Ireland Challenge for 4 Nations Title

Ireland faces strong squads from Scotland and England at the annual Home Nations U-15 Quadrangular team tournament starting on Friday May 3 at Dublin's Baldoyle Badminton Centre.

First up is the team competition and the Irish team will first face England (10am), then defending champions Scotland (1pm) and finally Wales (4pm). Last year, Ireland finished third behind Scotland and England with Wales fourth.

Included in the strong Scottish team are Holly Newall and Alex Dunne, who went on to win the individual singles titles last year. Top players for the English squad are Johnnie Torjussen and Samodani Wijetunge, while Scott Oates and Kelly Saunders lead Wales.

Leading the Irish boys' team is current Irish U-15 champion Sam McKay, a member of the BI Academy in Dublin. Also selected are current doubles champions, Matthew Lightbody and Paul Reynolds, along with Chin Nam Song, who is the current U-15 singles and doubles runner-up, and his doubles partner Kyle Magee.

For the girls, U-15 champion Moya Ryan and runner-up Kate Frost lead the team, with Frost also picked for the girls' doubles with her partner Kerri Scott. Ryan and Lightbody are the top ranked mixed doubles pair, followed by Sam McKay and Caitlin Steele, who is also selected. Also picked is Rachel McNulty, another strong doubles players.

Irish team

• Boys: Sam McKay, Matthew Lightbody, Kyle Magee, Paul Reynolds, Chin Nam Soong.
• Girls: Moya Ryan, Kate Frost, Rachael McNulty, Caitlin Steele, Kerri Scott.

Schedule

• Friday May 3 (10am) - team matches
• Saturday May 4 (10am) - singles and doubles individual matches (not finals).
• Sunday May 5 (9am) - doubles (not finals). Finals from 1.30pm.