Sport

Leinster name their side for Northampton clash

Jamie Osborne of Leinster during the Investec Champions Cup quarter-final match between Leinster and La Rochelle at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin. (Photo By Harry Murphy/Sportsfile via Getty Images)

Leinster named their team for their Champions Cup semi-final against Croke Park this week.

In case you missed the announcement, here is the team selected by Leo Cullen.

Andrew Porter, Dan Sheehan, and Tadhg Furlong make up the Leinster front-row. Ross McCarthy and Ryan Baird provide solutions in the second row. The backrow is completed by a trio of Josh van der Flier and Caelan Doris, the captain.

In the backline, a back-three of Ciaran Frawley at fullback and James Lowe and Jamie Osborne start. In the halfbacks, Ross Byrne starts at 10 and Jamison Gibson-Park starts at 9.

The backline is completed by a duo of Robbie Henshaw and Jamie Osborne.

Jamie Osborne, left, and Robbie Henshaw of Leinster during the Investec Champions Cup Round of 16 match between Leinster and Leicester Tigers at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin. (Photo By Ramsey Cardy/Sportsfile via Getty Images) )

Among the replacements, Cian Healy is set to become the all-time appearance holder in the history of the Champions Cup. He is currently on 110 appearances, alongside Ronan O’Gara.

Speaking ahead of the game, Assistant Coach Robin McBryde said Northampton’s consistency will be tough to beat. “They play with a lot of confidence and pride themselves on being the best attacking team in the Premiership. Up front, there will be a battle. They have a good lineout and scrum. It’ll be a tough game for us.”

The game starts at 5.30 and will be live on RTÉ 2, TNT Sport and RTÉ Radio 1.

Forwards:

Andrew Porter, 2. Dan Sheehan, 3. Tadhg Furlong, 4. Ross Molony, 5. Joe McCarthy, 6. Ryan Baird, 7. Josh van der Flier, 8. Caelan Doris (CAPTAIN)

Backs:

Jamison Gibson-Park, 10. Ross Byrne, 11. James Lowe, 12. Jamie Osborne, 13. Robbie Henshaw, 14. Jordan Larmour, 15. Ciarán Frawley

Replacements: 16. Rónan Kelleher; 17. Cian Healy; 18. Michael Ala’alatoa 19. Jason Jenkins 20. Jack Conan; 21. Luke McGrath 22. Harry Byrne 23. Jimmy O’Brien

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Here is the #LeinsterRugby team to face @SaintsRugby tomorrow evening in the @ChampionsCup #LEIvNOR #FromTheGroundUp pic.twitter.com/H9Q2QCBDGB

— Leinster Rugby (@leinsterrugby) May 3, 2024