Predicted Ireland team to face Wales: 2026 Six Nations - Bundee Aki Returns

Wednesday, 04 March 2026 at 11:50

byTom Sansom

The 2026 Six Nations returns this weekend, with the fallow week finally coming to a close. The longest wait of the annual rugby calendar has gone, with Ireland set to host Wales this Friday night under the lights of the Aviva Stadium. This Celtic clash follows Ireland's stunning return to form, as Andy Farrell's men bagged a record-setting margin of Irish victory at Twickenham, with a 42-21 win over England.

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Having fallen to the French in the opening week, Ireland are back on track following two consecutive wins in the Championship. Ireland overcame a half-time deficit to secure a significant second round win over Italy, with Jack Crowley establishing himself as the go-to fly half for the rest of the campaign. The triumph over England has Ireland riding a wave of momentum, with the door kept ajar in a late push for the title.

Ireland have Wales and Scotland left to face to conclude the 2026 Six Nations, with France set to face Scotland and England over the coming fortnight. Whilst France hold the cards to their own destiny, Andy Farrell's men still need back-to-back wins to keep the pressure on Les Bleus. In this article, we've had a crack at predicting who Farrell will pick, to go head-to-head with Steve Tandy's Wales side this Friday.

PREDICTED XV: IRELAND TEAM TO FACE WALES - 2026 SIX NATIONS ROUND 4

BACK THREE

15. JAMIE OSBORNE (LEINSTER)

14. ROBERT BALOUCOUNE (ULSTER)

11. TOMMY O'BRIEN (LEINSTER)

We kick things off across the back-three, which has been an area of plentiful discussion in the lead up to the fourth round of the Six Nations. Ireland lost their powerhouse wing James Lowe in the latest trip to Twickenham, with the Leinster man not expected to return from his groin injury in time for the final two weeks of action. Tommy O'Brien had a tremendous impact from the bench, as he bagged Ireland's fifth score against England a fortnight ago. We expect O'Brien to start against Wales, to reward his top form.

Jimmy O'Brien returned to Leinster duties this past weekend, as he started at fullback in the trip to Cardiff. The versatile flyer has since been re-called into the Ireland squad, yet we don't see any movement in the green 15 jersey. We back Jamie Osborne to retain his starting spot, with Ulster wing Robert Baloucoune also retained in the starting XV for the clash with Wales. Baloucoune has had a tremendous maiden Six Nations campaign, with Player of the Match and try-scoring efforts keeping him in the XV.

CENTRES

13. GARRY RINGROSE (LEINSTER)

12. STUART MCCLOSKEY (ULSTER)

There has also been plenty of chatter around the midfield axis, with two experienced international centres returning to the Ireland squad this week. Connacht centre Bundee Aki is now eligible to play for Ireland, having served his three-match ban for disrespectful conduct with the match officials, in his province's URC defeat to Leinster several weeks ago. Robbie Henshaw is also back in the mix, as the Leinster talent has made his full recovery from a problematic knee injury sustained against Bayonne in the Champions Cup.

However, despite the incoming talents set for the training camp, we can't see Andy Farrell making any alterations to his centre pairing just yet. Unless injuries force his hand, we expect the in-form pairing of Garry Ringrose and Stuart McCloskey to keep their places in the centre of the park. Whilst Ringrose has put in some solid performances against France, Italy and England, McCloskey has been nothing short of mesmeric in green, and could well be named 2026 Six Nations Player of the Championship at this rate.

We've decided to change up the replacements bench to cater for the added depth in the back-line. A 5-3 split on the substitutes brings Bundee Aki into the match day squad, with our prediction putting him in the 23 jersey for a seismic impact from the bench. We expect Robbie Henshaw to sit out entirely, with Andy Farrell eager to give him another week to recover, to be unleashed against Scotland in round five.

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HALFBACKS

10. JACK CROWLEY (MUNSTER)

9. JAMISON GIBSON-PARK (LEINSTER)

Onto the halfback partnership now, and we can see both the scrum half and fly half starters retained from the stunning victory over England. Jamison Gibson-Park was quite simply phenomenal against Steve Borthwick's side, with a stunning Player of the Match award dutifully rewarding the shift from the Leinster man. We can't see Craig Casey getting the nod just yet, but should Ireland build a healthy lead by the hour mark, we expect the Munster man to come off the bench against Wales for the final 20 minutes.

