Exiles take big guns on Irish invasion
Thu, 28 Aug 2008 14:54
Bob Casey captains a London Irish side that includes 14 of the 22 players that played against Toulouse in the Heineken Cup semifinal, when they travel to Cork on Friday to take on Munster for the Jack Wakefield Memorial Trophy at Musgrave Park.
Munster are the current Heineken Cup champions, after beating Toulouse 16-13 in the Final back in May.
Friday's showdown between two of the most powerful outfits in the Northern Hemisphere also affords supporters the opportunity to see Mike Catt in action for what could be his last appearance on Irish soil, as the 36-year-old player/coach is likely to concentrate fully on coaching after the conclusion of this season
Friday's visit to Cork completes a busy and testing pre-season for the Exiles squad.
Playing the Heineken Cup champions at Musgrave Park will provide an ideal, final challenge for the Exiles in their build-up to the opening round of the Guinness Premiership - when they will face the defending Premiership champions, London Wasps, at Twickenham next Saturday, September 6.
Friday's match will be Munster's first home game since winning the Heineken Cup in Cardiff in May.
The province is expected to name a strong squad.
London Irish named a 25-man squad for the game and among the replacements who will take some part in the game are Shane Geraghty and Peter Richards, who have recovered from injury.
There are 10 players with international experience in the starting XV and another three on the bench.
London Irish: 15 Peter Hewat, 14 Topsy Ojo, 13 Delon Armitage, 12 Seilala Mapusua, 11 Sailosi Tagicakibau, 10 Mike Catt, 9 Paul Hodgson, 8 Chris Hala'Ufia, 7 Richard Thorpe, 6 Jon Fisher, 5 Bob Casey, 4 Nick Kennedy, 3 Faan Rautenbach, 2 David Paice, 1 Alex Corbiriero.
Replacements - from: James Buckland, Shane Geraghty, Charlie Gower, James Hudson, Gary Johnson, Dan Murphy, Tom Parker, Peter
Richards, Dominic Shabbo, Richard Skuse, Adam Thompstone.
Date: Friday, August 29
Venue: Musgrave Park, Cork
Kick-off: 19.30 (18.30 GMT)
Referee: Alan Lewis
Touch judges: David Keane, Brian MacNeice
