Rhiannon Griffin, Hannah Lane and Molly-Mae Powell form the back three with Bronwen Griffin and Nia Fajeyisan the centres while Rachel Thomas-Evans and Katie Bevans are the half-backs.
Chloe Thomas Bradley, Abi Meyrick and Elan Jones form the front rown while Erin Jones and Robyn Davies are selected at second row. Maisie Davies and Catrin Stewart are the flankers while Gwennan Hopkins will skipper the side from No. 8.
“We are expecting a very tough encounter with the Irish on Saturday,” said Nicholas-McLoughlin. “Following on from some very impressive performances against England and France the challenge for the girls is to perform consistently for a full 70 mins.
“The players have shown improvement throughout the campaign, and we hope they are able to show this with their performance against Ireland.
“We have proved to be a very physical and aggressive defensive team, our challenge now is to demonstrate the same intent in our attack. We are looking forward to the challenge.”
Wales U18 Women v Ireland, Six Nations Under-18 Women’s Festival – Wellington College
15 Rhiannon Griffin 14 Hannah Lane 13 Bronwen Griffin 12 Nia Fajeyisan 11 Molly-Mae Powell 10 Rachel Thomas-Evans (VC) 9 Katie Bevans; 1 Chloe Thomas Bradley 2 Abi Meyrick 3 Elan Jones 4 Erin Jones 5 Robyn Davies 6 Maisie Davies 7 Catrin Stewart 8 Gwennan Hopkins (Capt)
Replacements: Molly Wakely, Niamh Padmore, Cadi-Lois Davies, Milly Summer, Alaw Pyrs, Katie Sims, Poppy Ellis, Sian Jones, Kelsie Webster, Carys Hughes, Madison Isgrove, Carys Whitfield
