Murphy and Bishop make squad

RUGBY: The Irish management were left with a choice on the wing between Geordan Murphy and Justin Bishop for Saturday's game against Argentina after both Denis Hickie and John Kelly were yesterday ruled out by injuries sustained in the epic victory over Australia.

Those are the only changes from the squad on duty against the world champions as Ireland coach Eddie O'Sullivan and his fellow management selectors otherwise reverted to that 22-man panel after making nine changes for last Sunday's win over Fiji.

Paul Wallace, an initial squad selection for the Wallabies' Test, has again been ruled out with the ankle injury which is causing him some worry and will require him to see the specialist who originally operated on his ankle. This means that Marcus Horan retains his place in the squad.

Hickie has been obliged to take a mandatory three-week rest after being concussed when colliding awkwardly with Wendell Sailor last Saturday week. Kelly could be out for another two to four weeks with a strained knee which he picked up against Australia after replacing Hickie at half-time.

On the face of it, the enforced vacancy on the wing apart, the rest of the starting line-up should see a retention of the team which started against Australia.

"That was a great performance which will obviously weigh very heavily when it comes to this selection," O'Sullivan said yesterday.

Presumably, too, Murphy is favoured to be picked ahead of Bishop given he was called in as 23rd man when there were doubts about Hickie being fit for the Australian match because of a wrist injury.

They filled both wing positions against New Zealand in the summer, and although Murphy played at full back on Sunday, with Bishop again on the wing, this would not debar the talented Leicester player from reappearing on the wing.

"We need a second full back (in addition to Girvan Dempsey) and he (Murphy) is the obvious guy, all the more so after his performance on Sunday," said O'Sullivan.

"If he got some more games at full back for Leicester that would be better for him. But that doesn't mean he can't play on the wing as well. That is an easier switch to make, from full back to wing. The transition is one way."

Against that, Bishop does have more experience of playing on the left wing than either Murphy or Shane Horgan, who has never played on the left for Ireland, and O'Sullivan is an admirer of Bishop ever since he played outside centre on an under-21 Triple Crown winning team which O'Sullivan coached in the 1995-96 season.

"He just has a very, very good work-rate," says O'Sullivan. "He's very professional and he doesn't make mistakes."

Bishop has been confined to sporadic appearances in the last few years, but scored two tries in Buenos Aires in the summer of 2000, added another try against Canada on that tour, and after playing in both Tests against the All Blacks returned to score his eighth Test try on Sunday.

There is one change in the replacements on the Irish Development XV to play Argentina at Donnybrook tomorrow (7 p.m.), with Justin Fitzpatrick (Dungannon) replacing Ronnie McCormack (Buccaneers), who has a shoulder injury. Emmet Byrne (St Mary's) has also joined the squad as a standby for loosehead prop Simon Best (Belfast Harlequins), who has a shoulder injury.FORWARDS

Reggie Corrigan (Lansdowne/Leinster)

John Hayes (Shannon/Munster)

Marcus Horan (Shannon/Munster)

Shane Byrne (Blackrock/Leinster)

Frank Sheahan (Cork Con/Munster)

Malcolm O'Kelly (St Mary's/Leinster)

Gary Longwell (Ballymena/Ulster)

Leo Cullen (Blackrock/Leinster)

Keith Gleeson (St Mary's/Leinster)

Alan Quinlan (Shannon/Munster)

Victor Costello (St Mary's/Leinster)

Anthony Foley (Shannon/Munster)

BACKS

Ronan O'Gara (Cork Con/Munster)

David Humphreys (Dungannon/Ulster)

Peter Stringer (Shannon/Munster)

Guy Easterby (Llanelli)

Kevin Maggs (Bath)

Brian O'Driscoll (Blackrock/Leinster)

Justin Bishop (London Irish)

Shane Horgan (Lansdowne/Leinster)

Girvan Dempsey (Terenure/Leinster)

Geordan Murphy (Leicester)

NOT CONSIDERED

Denis Hickie (St Mary's/Leinster)

Rob Henderson (Young Munster/Munster)

John Kelly (Cork Constitution/Munster)

Keith Wood (Harlequins)

David Wallace (Garryowen/Munster)

Paul O'Connell (Young Munster/Munster)

Simon Easterby (Llanelli)

Eric Miller (Terenure/Leinster)

Jeremy Davidson (Dungannon/Ulster)

Bob Casey (London Irish)

Paul Wallace (Blackrock/Leinster)