Ulster’s James McNabney is poised to make his Ireland debut off the bench as head coach Andy Farrell makes seven changes for Saturday’s Nations Championship match against Fiji at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin. In addition to a raft of personnel changes, Farrell has made two key positional switches with Nick Timoney and Mack Hansen moving to number eight and full-back.
Team Changes and Positional Switches
Timoney’s switch comes amid an injury crisis at number eight, with Caelan Doris, Jack Conan and Sean Jansen all ruled out through injury. Hansen replaces Hugo Keenan, who drops out of the squad after scoring a hat-trick of tries in the 42-12 win over Argentina. Jamie Osborne, Bundee Aki, Tommy O’Brien and Jamison Gibson-Park are also drafted into the backline, while Rob Baloucoune and Sam Prendergast are retained.
In the pack, Ronan Kelleher starts at hooker with Dan Sheehan ruled out because of concussion, while James Ryan partners stand-in captain Tadhg Beirne in the second row as Joe McCarthy drops out. With Timoney switching to number eight, former World Rugby player of the year Josh van der Flier is recalled at open-side flanker. With back-to-back world champions South Africa visiting Dublin next week, Farrell has opted to stick with first-choice props Andrew Porter and Tadhg Furlong.
Behind an experienced second row of Ryan and Beirne, Ryan Baird keeps his place at blind-side flanker after impressing on his return against Argentina, while Timoney is entrusted with a first Test start at number eight. Back-up lock Darragh Murray is in line to win his fourth cap off the bench. Hansen returns to the full-back jersey, with the 28-year-old having previously scored a hat-trick of tries on his first start at 15 against Australia last year.
Tommy O’Brien returns to left wing while Aki, who was a late withdrawal from the Argentina game because of illness, and Osborne represent a new centre partnership. Gibson-Park returns at scrum-half after Craig Casey was preferred last week, and Prendergast is retained at fly-half with Ciaran Frawley kept in reserve.
Addressing the selection, Farrell stated, “I don’t think there’s that many changes.” He added, “There’s a few that we would have had to have made, but I think in this game in particular I like the look of the team. I wouldn’t say it’s an experimental team by any stretch of the imagination, this is a good side that should perform on Saturday.”
McNabney’s Rise and Opponent Details
Were McNabney to be called upon, it would cap a remarkable ascent for the 23-year-old, who has started just one game for Ulster this season after recovering from the anterior cruciate ligament injury that forced him to miss the entire 2025-26 campaign. McNabney is one of four Ulster players on the bench alongside hooker Tom Stewart, prop Tom O’Toole and centre McCloskey, who drops out of the starting line-up for the first time in 2026.
Ireland sit third behind France and England in the Nations Championship northern hemisphere standings with three wins from four games. Fiji, who have never beaten Ireland, lost 54-17 to France last week and sit bottom of the southern hemisphere table having failed to win a point. Head coach Jake White has retained only six starters from the defeat in Lyon, with 31-year-old centre Setareki Bituniyata handed a debut.
The match kicks off on Saturday, 14 November, at 20:10 GMT, with live commentary available on BBC Radio Ulster, the BBC Sport website and app.
