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Wounded Leinster name fully international XV for visit of Connacht
By Ian Cameron
Leinster, smarting from a rare home loss at the RDS, have named a fully international fifteen for the visit of provincial rivals Connacht in the URC.
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Ulster successfully raided their D4 fortress last weekend, bagging a first win in Dublin in eight years.
Head coach Leo Cullen’s men will be eager to paper over the blemish on their URC record with a win over the Westerners and the former second row has named team heavy in international experience.
Hugo Keenan, Jordan Larmour and James Lowe will form the back three, while Robbie Henshaw moves from outside center to inside center, while Garry Ringrose returns to the number 13 jersey.
Luke McGrath will captain the team once more, and he will be joined in the half-backs by Harry Byrne, who came on as a replacement against Ulster last week.
Cian Healy, Dan Sheehan, and Michael Ala’alatoa form the front row of the pack, with Ryan Baird and Devin Toner filling in behind them. Autumn Nations Series Player of the Year Caelan Doris starts at No. 8 and is joined by Rhys Ruddock and Josh van der Flier.
If he comes off the bench, Josh Murphy will make his 50th appearance for the province.
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LEINSTER VS CONNACHT:
15. Hugo Keenan
14. Jordan Larmour
13. Garry Ringrose
12. Robbie Henshaw
11. James Lowe
10. Harry Byrne
9. Luke McGrath (C)
1. Cian Healy
2. Dan Sheehan
3. Michael Ala’alatoa
4. Ryan Baird
5. Devin Toner
6. Rhys Ruddock
7. Josh van der Flier
8. Caelan Doris
REPLACEMENTS:
16. Rónan Kelleher
17. Andrew Porter
18. Vakh Abdaladze
19. Josh Murphy
20. Max Deegan
21. Nick McCarthy
22. Ross Byrne
23. Tommy O’Brien
