Ireland Team Announcement

…Broc the Irish team mascot, who made his first international appearance when Ireland last played Australia in Perth in 2003…

Ireland coach Eddie O’Sullivan will confirm his team and replacements for next weekend’s Test match against Australia in the early hours of tomorrow morning (Irish time).

O’Sullivan is set to announce the starting line-up for the final Test of the summer tour Down Under at 12.45pm Western Australian time (5.45am Irish time) tomorrow. IrishRugby.ie will bring you details of the team as soon as it is announced.

Ireland have played Australia on 24 occasions, and three times in the last three years. The Wallabies boast 17 wins with Ireland’s seventh and last victory coming in the rain-hit clash at Lansdowne Road in November 2002. Ronan O’Gara kicked six penalties that afternoon as the men in green ran out 18-9 winners.

Perth’s Subiaco Oval, the venue for Saturday’s Test match, hosted an understrength Irish side in June 2003. O’Sullivan’s charges fell to a 45-16 defeat at the hands of Australia back then – out-half Elton Flatley led the way for the home side, scoring one of their six tries and kicking 15 points.

Ireland famously fell to an agonising 17-16 defeat to Australia at the 2003 World Cup, and last November’s meeting at Lansdowne Road also resulted in a 30-14 win for the Antipodeans.

The Lansdowne Cup is up for grabs on Saturday. Established in 1999, the cup, made of Waterford Crystal, was donated to the Australian Rugby Union by Sydney’s Lansdowne club as a perpetual trophy to be competed for between Australia and Ireland. Like the Lansdowne club, the cup is named after Irish rugby’s famous home ground in Dublin 4.

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