The game at Paarl Gym just outside the South African city of Cape Town kicks off at 12.30pm UK time and is being shown live on World Rugby’s digital channels, with highlights in the UK on ITV.

England face pool matches against Ireland, Fiji and Australia in a tournament which runs until July 14.

England Under-20s head coach Mark Mapletoft said: “For many players this tournament will be the highlight of their rugby journeys so far, providing the opportunity for them to develop in an environment that emulates the challenges that hopefully awaits in the senior international arena in future years.

“We’ve had a good week of preparation since landing in Cape Town last week and the players are ready for the challenge Ireland presents. They were the dominant team in this year’s U20 Six Nations tournament, and we’re relishing the chance to take them head on to open our campaign.”

**England Under-20s team**

15 Sam Harris

14 Tobias Elliott

13 Rekeiti Ma’asi-White

12 Joseph Woodward

11 Joe Jenkins

10 Connor Slevin

9 Charlie Bracken

1 Asher Opoku-Fordjour

2 Finn Theobald-Thomas

3 Afolabi Fasogbon

4 Harvey Cuckson

5 Lewis Chessum (captain)

6 Finn Carnduff

7 Greg Fisilau

8 Chandler Cunningham-South

**Replacements**

16 Nathan Jibulu

17 Archie McArthur

18 James Halliwell

19 Nathan Michelow

20 Tristan Woodman

21 Nye Thomas

22 Louie Johnson

23 Jacob Cusick