Eight Munster players attend three-day Ireland U20 camp

THE PwC sponsored Ireland U20s programme, led by Head Coach Richie Murphy, completed a three-day camp at the IRFU High Performance Centre in Dublin.

A group of 37 players participated in the camp as preparations for the postponed 2021 U20 Six Nations Championships begin to take shape.

The coaching group of Murphy, Denis Leamy and Colm Tucker oversaw five pitch sessions and off-field team organisational work.

A total of eight Munster players were involved in the three-day camp. The eight were: 
Mark Donnelly (Garryowen FC) NTS; Alan Flannery (Shannon RFC) NTS; John Forde (Cork Constitution FC), Munster PTS; Jack Kelleher (UCC RFC), Munster PTS; Aaron Leahy (CBC) NTS; Daniel Okeke (Shannon RFC), NTS; Jamie Shanahan (Garryowen FC), Munster PTS; Cian Whooley (UCC RFC)

Ireland U20s Forwards Coach and former UL-Bohemian and Shannon RFC head coach Colm Tucker said: “The biggest challenge so far has obviously been what Covid has done to everything and players training remotely but it’s also a massive opportunity and there is huge excitement in the group just to be playing rugby, to be mixing again around national squads who they wouldn’t have been around for the past 18 months.

"It is definitely a challenge but I try to see it as a brilliant opportunity to play in a huge international tournament.”

“I’m looking forward to this Championship and I can’t wait to get my teeth into it but I’ll get a couple of weeks off after it and then really get into the nitty gritty with Connacht. I’m really pleased and thankful to be moving on in the professional ranks. 

"Thankful to Connacht and the IRFU for providing the opportunity along with Andy Friend and the coaching staff so at the moment I can just see a really exciting time in my future, a lot of hard work to come but I can’t wait to get into it.”