Uncapped Ulster pair to tour with Ireland

Ireland coach Eddie O'Sullivan has named his 30-man squad for the summer tour of Australia and New Zealand, with some notable omissions and two uncapped inclusions.

O'Sullivan was forced to plan without secondrow Malcolm O'Kelly, flankers Simon Easterby and Johnny O'Connor and Wasps scrumhalf Eoin Reddan.

A groin injury means O'Kelly, Ireland's most capped player with 80 appearances, may need an operation during the summer while both O'Connor and Easterby have been out since the Powergen Cup final early last month.

Reddan's groin injury however, has opened the door for Isaac Boss of Ulster to act as understudy to Peter Stringer. His performances since the turn of the year have impressed everyone, including O'Sullivan.

Boss' inclusion will be of great benefit to another uncapped youngster, his Ulster teammate and prop Bryan Young.
Both he and Boss have played for Ireland 'A' but it is their contribution to Ulster's climb to the top of the Celtic League that will take them to the southern hemisphere.

"I would have preferred to be dealing from a full deck for the tour, but the absences leave the door open for the players coming into the squad," O'Sullivan said today.

"Both Malcolm and Simon are world class lineout operators and the tour also represented a chance for Johnny and Eoin to stake their claims for a starting berth, so they will all be missed.

"Isaac Boss has been turning in consistent displays for Ulster over the last six months and we felt that he deserved an opportunity with the senior squad during the summer to give us more options in that position."

After 16 caps for Wasps in a season that included a Guinness Premiership final, Jeremy Staunton will offer back-up to Ronan O'Gara at outhalf.

Having played regularly at both tighthead and loosehead Young's inclusion offers some versatility in the frontrow, where he will be vying for a place with Marcus Horan, John Hayes and Simon Best.

"Bryan has been a key performer for his province along with the rest of the Ulster front row and now has a chance to prove himself at the very highest level," O'Sullivan added.

Ulster are further represented in the pack by the Best trio, hooker Rory, prop Simon and flanker Neil.

The absence of O'Connor and Easterby paves the way for Leinster's Keith Gleeson to come in from the cold after a successful return from injury. The mobile ball carrier may well have travelled anyhow considering the opposition.

Gleeson's Leinster teammate Leo Cullen is a secondrow inclusion in O'Kelly's absence, a decision that means London Irish lock Bob Casey again misses out.

Gleeson will face tough competition for a starting berth however, with five backrowers included in the selection, and another likely to arrive in the shape of Munster's Alan Quinlan who is in search of match fitness.

After recovering too late from injury to make an impact in the Spring, winger Denis Hickie's Leinster form sees him return to squad, but with O'Sullivan's reluctance to risk him in the Six Nations, one would wonder whether he is a realistic option for nest year's World Cup.

The same could be said for Munster's John Kelly, who is included, largely due to Munster's run to the Heineken Cup final, but, at 32m, is an unlikely contender for France next year.

The same cannot be said for Gavin Duffy of Ulster, who returns after last appearing for Ireland against Japan in June 2005, when he lined out at outside centre.

Backs (14)
Player / Club / Caps
Isaac Boss / Ballymena/Ulster / 0
Tommy Bowe / Belfast Harlequins / Ulster / 8
Gordon D'Arcy Lansdowne / Leinster / 20
Girvan Dempsey / Terenure College / Leinster / 63
Gavin Duffy / Harlequins / 4
Denis Hickie / St. Mary's College / Leinster / 51
Shane Horgan / Lansdowne / Leinster / 45
John Kelly / Cork Constitution / Munster / 17
Geordan Murphy / Leicester / 39
Brian O'Driscoll (Captain) / Blackrock College/Leinster / 64
Ronan O'Gara / Cork Constitution / Munster / 60
Jeremy Staunton / Wasps / 3
Peter Stringer Shannon / Munster / 66
Andrew Trimble Ballymena / Ulster / 6

Forwards (16)
Neil Best / Belfast Harlequins/Ulster / 2
Rory Best / Belfast Harlequins / Ulster / 3
Simon Best / Belfast Harlequins / Ulster / 12
Leo Cullen / Leicester / 18
Jerry Flannery / Shannon / Munster / 6
Anthony Foley / Shannon / Munster / 62
Keith Gleeson / St.Mary's College / Leinster / 23
John Hayes / Bruff / Munster / 62
Marcus Horan / Shannon / Munster / 37
Denis Leamy / Cork Constitution / Munster / 11
Donncha O'Callaghan / Cork Constitution / Munster / 24
Paul O'Connell / Young Munster / Munster / 33
Mick O'Driscoll / Cork Constitution / Munster / 4
David Wallace / Garryowen / Munster / 27
Bryan Young / Ballymena / Ulster / 0
Another to be confirmed