Ireland will face New Zealand, Australia, Fiji and Argentina in a packed Autumn/November International series – at Dublin’s Aviva Stadium – later this year.
While the All Blacks match had already been reported, the IRFU has now confirmed that game will be the series opener on Friday night, November 8.
That is instead of Saturday, November 9 as originally planned.
Half of Ireland’s Autumn internationals, this year, will take place on Friday night, for the first time. The full dates are as follows:
Ireland v New Zealand on Friday, November 8 (kick-off 8:10pm); Ireland v Argentina on Friday, November 15 (kick-off 8:10pm); Ireland v Fiji on Saturday, November 23 (kick-off 3:10pm); and Ireland v Australia on Saturday, November 30 (kick-off 3:10pm).
The Ireland v Australia match will be a special to mark the 150th Anniversary of the IRFU.
