Emblem(s) the Shamrock Captain Felix Jones | Coach Dan McFarland | |
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Union Irish Rugby Football Union Arenas/Stadiums Kingspan Stadium, Donnybrook Stadium, Galway Sportsgrounds Grounds Donnybrook Stadium, Kingspan Stadium, Galway Sportsgrounds |
Irish rugby tv o2 ireland wolfhounds v england saxons highlights
The Ireland Wolfhounds (formerly Ireland A) are the second national rugby union team of Ireland, behind the Ireland national team. They have previously competed in the Churchill Cup together with the England Saxons and the full national teams of Canada and the United States, as well as with a selection of other nations' 1st, 2nd and 3rd representative sides (including Scotland A and the New Zealand Maori). They also play against other 6 Nations countries' A sides during the RBS 6 Nations. Now and again they will also play touring sides. For example, they played South Africa in 2000, the All Blacks in 2001 and Australia in 2006. On the 21 June 2009, Ireland A won their first Churchill Cup, beating the England Saxons 49–22 in the final. They also won the Churchill Plate three times in 2006, 2007 and 2008. They were renamed Ireland Wolfhounds in January 2010.
Contents
- Irish rugby tv o2 ireland wolfhounds v england saxons highlights
- Current squad
- 1990s
- 2000s
- 2010s
- Overall
- Honours
- References
Current squad
Ireland Wolfhounds 23-man match day squad to play England Saxons on 30 January 2015.
1990s
2000s
2010s
Overall
The above is a non-exhaustive list of the head-to-head record against opponents since only the early 1990s, and includes fixtures against non-national representative sides such as the New Zealand Maori, as well as some club teams. Given the irregularity of 'A' level fixtures (for example, the only annual fixture left for the Wolfhounds is the game a week before the RBS 6 Nations starts against England Saxons), it is difficult to track the progress of the 'A' teams. After a string of poor results, Wales A, for example, have not fielded a team in well over a decade, last taking to the field in 2002.
Some anomalies have occurred in match fixtures. One example is a hastily organised, more or less still amateur second-tier Irish Wolfhounds (then called "Ireland 'A'") taking the field against a near full-strength, fully professional, first tier New Zealand team in 1997, the same year that the latter went through the calendar year undefeated and achieved their first ever test series victory on world champions South Africa's soil. To compound matters, the fixture was also played in New Zealand territory, as part of a misguided Wolfhounds tour to the country. In the event, it was a miracle that the Wolfhounds only lost on a scoreline of 74-15. The Wolfhounds were soundly beaten on every match of this tour, including a 69-16 walloping at the hands of provincial side Northland (one level below Super Rugby).
Bizarrely, though, the Wolfhounds have a good record against traditionally stronger South African opponents. They have won their only match against their South African counterparts South Africa A by 3 points. Additionally, they have played two fixtures against South Africa XV ('XV' teams are above 'A' level but below full test level), drawing once and winning the other encounter by a surprisingly resounding 17 points.