The injuries have taken their toll and having named his initial Six Nations squad before the start of the tournament, Joe Schmidt has taken the option of naming a reshuffled squad ahead of this weekend's clash with England.
The big news is that Dave Foley, Jordi Murphy and Craig Gilroy come in for the injured trio of Mike McCarthy, Sean O'Brien and Dave Kearney. While Cian Healy and Mike Ross return to the squad after proving their fitness with Tadgh Furlong and Rob Herring both suffering with thigh muscle injuries and, as such they will remain with their provinces.
Gilroy's call-up will no doubt be welcomed, not least by Ulster fans who will have every reason to have been slightly unhappy with the involvement, or lack thereof, of the likes of Paddy Jackson and Stuart McCloskey during the opening two rounds of the tournament.
As for Foley and Murphy, while they'll no doubt have their backers, it's fair to say that there wasn't too much surprise when both were left out of the original squad at the start of the campaign. Foley hasn't appeared for Ireland since 2014 and his inclusion in the squad, while no doubt understandable, certainly does indicate that our options in the pack are quickly dwindling.
Ireland squad to face England
Forwards (18)
Finlay Bealham (Corinthians/Connacht)
Rory Best (Banbridge/Ulster) Captain
Sean Cronin (St. Mary's College/Leinster)
Ultan Dillane (Corinthians/Connacht)
David Foley (UL Bohemians/Munster)
Cian Healy (Clontarf/Leinster)
Jamie Heaslip (Dublin University/Leinster) Vice Captain
Jack McGrath (St Mary's College/Leinster)
Jordi Murphy (Lansdowne/Leinster)
Tommy O'Donnell (UL Bohemians/Munster)
Mike Ross (Clontarf/Leinster)
Rhys Ruddock (St Mary's College/Leinster)
Donnacha Ryan (Shannon/Munster)
CJ Stander (Munster)
Richardt Strauss (Old Wesley/Leinster)
Devin Toner (Lansdowne/Leinster)
Josh van der Flier (UCD/Leinster)
Nathan White (Connacht)
Backs (16)
Keith Earls (Young Munster/Munster)
Craig Gilroy (Dungannon/Ulster)
Robbie Henshaw (Buccaneers/Connacht)
Patrick Jackson (Dungannon/Ulster)
Rob Kearney (UCD/Leinster)
Ian Madigan (Blackrock College/Leinster)
Kieran Marmion (Corinthians/Connacht)
Luke Marshall (Ballymena/Ulster)
Stuart McCloskey (Ballynahinch/Ulster)
Fergus McFadden (Old Belvedere/Leinster)
Conor Murray (Garryowen/Munster)
Jared Payne (Ulster)
Eoin Reddan (Old Crescent/Leinster)
Jonathan Sexton (St Mary's College/Leinster)
Andrew Trimble (Ballymena/Ulster)
Simon Zebo (Cork Constitution/Munster)
