the upcoming Guinness Men’s Six Nations, with Peter O’Mahony named to captain the team for the 2024 Championship.
The Ireland squad will assemble at the IRFU High Performance Centre in Dublin on Monday to begin preparations for their opening match of the Championship against France at Stade Velodrome in Marseille on Friday, 2 February (Kick-off 9pm local time/8pm Irish time).
Back row O’Mahony, who has captained Ireland on 10 previous occasions, will lead the squad into the Championship, taking over from Jonathan Sexton who called time on his career following last year’s Rugby World Cup.
Farrell has selected three further training additions – Munster duo Oli Jager and Thomas Ahern and Leinster out-half Sam Prendergast – who will travel with the Ireland squad to Portugal next Wednesday for their pre-tournament training camp in Quinta do Lago.
Following a Friday night showdown against France in Round 1, Ireland have back-to-back matches at Aviva Stadium against Italy on Sunday, 11 February (Kick-off 3pm) and Wales on Saturday, 24 February (Kick-off 2.15pm).
Farrell’s side travel to London to face England at Twickenham in Round 4 on Saturday, 10 March (Kick-off 4.45pm), before concluding the Championship against Scotland at Aviva Stadium on Saturday, 16 March (Kick-off 4.45pm).
Commenting on today’s squad announcement, Farrell said: “The forthcoming Men’s Guinness Six Nations presents an opportunity for us to grow and develop. The Six Nations is one of the biggest stages in world rugby and this year’s competition will be keenly fought. I am pleased with the quality of performances by the extended group over the last number of weeks and believe that the squad is in good shape. I would like to congratulate all those who have been selected, especially those who are at the beginning of their international journeys. It doesn’t get much tougher than France away in the opening weekend, but it is a challenge that we will approach in a positive frame of mind.
“To our new captain Peter O’Mahony, he is a born leader and someone who has been an influential figure for Munster and Ireland for many years. I am confident that the squad will continue to benefit from his leadership skills, both on and off the field. He is thoroughly deserving of this honour, and I know that he will relish working closely with the wider leadership group and squad over the coming campaign. I would like to congratulate him and his family at this special time.”
On being appointed Ireland captain for the 2024 Championship, O’Mahony commented: “Ever since I was a boy starting off in the game, I have always dreamed of captaining Ireland. I have been asked to lead Ireland on a number of occasions previously, and each of those 10 matches were special days. To be now asked to captain Ireland ahead of the Six Nations is without doubt one of the proudest moments of my life and I would like to thank Andy for this show of faith in me.
“We have a strong core of leaders who will all play a key role in driving the highest standards for the team over the coming weeks. Competition is red hot across the squad and we’re all hugely motivated to work hard when we meet up next week ahead of the opening game in Marseille.”
All three of Ireland’s home matches at Aviva Stadium are sold out, with RTÉ and Virgin Media providing free-to-air coverage of the Guinness Men’s Six Nations in Republic of Ireland and BBC and ITV broadcasting in the United Kingdom.
Ireland Squad – Guinness Men’s Six Nations 2024
Forwards (19):
Ryan Baird (Leinster/Dublin University)(15)
Finlay Bealham (Connacht/Buccaneers)(36)
Tadhg Beirne (Munster/Lansdowne)(46)
Jack Conan (Leinster/Old Belvedere)(41)
Caelan Doris (Leinster/St Mary’s College)(36)
Tadhg Furlong (Leinster/Clontarf)(72)
Cian Healy (Leinster/Clontarf)(125)
Iain Henderson (Ulster/Academy)(79)
Ronan Kelleher (Leinster/Lansdowne)(26)
Jeremy Loughman (Munster/Garryowen)(4)
Joe McCarthy (Leinster/Dublin University)(5)
Peter O’Mahony (Munster/Cork Constitution)(101) (captain)
Tom O’Toole (Ulster/Ballynahinch)(12)
Andrew Porter (Leinster/UCD)(59)
James Ryan (Leinster/UCD)(59)
Dan Sheehan (Leinster/Lansdowne)(21)
Tom Stewart (Ulster/Ballynahinch)(2)
Nick Timoney (Ulster/Banbridge)(3)
Josh van der Flier (Leinster/UCD)(57)
Backs (15):
Bundee Aki (Connacht/Galwegians)(52)
Harry Byrne (Leinster/UCD)(2)
Craig Casey (Munster/Shannon)(13)
Jack Crowley (Munster/Cork Constitution)(9)
Ciaran Frawley (Leinster/UCD)(1)
Jamison Gibson-Park (Leinster)(30)
Robbie Henshaw (Leinster/Buccaneers)
Hugo Keenan (Leinster/UCD)(36)
Jordan Larmour (Leinster/St Mary’s College)(30)
James Lowe (Leinster)(26)
Stuart McCloskey (Ulster/Bangor)(15)
Conor Murray (Munster/Garryowen)(112)
Calvin Nash (Munster/Young Munster)(1)
Garry Ringrose (Leinster/UCD)(57)
Jacob Stockdale (Ulster/Lurgan)(37)
Training Panellists:
Oli Jager (Munster)*
Thomas Ahern (Shannon/Munster)*
Sam Prendergast (Lansdowne/Leinster)*
* denotes uncapped player
