Ireland take on the All Blacks on Friday evening.
Ireland’s highly anticipated clash with the All Blacks kicks off this Friday, November 8th at the Aviva Stadium. Here’s all you need to know about the Autumn Nations Series opener against New Zealand, including team news, match details, and how to watch on TV.
You can also follow the match live in our blog above. Just click on the key point you want to read about or keep scrolling for all updates.
Ireland vs New Zealand: When does the match take place?
The action begins at 8:10 pm at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin.
This is the first of four fixtures for Ireland in the series. Argentina, Fiji, and Australia will all be in Dublin in the coming weeks.
What is Ireland’s team for the match?
Andy Farrell has named his starting XV for the match, it is as follows:
Backs:
Hugo Keenan; Mack Hansen, Garry Ringrose, Bundee Aki, James Lowe; Jack Crowley, Jamison Gibson-Park
Forwards:
Andrew Porter, Rónan Kelleher, Finlay Bealham; Joe McCarthy, James Ryan; Tadhg Beirne, Josh van der Flier, Caelan Doris (captain)
Replacements: Rob Herring, Cian Healy, Tom O’Toole, Iain Henderson, Peter O’Mahony, Conor Murray, Ciarán Frawley, Jamie Osborne.
All Blacks coach Scott Robertson named his starting XV on Wednesday afternoon.
What is the recent history of this fixture?
Ireland are still licking their wounds after the heartbreaking 28-24 loss to the All Blacks in the 2023 Rugby World Cup quarter-final.
Despite that defeat, however, Ireland have the upper hand in the fixture over the last few years.
Ireland have beaten the All-Blacks in three of their last five matches, including a historic series victory in New Zealand in 2022.
New Zealand, of course, historically have the better record in the fixture, with 31 wins in 37 games against Ireland.
How can I watch the match on TV?
Ireland versus New Zealand will be broadcast live on Virgin Media One, and on the Virgin Media Player, with coverage beginning at 7 pm ahead of kick-off at 8:10 pm.
TNT Sports will also have coverage of the match.
Read next:
- Johnny Sexton on why it meant so much to represent a ‘United Ireland’ team
- England prop Joe Marler announces international retirement just days after haka controversy
- Johnny Sexton approached to return to Ireland set-up in mentor role