The fly half jersey should be handed to Jack Crowley to start, after the Munster man orchestrated Ireland's breathtaking dismantling of England in round three. Crowley has had quite an impressive Six Nations thus far, from a stint at full-back against France, to leading the turnaround against Italy as he exploded off the bench at the Aviva Stadium. We can see Sam Prendergast returning to the match day squad, to build his confidence with a strong effort from the bench. Harry Byrne is ruled out with concussion, and we can see Ciaran Frawley rested for the clash with France.

FRONT ROW

1. JEREMY LOUGHMAN (MUNSTER)

2. DAN SHEEHAN (LEINSTER)

3. FINLAY BEALHAM (CONNACHT)

We don't predict Andy Farrell to differ to far from the play-book in the front row, with the exception that Tadhg Furlong could head back to the replacements for the incoming match with Wales. Furlong has not had the Six Nations he would have wanted, having sat out against France with his calf injury, and pushed backwards in the scrum against both Italy and England. An impact off the bench would work wanders to get the Leinster stalwart back on track, to bring the fight to a fatiguing and inexperienced Welsh pack.

We see Munster's Jeremy Loughman gain another start in the loose-head spot, as the prop steadily builds upon his personal cap tally. Dan Sheehan is the front row leader to start the Test, with Connacht's Finlay Bealham at tight-head. Our picks for the replacement forward pack is Ulster's Tom O'Toole at loose-head, and Leinster's Ronan Kelleher at hooker, alongside the aforementioned Tadhg Furlong.

LOCKS

4. JAMES RYAN (LEINSTER)

5. EDWIN EDOGBO (MUNSTER)

Onto the second row, and we expect to see James Ryan keep his spot in the starting XV after putting in steadily progressing performances throughout the first three rounds. The Leinster man takes the start in the four jersey, yet we see an alteration to his engine room partner, with Joe McCarthy set for a rest ahead of the 'Super Saturday' clash against Scotland to close out the campaign on a high.

In McCarthy's absence, we would love to see Edwin Edogbo back on the pitch, to build upon his 11 minutes of game-time he has in a green jersey. The Munster lock made his long awaited Ireland debut from the bench against Italy in Round Two, and would be chomping at the bit to make his first start for Andy Farrell's side this Friday.

Edogbo has been in tremendous form for his province, and returned home to Munster for a replacement shift against Zebre this past weekend. This appearance from the bench may be an indication that Farrell wants to keep his latest debutant fit and firing to face Steve Tandy's side.

BACK ROW

6. CIAN PRENDERGAST (CONNACHT)

7. JOSH VAN DER FLIER (LEINSTER)

8. CAELAN DORIS (LEINSTER)

Onto the back row now, with the news from the weekend being that Ulster's Cormac Izuchukwu will miss out against Wales with a concussion. The back row did not feature for his province against the Ospreys this past weekend, with no expectation that Izuchukwu will build upon his Six Nations debut against Italy. In his place, we can see Connacht man Cian Prendergast unleashed once again on the blind-side flank, and veteran Ireland and Lions man Tadhg Beirne rotated out to the bench as lock and back row cover, just as he did for the second week win over Italy.

The openside flank and number eight spots are relativley straight-forward in their selection, with Josh van der Flier set for another hit out at seven after he tore up at Twickenham a fortnight ago. Caelan Doris is also expected to return to the number eight jersey, with Jack Conan back on the bench, if he is all cleared from his illness that kept him off the pitch against England. The back row combination of Beirne and Conan provides plenty of coverage, with Cian Prendergast also a capable multi-tool man.

REPLACEMENTS

16. RONAN KELLEHER (LEINSTER)

17. TOM O'TOOLE (ULSTER)

18. TADHG FURLONG (LEINSTER)

19. TADHG BEIRNE (MUNSTER)

20. JACK CONAN (LEINSTER)

21. CRAIG CASEY (MUNSTER)

22. SAM PRENDERGAST (LEINSTER)

23. BUNDEE AKI (CONNACHT)

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