Sports Digest: HOCKEY: National coach Dave Passmore has named an initial squad of 22 for the clash with Scotland, on the last weekend of this month, on the newly laid pitch at Instonians, Belfast.
"The matches will provide an important measure of where we are as a group in addition to being an important selection tool for the South African trip in January," Passmore said.
"I will be expecting an increase in fitness levels between now and these matches, and we have introduced some new tactical aspects which we can trial in a competitive environment."
The Irish men are ranked 18th in the world and Scotland ranked 22nd. They have met 96 times since their first meeting on March 8th, 1902.
Ireland will be looking to add to their tally of 54 wins, and no doubt some of the younger players who have been selected for the squad will be out to impress the head coach.
IRELAND SQUAD: Andy Barbour, Mark Black, Paddy Brown, Karl Burns, Stephen Butler, Timmy Cockram, Mark Gleghorne, Ronan Gormley, David Harte, Conor Harte, David Hobbs, Mark Irwin, John Jermyn, Gareth Lennox, Ian Lewers, Eugene Magee, Geoff McCabe, Sean Nicholson, Steven Redpath, Graham Shaw, Ian Walker, Michael Watt, Tim Lewis, John Jackson, Alan Sothern, Mitch Darling, Jonny Quigley, Adam Pritchard.
Scotland Boxers off to Cyprus for intensive training
BOXING: The Irish Amateur Boxing Association (IABA) have named a 15-strong senior and pre-senior squad for a two-week strength and conditioning camp in Cyprus, writes Bernard O'Neill.
The squad leave Dublin for Paphos today, where the IABA will produce a film of their training camp for reference ahead of the 2007 senior world championships in Russia.
Next September's world championships in Moscow will also act as an Olympic qualifier, with boxers who reach the quarter-finals booking their tickets for Beijing 2008.
The Irish squad will be under coaches Billy Walsh and Zuari Anita, strength and conditioning coach John Cleary, psychologist Gerry Hussey and physiotherapist Scott Murphy in Paphos.
Max Seligman will produce the coaching and educational video in Cyprus.
Meanwhile, Ireland will face The Netherlands at the National Stadium in Dublin on November 16th and 17th.
The women's open championships will take place at the stadium next Friday and Saturday.
Boxing begins at 3.30pm on Friday.
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