Leinster wing James Lowe and out-half Ross Byrne have been omitted from the provisional squad for next month’s Six Nations.
The surprise omissions come as Andy Farrell looks to build on the momentum of the November series that saw Ireland beat the All Blacks for a third time.
Byrne misses out as Joey Carbery has been deemed fit to join up with the squad after elbow surgery, while a muscle injury rules out Lowe.
