Sean O’Brien to lead Leinster against Ulster

Sean O'Brien will captain Leinster against Ulster in a pre-season friendly at Tallaght stadium tomorrow (4.0).

The Lions and Ireland backrow forward starts at number eight and is one of 12 players to make their season's bow in Tallaght with only three players retained from the 15 that started away to Northampton last weekend.

Leinster coach Matt O’Connor looks to give as many players as possible game time ahead of the visit to Glasgow next Saturday in the opening round of the Guinness Pro12.

Young Clontarf hooker Bryan Byrne starts for the second week in a row but he has over 230 Leinster caps either side of him with Cian Healy and Mike Ross starting at loosehead and tighthead respectively.

Kevin McLaughlin, normally a flanker, will play alongside Mike McCarthy in the secondrow. The 21-year-old Old Belvedere number eight and Irish underage international Jack Conan is named at blindside flanker.

Last week's captain Jimmy Gopperth is named at outhalf with Luke McGrath his halfback partner. Zane Kirchner and Fergus McFadden join Darragh Fanning in the back three while Noel Reid joins Brendan Macken in midfield.

Parking for the game will be available in the Square Shopping Centre and free for anyone attending the game on Level Three. Please have your match ticket ready for inspection to avail of this offer.

Meanwhile Stuart Olding will play his first game for Ulster in ten months after being selected to face Leinster.

¨The 21 year-old Ireland international ruptured his ACL playing for the Ravens in November last year and is selected at inside centre alongside Jared Payne who starts at 13.

Louis Ludik who scored a try on his Ulster debut last week, is named at fullback with Michael Allen and Craig Gilroy picked on the wings.

Ian Humphreys and Paul Marshall who both started the game against Exeter Chiefs retain their partnership in the halfbacks.

Up front, Andrew Warwick starts the game at loosehead, with Rob Herring selected at hooker. New summer signing Wiehahn Herbst begins a game for Ulster for the first time and is named at tighthead.

There is a new combination in the second row with Ireland international Dan Tuohy partnered by Springbok Franco van der Merwe.

In the back row, Robbie Diack plays at blindside, Sean Reidy is selected at openside and Roger Wilson keeps the captaincy and starts the game at number eight.

Leinster: Z Kirchner; F McFadden, B Macken, N Reid, D Fanning; J Gopperth, L McGrath; C Healy, B Byrne, M Ross; K McLaughlin, M McCarthy; J Conan, S Jennings, S O'Brien (capt).

Replacements: will be confirmed on the day of the game but the provisional list does include senior players Michael Bent, Tadhg Furlong, Tom Denton, Ben Marshall, Isaac Boss, Ian Madigan and Sam Coghlan Murray.

Ulster: L Ludik, M Allen, J Payne, S Olding, C Gilroy; I Humphreys, P Marshall; A Warwick, R Herring, W Herbst; D Tuohy, F van der Merwe; R Diack, S Reidy, R Wilson (capt).

Replacements: R Murphy, J Andrew, D Fitzpatrick, A O'Connor, N McComb, C Joyce, C Ross, N Williams, C Black, K McCall, B Ross, L Stevenson, M MCComish, M Heaney, D Shanahan, S O'Hagan, R Adair, J Stockdale, R Scholes, R Andrew.