{"id":511486,"date":"2026-06-21T18:52:09","date_gmt":"2026-06-21T18:52:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/511486\/"},"modified":"2026-06-21T18:52:09","modified_gmt":"2026-06-21T18:52:09","slug":"zac-and-bryn-ward-get-ireland-call-ups-after-injuries-to-caelan-doris-and-tommy-obrien-the-irish-times","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/511486\/","title":{"rendered":"Zac and Bryn Ward get Ireland call-ups after injuries to Caelan Doris and Tommy O\u2019Brien \u2013 The Irish Times"},"content":{"rendered":"

While the news from the weekend was grim for Ireland captain Caelan Doris<\/a> and Tommy O\u2019Brien on the injury front, their misfortune means the Ward brothers, Zac and Bryn, both uncapped as yet by Ireland<\/a>, will get to experience a fairy-tale end to what has already been an auspicious season for the Ulster<\/a> pair.<\/p>\n

Doris, who carried a knee injury into the URC final against the Bulls at Croke Park, suffered a foot problem just six minutes into Leinster\u2019s victory and was replaced by Jack Conan<\/a>. <\/p>\n

Conan is likely to fill in for Doris in a green jersey too as Ireland head to the southern hemisphere for their Nation Championship Tests against Australia, Japan and New Zealand. <\/p>\n

He\u2019ll have Doris\u2019s imprimatur. \u201cJack is unbelievable for the group,\u201d said Doris. \u201cI rate him as one of the best number eights in the world and [he] has been for the last number of years. He delivers consistently for Leinster and Ireland, and the Lions a couple of times as well. He\u2019s been part of the leadership group for a number of years [and is] very supportive to me. <\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s had plenty of unbelievable performances and is a big part of the group in terms of how he leads and the humour he brings as well. He\u2019s a big character, he\u2019s class.\u201d<\/p>\n

The 21-year-old Bryn Ward has reachedseveral milestones this season. He made his Ulster senior debut in a URC match against the Lions in Johannesburg last October, travelled to Portugal with Andy Farrell\u2019s Ireland as a training panellist before the Six Nations, played for the Ireland XV against England A at Thomond Park and in late March signed a first senior contract with his province.<\/p>\n

The versatility and skills that enable him to play number eight and openside flanker made him an attractive option for Ireland. It\u2019s sharp progress for the former underage international who last season was lining out for Ballynahinch in the All Ireland League. He is a barnstorming ball carrier, one of the different rugby tools he brings to matches.<\/p>\n

\"BrynBryn Ward shows his ball-carrying power for Ulster against Zebra in March. Photograph: Giuseppe Fama\/Inpho <\/p>\n

Ward\u2019s primary challenger for a plane ticket might have been Max Deegan, who enjoyed a stellar end to the season. The Leinster player is equally adept at number eight and blindside flanker but possesses a different set of primary skills, thanks to his speed, athleticism and lineout prowess, the last of those being a recent addition to his expanding repertoire.<\/p>\n

Zac (27), a Sevens Olympian, played alongside Bryn in that game against England A in Limerick. Zac has a brilliant strike rate of 15 tries for Ulster in 20 starts this season, with his power in and through contact, one of his strongest attributes. He started his career in the backrow like his brother but playing Sevens brought another dimension to his game. His repositioning process has been a success, though there are areas that need sharpening, notably his kicking and aerial work. <\/p>\n

O\u2019Brien has been ridiculously unfortunate with a few ill-timed injuries, and the groin problem suffered on Saturday, which has ruled him out of the upcoming tour, is another unwelcome example. Leinster\u2019s player of the year had been in great form all season and would have been a starter for Ireland this summer.<\/p>\n

Once James Lowe indicated he had accepted a contract offer from Japan in the absence of a satisfactory one from Leinster\/Ireland, the end of his international career always looked likely, and it has come to pass as Farrell left the popular winger out of the touring party. Jacob Stockdale will be the front-runner for the 11 jersey, with Rob Baloucoune the strong favourite for the other wing berth.<\/p>\n

Dan Sheehan takes over the tour captaincy from Doris. The hooker first captained Ireland in the 2025 Six Nations game against Wales. Farrell also gave him that honour in the British and Irish Lions first tour game against Western Force in Australia last summer.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Munster and Ireland international tighthead prop Oli Jager confirmed he will retire from professional rugby with immediate effect on medical grounds. \u201cIt is with a very heavy heart that I share that I have been advised to medically retire from rugby. Playing professional rugby for the last 10 years has been nothing short of a privilege.<\/p>\n

\"OliOli Jager has been forced to retire from rugby. Photograph: Laszlo Geczo\/Inpho <\/p>\n

\u201cI am incredibly grateful to everyone who has been part of my journey \u2013 my coaches, team-mates, medical and rugby staff, supporters, friends, and family. Each of you has helped shape me not only as a player, but as a person.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhile this chapter comes to an end, I look back with immense pride and gratitude for the experiences, memories, and relationships the game has given me. Who knows what the next chapter holds, but I\u2019m excited to see what it has in store.\u201d<\/p>\n

Born in London, Jager started rugby at Naas RFC before playing for Newbridge College initially and then Blackrock College at school. He lined out for the Ireland Under-18 Schools team in 2013 and also played for the Netherlands at under-18 level \u2013 his father, Harm, is Dutch \u2013 before moving to Canterbury in New Zealand at the age of 17.<\/p>\n

Initially attending the Crusaders International High-Performance Unit, he earned a place in the Crusaders academy in 2014. After impressing with New Brighton RFC, he earned a place in the Canterbury squad for the Mitre 10 Cup in 2016 and won NPC titles in 2016 and 2017. <\/p>\n

Jager made his Super Rugby debut for the Crusaders in 2017 and was a key member of their squad for seven years, winning seven consecutive Super Rugby titles. He lined out for the Provincial Barbarians against the British and Irish Lions in 2017 and was twice selected for the All Blacks XV under then head coach Clayton McMillan, who would go on to coach him again when he joined Munster in 2023.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"While the news from the weekend was grim for Ireland captain Caelan Doris and Tommy O\u2019Brien on the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":511487,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[25747,28581,65851,61,60,1449,83014,11287,11897,43,31398],"class_list":["post-511486","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-ireland","tag-andy-farrell","tag-caelan-doris","tag-dan-sheehan","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-ireland-rugby","tag-jack-conan","tag-leinster-rugby","tag-munster-rugby","tag-news","tag-ulster-rugby"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/511486","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=511486"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/511486\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/511487"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=511486"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=511486"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=511486"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}