Jordan Larmour earns first call-up as Ireland’s Six Nations squad announced

Wed, 17 Jan, 2018 - 16:47

Steve Neville

Joe Schmidt has named the uncapped Jordan Larmour in his 36-man squad for the opening two games of the 2018 Six Nations.

Larmour, who only turned 20 in June, had been expected to earn a call-up after some excellent performances for Leinster in both the Pro14 and Champions Cup.

Munster’s Chris Farrell and Connacht star Bundee Aki, who both earned their first caps in the November Series are in also in the mix.

Ireland squad named for opening rounds of #NatWest6Nations #TeamOfUs https://t.co/ME8MG63ewE pic.twitter.com/sr0l6Umf8C
— Irish Rugby (@IrishRugby) January 17, 2018

Captain Rory Best was named alongside fellow Ulster men Iain Henderson, Rob Herring and Jacob Stockdale.

Also included is Joey Carbery who recently returned to training after breaking his wrist Ireland duty last November and there is a recall for hooker Sean Cronin who missed out in the November series. 

Munster's in form wingers Andrew Conway and Keith Earls also make the squad alongside Peter O'Mahony and CJ Stander who both recently signed new contracts with IRFU.

However, there is no room for the departing Simon Zebo, who said last week he was

Speaking about the selections, Schmidt said: "It's been great to witness some quality performances from provincial teams over the last seven weeks of European and derby matches, with a number of players performing well.

"There were some very tight decisions but it's great to see some competitive depth in a number of positions."

Ireland take on France in their opening game in Paris on February 3, followed by a clash against Italy in the Aviva Stadium.

Schmidt has had to do without a number of injured players including Jamie Heaslip, Sean O'Brien, Rhys Ruddock, Finlay Bealham, Tommy O'Donnell, Niall Scannell, Luke Marshall, Garry Ringrose, Jared Payne and Craig Gilroy.

Squad in full:

FORWARDS (20) 

Rory Best (Banbridge/Ulster) c 106 caps

Jack Conan (Old Belvedere/Leinster) 5 caps

Sean Cronin (St Mary’s College/Leinster) 56 caps

Ultan Dillane (Corinthians/Connacht) 11 caps

Tadhg Furlong (Clontarf/Leinster) 19 caps

Cian Healy (Clontarf/Leinster) 73 caps

Iain Henderson (Ballynahinch/Ulster) 34 caps

Rob Herring (Ballynahinch/Ulster) 3 cap

Dave Kilcoyne (UL Bohemians/Munster) 22 caps

Dan Leavy (UCD/Leinster) 4 caps