Sam Prendergast has retained his place in the Ireland team for Saturday’s concluding autumn Test against Australia as he is preferred at fly-half to Jack Crowley.
After making his debut as a second-half replacement for Crowley in the narrow win over Argentina two weeks ago, Prendergast earned his first Ireland start in last weekend’s 52-17 victory over Fiji.
The 21-year-old overcame an early yellow card against Fiji to produce a promising display that included five successful conversions and a cross-kick that set up a Mack Hansen try.
Leinster prop Cian Healy, who is named on the bench, is set to earn a record-breaking 134th cap after equalling Brian O’Driscoll’s record in the Argentina game.
Ireland show five changes from last weekend, with Hugo Keenan, James Lowe and Jamison Gibson-Park taking over from Jamie Osborne, Jacob Stockdale and Craig Casey in the backs.
Ronan Kelleher and James Ryan’s inclusions mean Gus McCarthy and Cormac Izuchukwu, both of whom made their debuts against Fiji, drop out of the starting pack.
Ryan’s selection means Tadhg Beirne reverts to the back row.
“Cian is a giant of Irish rugby and we are determined to provide him with a performance that he deserves,” said Ireland head coach Andy Farrell.
