The Ireland U20s travel to take on Italy this evening, seeking to win their third consecutive game in the competition. After strong performances against England and Scotland in the opening two games, a victory here would put them in an fantastic position.
Italy will be no pushovers, however, having produced a convincing win over Scotland themselves on the opening weekend. Craig Casey and Angus Kernohan return to the Ireland team for this game, with the Ulster winger recovering from injury to make his first appearance in this year's competition.
We will keep you up to date with all of the action from Rieti, with minute by minute updates thanks to PwC.
Ireland have performed incredibly well in this tournament so far. Their opening win came against a much-fancied England side, who finished as runner-up in last year's World Cup. That was a game in which Ireland fell behind early, but showed fantastic resolve to get back into a winning position.
Their defensive acumen was especially impressive, keeping a very physical England side largely at bay. Their defence was flawless once again in the Scotland game, and they never really gave the hosts a sniff of a chance all game. They will be hoping to repeat that feat this evening.
Ireland U20s Team
15. Jake Flannery (Shannon/Munster)
14. Angus Kernohan (Queen’s University/Ulster)
13. Liam Turner (Dublin University/Leinster)
12. David Hawkshaw (Clontarf/Leinster) (capt)
11. Jonathan Wren (Cork Constitution/Munster)
10. Harry Byrne (Lansdowne/Leinster)
9. Craig Casey (Shannon/Munster)
1. Josh Wycherley (Young Munster/Munster)
2. Dylan Tierney-Martin (Corinthians/Connacht)
3. Thomas Clarkson (Dublin University/Leinster)
4. Charlie Ryan (UCD/Leinster)
5. Niall Murray (Buccaneers/Connacht)
6. Martin Moloney (Old Belvedere/Leinster)
7. Scott Penny (UCD/Leinster)
8. John Hodnett (UCC/Munster)
Replacements:
16. Billy Scannell (Young Munster/Munster) *
17. Callum Reid (Banbridge/Ulster) *
18. Michael Milne (UCD/Leinster)
19. Brian Deeny (Clontarf/Leinster)
20. Ronan Watters (St. Mary’s College/Leinster) *
21. Cormac Foley (St. Mary’s College/Leinster)
22. Ben Healy (Garryowen/Munster) *
23. Rob Russell (Dublin University/Leinster)
