There are five changes to the starting line-up of the team that played Bath last weekend.  Nils Mordt and Nick Greenstock replace Rob Hoadley (head injury) and Geoff Appleford (with England 7s in Hong Kong) respectively.  Barry Everitt and Phil Murphy start at fly half and No. 8.  Adrian Flavin comes in for Naka Drotske at hooker, while at tighthead prop Doug Wheatley takes over from Rob Hardwick who faces a late fitness test tomorrow (Friday).  Unavailable for selection due to injury are Pierre Durant (knee) and Rob Hoadley (head).

Looking forward to Saturday's match Head Coach, Gary Gold said, "We were disappointed to lose such a hard fought game in front of the record home crowd last Sunday.  While we created chances, we were not clinical enough in our finishing.  We aim to put that right on Saturday although doing so at the Recreation Ground will be difficult as always."

100,000th LEAGUE SPECTATOR EXPECTED AT QUINS CLASH

London Irish take on NEC Harlequins at the Madejski Stadium on Sunday, 4 April (KO 3pm). However, before old rivalries are renewed between the two clubs on the pitch, Irish will welcome their 100,000th spectator through the turnstiles this season.

With a Zurich Premiership attendance currently topping 97,000 in the 2003/04 season, the special 100,000th spectator will be presented with a magnum of champagne and other London Irish gifts as a thank you from the Club.

The Exiles have been steadily building crowd attendances at the Madejski, and broke the record for the highest Zurich Premiership attendance figure last Sunday (21 March) with an amazing 20,840. The average Irish League attendance this season currently stands at an impressive 10,868.

Other activities at the game will include Digger meeting and greeting his fans in the Megastore between 1pm and 2pm. The first fifty customers to meet Digger will receive a special goody bag!

Guinness are also running their 'Points mean Pints' competition for the match, the entrant who correctly guesses the total number of points scored during the game will receive the same number of pints of Guinness!  For more details visit the London Irish website.

Tickets can be booked from the ticket hotline - 0118 968 1000 - or save money by booking in advance via the website.

NIRVANA SPA COMPETITION

Nirvana Spa ran a special competition at the Madejski last Sunday, with one lucky spectator receiving two Evening Spa Experience passes for the award winning spa.  Evening Spa Experience passes include a session in the unique flotation therapy pools and a light meal, and full use of the facilities at the UK's largest spa. 

Nirvana Spa are offering all Blarney subscribers £20 off the Evening Spa Experience.  To claim just call 0118 989 7575 quoting 'London Irish' before Thursday, 8 April.  All vouchers are valid for 1 year from the date of purchase, and are valid on Monday - Thursday nights.

For more information about the facilities available at Nirvana Spa visit www.nirvanaspa.co.uk

PLAYERS' AWARDS DINNER

There are only a few tables remaining for this year's Players' Awards Dinner, being held on Thursday 13th May in the Ballroom of the Millennium Mayfair Hotel.  

With the menu specially created for us by celebrity chef Brian Turner CBE, who will also join us for dinner and a great evening of entertainment planned you won't want to miss it. 

We are now also pleased to confirm that Dave Finnegan's 'Commitments' will be providing the music!

Our MC for the evening will be ex London Irish and Irish International winger Niall Woods and the inimitable Chris Sheasby will be making a guest appearance as our auctioneer.

Tickets are priced at £120 inc VAT per person or £1200 inc VAT for a table of 10, which can include the company of a player and their partner if you wish.

To book please contact Kelly on 01932 750113 or e-mail kelly.adey@london-irish.com

LONDON IRISH COACHING WEEK

The London Irish Coaching Week, to be held during the Easter Break from 13th to 16th April, is filling up, with many local clubs block-booking members of an age group squad. This approach has many benefits to the club and players, including the opportunity to receive quality training together, and a 10% discount. Should a club book a group of players, the training program for the week can be tailored to include sessions that are requested by the age group coach. Of course, bookings from individuals are more than welcome.

There are still places available on the Easter Coaching Week, which will feature a visit from London Irish. During this visit, gifts and tickets to a London Irish game at the Madejski Stadium will be distributed to the participants. Each day will include six hours coaching, comprising a mixture of skills sessions, video sessions and games, which are designed to improve rugby skills in an enjoyable way.

For more information contact Wokingham Sport & Leisure:

Phone 0118 940 3861

e-mail enquiries@wokinghamsport.co.uk

HEADLINES YOU MAY HAVE MISSED THIS WEEK
(click on the headline to see the story)

- Adare Manor Competition closes 31st March
- Academy Does London Irish Proud
- Zurich A League - Gloucester 39 London Irish 33
- A Message from Conor O'Shea
- Appleford to head to Hong Kong

THE BLARNEY

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