Ahead of the round 6 GUINEESS PRO12 clash with Benetton Treviso on Friday night, Connacht Head Coach Pat Lam has made a total of five changes to the starting line-up that faced Cardiff Blues last week.
In the same week that he signed a Connacht Academy contract, 20-year-old Shane Delahunt has been handed his first PRO12 start at hooker after coming on from the bench in the last two rounds. Hailing from Birr, Co. Offaly, Delahunt attended Kilkenny College where he captained the senior team to their first ever Leinster Senior League title in 2011. Having come through the Leinster underage system, Delahunt was included in the 2014 Under-20’s 6 Nations squad and earned his first cap against Scotland U20’s in January of this year.
The young hooker starts in an all-new front row this week with September Player of the Month Denis Buckley and Ireland-capped tighthead prop Rodney Ah You both called upon.
In the back row, Galway man Eoin McKeon is named at openside flanker while the only change to the backs sees Matt Healy start on the left wing while Danie Poolman is included amongst the replacement backs along with Dave McSharry and Ian Porter.
Commenting on the team selection and the upcoming game, Head Coach Pat Lam said:
“We’ve made a few changes to the pack for our game against Treviso. We travel this week without Nathan (White) who just missed out due to a minor neck strain. Rodney (Ah You) and Denis (Buckley) return to start and are charged with looking after young Academy forward Shane Delahunt who earns his first start. It’s a fantastic opportunity for Shane who has come off the bench the last two games for a few minutes. Without the injured hookers Jason (Harris-Wright) and Sean (Henry) as well as the wait for Tom (McCartney) from his Auckland commitments, Shane joined the squad in pre-season and we have been very impressed with his attitude and work ethic.
“Treviso are a tough team to play away, especially up front where they will look to disrupt us. We showed last season at Stadio Monigo what can happen to us when we don’t play as a team and we haven’t let ourselves forget that in our preparations this week.
“Treviso will be looking for their first win of the season and at home in front of their home crowd but it’s up to us to ensure the focus is on getting our processes right in order to carry on the winning momentum from the start of the season.”
Connacht team to face Treviso
15. Darragh Leader
14. Niyi Adeolokun
13. Robbie Henshaw
12. Craig Ronaldson
11. Matt Healy
10. Jack Carty
9. Kieran Marmion
1. Denis Buckley
2. Shane Delahunt
3. Rodney Ah You
4. Mick Kearney
5. Quinn Roux
6. John Muldoon ©
7. Eoin McKeon
8. George Naoupu
Replacements:
16. Dave Heffernan
17. Ronan Loughney
18. Finlay Bealham
19. Aly Muldowney
20. Willie Faloon
21. Ian Porter
22. Dave McSharry
23. Danie Poolman
Unavailable/Injured: Jason Harris-Wright, Sean Henry, Tom McCartney, Nathan White, Michael Swift, Mata Fifta, Jake Heenan, Tiernan O’Halloran, Bundee Aki, Mils Muliaina
Benetton Treviso v Connacht Rugby
Friday 10th October
At Stadio Monigo, 8pm local time (7pm Ireland & UK)
Live on nuvolari (Italian TV) and Galway Bay FM
Referee: David Wilkinson (IRFU, 28th competition game)
Assistant Referees: Marius Mitrea, Andrea Spadoni (both FIR)
Citing Commissioner: Stefano Marrama (FIR)
TMO: Stefano Roscini (FIR)