Preview: Ireland v England

18 Aug 2023 | 5 min |

Everything you need to know ahead of England's Summer Series fixture against Ireland in Dublin.

Six changes have been made to the starting line up that beat Wales 19-17 last weekend. Ben Youngs, George Ford, Anthony Watson, Ellis Genge, Manu Tuilagi and David Ribbans enter the first XV, while Courtney Lawes is named captain of the side on the occasion of his 99th Test cap.

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When?	Saturday, 19 August
Where?	Aviva Stadium
Kick off	17:30 BST
Where can I watch?	Amazon Prime

Having made his 50th Test appearance last weekend from the bench, loosehead prop Genge is named in the starting front row alongside Jamie George and Will Stuart.

Ribbans will join Maro Itoje in the second row, while Lawes skippers the side from the flank. Ben Earl and Billy Vunipola complete the starting forward pack.

In the backs, Youngs and Ford are the starting half backs for the 61st time in a Test match. Meanwhile, Tuilagi and Joe Marchant combine in the centres. Watson enters the fray on the right wing, while Elliot Daly starts on the left. Freddie Steward is the starting full back.

Theo Dan, Joe Marler and Kyle Sinckler are the front row replacements. Ollie Chessum returns to the match day 23 for the first time since the 2023 Guinness Six Nations after recovering from an ankle injury. Jack Willis, Danny Care, Marcus Smith and Ollie Lawrence are also named on the bench.

VIEWS FROM CAMP

Steve Borthwick: "I'm looking forward to seeing this team go out on Saturday. It's a good team and we have a fantastic captain leading us out there. Every game for England is special and I can't wait to see this team play. This squad is a resilient group of men.

"We're going to need that strength on Saturday because it's going to test us, but it's something we're looking forward to. The team has worked hard again this week, we've had some challenging training this week and players have really progressed through."

TEAMS

England

15. Freddie Steward, 14. Anthony Watson, 13. Joe Marchant, 12. Manu Tuilagi, 11. Elliot Daly, 10. George Ford, 9. Ben Youngs, 1. Ellis Genge, 2. Jamie George, 3. Will Stuart, 4. Maro Itoje, 5. David Ribbans, 6. Courtney Lawes (C), 7. Ben Earl, 8. Billy Vunipola

Replacements

16. Theo Dan, 17. Joe Marler, 18. Kyle Sinckler, 19. Ollie Chessum, 20. Jack Willis, 21. Danny Care, 22. Marcus Smith, 23. Ollie Lawrence

Ireland

15. Hugo Keenan, 14. Mack Hansen, 13. Garry Ringrose, 12. Bundee Aki, 11. James Lowe, 10. Ross Byrne, 9. Jamison Gibson-Park, 1. Andrew Porter, 2. Dan Sheehan, 3. Tadhg Furlong, 4. Tadhg Beirne, 5. James Ryan (C), 6. Peter O'Mahony, 7. Josh van der Flier, 8. Cian Prendergast

Replacements

16. Rob Herring, 17. Jeremy Loughman, 18. Finlay Bealham, 19. Joe McCarthy, 20. Caelan Doris, 21. Conor Murray, 22. Jack Crowley, 23. Keith Earls

STATS

England have gone on to win 29 of the last 32 Test matches in which they led at half-time.

Ireland have won each of their last 11 Test matches, their second longest winning run in Test rugby; they could equal their longest such run with victory against England, having previously won 12 straight Tests between 2017 and 2018.

Ireland have won their last three Test matches against England after losing each of their previous four, however, they haven’t won four in a row against England since 2004-2007. The team leading at half-time has gone on to win each of the last 18 matches between these two sides.

Ireland have mauled on 58 occasions in 2023, more than any other Tier 1 nation, however it is England who have gained the most metres (107) and scored the most tries (4) directly from mauls this calendar year.