Connacht duo Niyi Adeolokun and Tiernan O’Halloran were both omitted from Joe Schmidt’s Ireland Six Nations squad.
O’Halloran can consider himself unlucky given his form over the last month, while Adeolokun was always going to be a long shot with the presence of Andrew Conway, Keith Earls, Jacob Stockdale, Fergus McFadden and the ever impressive Jordan Larmour.
O’Halloran has been capped six times for Ireland, while Adeolokun’s sole international appearance came against Canada in the 2016 November internationals, and while neither player are likely to add to those numbers over the next few months, they have shown Schmidt that they are knocking on the door with both players scoring tries in Connacht’s 50-14 mauling of Oyonnax at the Sportsgrounds on Saturday.
O’Halloran secured the bonus point for the hosts after the 20 minute mark while Adeolokun bagged his hat-trick before the half hour mark, beating multiple defenders as he powered his way to the try line.
The win for Connacht means Kieran Keane’s side will now face Gloucester in the Challenge Cup quarter-finals for the second time in four seasons.
