Pizzas galore!

An inexperienced back row will feature against the Scots with Neil Best partnering openside Stephen Ferris and Jamie Heaslip at No 8. Both Ferris and Heaslip are in the mix for the final back row spot available in the World Cup party named a day later.

Paddy Wallace starts at fly half with Ronan O’Gara, who has been suffering from a knee problem, included on the bench and Isaac Boss at scrum half.

Only a handful of places remain up for grabs in the World Cup squad - possibly as few as two - with the final wing spot still open. The two contenders, Brian Carney and Tommy Bowe, have both been given the chance to press their claims against the Scots in what appears a straight shoot-out for inclusion.

Gavin Duffy, the centre, would also confirm his ticket to France with an impressive display in Edinburgh while Geordan Murphy needs to produce a timely reminder of his ability at full back. O’Sullivan was expected to rest his big guns against Scotland but the Ireland boss revealed O’Driscoll and O’Connell need some game time.

“This is a more than a warm up match for the World Cup, for some it’s a one-off game before the squad is selected," O’Sullivan said.

“Some may not have expected O’Connell and O’Driscoll to start but they need to get on the pitch. Brian has not played since March and Paul has played just twice since then so it’s important to get them on.

“We’ll bring some players off the bench and give them the chance to play. We’re trying to get access to areas of the team that we need more information about. At the moment it’s the back row that is causing the greatest headache.”

Scotland team to play Ireland at Murrayfield on Saturday: R Lamont (Sale Sharks); S Lamont (Northampton Saints), R Dewey (Ulster), A Henderson (Glasgow Warriors), S Webster (Edinburgh); C Paterson (Gloucester), M Blair (Edinburgh); A Jacobsen (Edinburgh), R Ford (Glasgow Warriors), E Murray (Northampton Saints), N Hines (Perpignan), J Hamilton (Leicester Tigers), J White (Sale Sharks, captain), S Taylor (Stade Francais), A Hogg (Edinburgh Rugby).

Replacements: F Thomson (Glasgow Warriors), C Smith (Edinburgh), S MacLeod (Llanelli Scarlets), K Brown (Glasgow Warriors), C Cusiter (Perpignan), D Parks (Glasgow Warriors), H Southwell (Edinburgh Rugby).

Ireland: G Murphy (Leicester); B Carney (Munster), B O'Driscoll (Leinster), G Duffy (Connacht), T Bowe (Ulster); P Wallace (Ulster), I Boss (Ulster); B Young (Ulster), J Flannery (Munster), S Best (Ulster), M O'Kelly (Leinster), P O'Connell (Munster), N Best (Ulster), S Ferris (Ulster), J Heaslip (Leinster).

Replacements: R Best (Ulster), J Hayes (Munster), A Quinlan (Munster), K Gleeson (Leinster), E Reddan (Wasps), R O'Gara (Munster), S Horgan (Leinster).