Four Kildare men set to line out for Leinster A on Saturday afternoon
Andrew Osborne will start from the wing fro Leinster A against Munster A this Saturday. Photo: ©INPHO/Laszlo Geczo
Munster travel to Dublin on Saturday to take on Leinster in what many consider the biggest game in club rugby.
But before the main course kicks off in Croke Park at 5.15pm, there is a mouthwatering starter kicking off at 12pm deep in the heart of the capital.
Old Belvedere is the venue as Leinster ‘A’ take on Munster ‘A’ in the first round of the IRFU Interprovincial ‘A’ Championship.
Head Coach Simon Broughton has named three Kildare men in his starting XV along with a fourth on the bench.
Naas's Andrew Osborne will be starting on the wing for the A team, with older brother Jamie set to start later in the day at Croke Park.
Donadea's Will Connors is the most experienced man in Broughton's squad and starts in the back row.
He will be joined at flanker by his fellow Kildare man, Diarmuid Mangan, who played in all three of Leinster's URC games this season, each in the second row, but will be keen to show he is equally proficient on the flank.
Mangan's brother Ciarán is named on the bench where he provides cover for the wing.
It will be an extremely busy day for the Mangan family, with Diarmuid and Ciarán's brother, Darragh, set to captain Sallins when they take on St Laurence's in the Intermediate Football Championship final at 5pm in Cedral St Conleth's Park.
Leinster A v Munster A will be shown live on Leinster Rugby Plus (Access to the stream is available for €10 HERE or a bundle for all three home Leinster ‘A’ games is available for €15).
The next round of fixtures will see Leinster A take on their Connacht counterparts in UCD in January before finishing up against Ulster A in May.
Hugo McLaughlin; Joshua Kenny, Connor Fahy, Charlie Tector, Andrew Osborne; Caspar Gabriel, Oliver Coffey; Alex Usanov, John McKee (C), Andrew Sparrow; Alan Spicer, Billy Corrigan; Diarmuid Mangan, Will Connors, James Culhane.
Stephen Smyth (4), Jerry Cahir, Niall Smyth, Artur Smykovskiy, Charlie Meagher, Tadhg Brophy, Ciarán Mangan, Todd Lawlor, Mahon Ronan, Páidí Farrell.
