Ireland's Nations Championship preparations have taken another hit, with captain Caelan Doris and wing Tommy O'Brien both ruled out of the summer tour to Australia and New Zealand through injuries picked up in Leinster's URC final win.
The pair were hurt during Friday night's 36-7 grand final victory over the Bulls at Croke Park. Doris, who had already overcome a knee issue to start, lasted barely six minutes before a foot injury forced him off and Jack Conan came on. O'Brien, who had scored Leinster's opening try, departed just before half-time with a groin problem after landing awkwardly in an aerial contest. He was replaced by Garry Ringrose.
For Doris it is a particularly cruel blow. The No. 8 also missed last summer's British and Irish Lions tour after shoulder surgery, meaning he will sit out a tour Down Under for the second year running.
Hooker Dan Sheehan, who first led the side during the 2025 Six Nations, takes over the captaincy for the three-Test trip. "Dan Sheehan replaces Doris as the Ireland skipper," confirmed the Irish Rugby announcement, with the squad due to travel in two groups on Sunday and Monday.
In their place, head coach Andy Farrell has called up uncapped Ulster brothers Zac and Bryn Ward. The pair are the sons of former Ireland flanker Andy Ward, who won 28 caps and played at the 1999 World Cup. Zac, 27, is a former Sevens international who switched to the 15-a-side game after the 2024 Paris Olympics and scored 15 tries in 20 appearances for Ulster this season. Bryn, 21, made 20 appearances across the URC and Challenge Cup, scoring four tries, and trained with the senior squad during the Six Nations.
Their inclusion takes the number of uncapped players in Farrell's 36-man squad to five, joining Connacht trio Billy Bohan, Sam Illo and Sean Jansen. All could feature against Australia, Japan or New Zealand next month.
The latest withdrawals compound an already lengthy casualty list. Wednesday's squad announcement had confirmed out-half Jack Crowley and loosehead prop Andrew Porter were unavailable, alongside Ryan Baird, Shayne Bolton, Jack Boyle, Edwin Edogbo, Tom Farrell, Mack Hansen, Paddy McCarthy and Calvin Nash.
The timing sharpens the focus on the tour opener against the Wallabies in Sydney on July 4. Doris is far more than another absent forward — he is Ireland's defensive organiser and a central carrier whose loss removes a key reference point from the back row and hands Sheehan a heavier leadership load at the start of a demanding trip. As one analysis of the opener put it, Ireland "will arrive wounded, not hollowed out," with Sheehan a "formidable captaincy replacement, not a placeholder."
The same assessment argued the news should sharpen Joe Schmidt's Australia rather than tempt them into complacency, with the back-row contest now one of the most revealing parts of the fixture. Ireland still travel with the likes of Josh van der Flier, Conan and Cian Prendergast, but two late changes inevitably ask fresh questions of cohesion.
Ireland face Australia in Sydney on July 4, Japan in Newcastle on July 11 and New Zealand in Auckland on July 18.
