North Melbourne AFLW senior coach Darren Crocker has been announced as coach of Australia for August's representative match against Ireland.

Crocker, who has taken the Kangaroos to back-to-back premierships, will lead Australia in the one-off game to be held on Saturday, August 1 at North Sydney Oval.

As senior coach, Crocker will be involved in selecting the Australian squad, with players to be announced in the lead-up to the game.

Crocker may also face the prospect of coaching against several of his own North Melbourne players in the Ireland team, which will be coached by Sydney Swans AFLW senior coach Colin O’Riordan.

The Kangaroos' 2025 premiership team featured three Irish players in Blaithin Bogue, Erika O'Shea and Vikki Wall, while a fourth in Amy Gavin Mangan was named as an emergency.

Sarah Wall, Vikki's younger sister, also joined the club in the off-season.

Since taking over as senior coach of North Melbourne ahead of the 2021 AFLW season, Crocker has coached the team to an AFL/W record 27-game win streak.

He has twice been named AFL Coaches Association AFLW Senior Coach of the Year and has also been named All-Australian coach for two straight seasons.

The Australia v Ireland match, which will take place a fortnight out from the start of the 2026 AFLW campaign, is expected to feature the biggest stars from the AFLW competition.

North Melbourne will launch its AFLW premiership defence with a double-header against Geelong at Marvel Stadium on the weekend of August 13-16.