Kieron Marmion had been a regular presence in Joe Schmidt’s group in recent years but it now looks as though McGrath’s excellent performances in pre-season training, as well as his form for Leinster last season, have won him the chance to back-up Conor Murray.
It now reads: "Luke is currently under investigation for robbery, after taking the place of Kieran Marmion in the Ireland RWC 2019 squad. "
Ireland’s 31-man World Cup squad:
Hookers (3): Rory Best, Niall Scannell, Sean Cronin
Props (5): Cian Healy, Dave Kilcoyne, Tadhg Furlong, John Ryan, Andrew Porter
Locks (4): James Ryan, Iain Henderson, Jean Kleyn, Tadhg Beirne
Backrows (5): Peter O’Mahony, CJ Stander, Jack Conan, Josh van der Flier, Rhys Ruddock
Scrumhalves (2): Conor Murray, Luke McGrath
Outhalves (3): Johnny Sexton, Joey Carbery, Jack Carty
Centres (4): Bundee Aki, Robbie Henshaw, Garry Ringrose, Chris Farrell
Back three (5): Jacob Stockdale, Rob Kearney, Keith Earls, Jordan Larmour, Andrew Conway.
