Paul O'Connell will play his final home international on Saturday

Ireland great Paul O'Connell will play his final international on home soil when the Irish host Wales in their third World Cup warm-up clash at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday.

The lock forward came off the bench during the 28-22 win over Scotland earlier this month but is back to lead the side and will be partnered in the second row by Iain Henderson.

The front row consists of Jack McGrath, Richardt Strauss and Nathan White, who will make his first ever international start, having also come on as a replacement against the Scots.

Peter O'Mahony returns on the blindside flank and he will be joined in the back row by Jamie Heaslip and Jordi Murphy.

Ireland have named a stronger side than for their previous warm-up matches and first-choice half-backs Conor Murray and Johnny Sexton will make their their first appearances of the season, while Luke Fitzgerald gets a first start at centre since November 2008 and he will partner Robbie Henshaw.

Rob Kearney is at full-back and his brother Dave has returned from a long term injury and will line up at at wing, his first appearance since the 2014 Six Nations title-clinching win over France.

The versatile Keith Earls will be on the other wing, having produced an impressive try-scoring display at centre in the victory over Wales on 8 August.

Coach Joe Schmidt will name his 31-man World Cup squad on Monday so this weekend's game could prove pivotal for players on the fringes of selection.

Schmidt said: "We're still very open-minded. I know some of the players who play in their province are likely to be in the 31 and some of the players who are still with us are potentially going to miss out."

Asked about his toughest calls, he added: "Those front-row decisions, the conundrum around the scrum half/outhalf, and an obvious place is the back three, or even the back five.

"Any decisions that get made there will be based on performances this weekend. That's a real pressure cooker for players but, then again, that's what the World Cup is going to be."

Schmidt also said that Ireland's main injury worry, prop Cian Healy, is doing well and may be able to play some part in the final warm-up game against England next week.

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Ireland will begin their World Cup campaign with a Pool D clash against Canada in Cardiff on September 19.

Ireland: 15 Rob Kearney, 14 Dave Kearney, 13 Luke Fitzgerald, 12 Robbie Henshaw, 11 Keith Earls, 10 Johnny Sexton, 9 Conor Murray; 1 Jack McGrath, 2 Richardt Strauss, 3 Nathan White, 4 Iain Henderson, 5 Paul O'Connell (c), 6 Peter O'Mahony, 7 Jordi Murphy, 8 Jamie Heaslip.

Replacements: 16 Sean Cronin, 17 Dave Kilcoyne, 18 Tadhg Furlong, 19 Donnacha Ryan, 20 Sean O'Brien, 21 Eoin Reddan, 22 Paddy Jackson, 23 Felix Jones.

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