Cullen to start against Connacht

Rugby:There was some mixed news on the injury front for Leinster coach Joe Schmidt ahead of tomorrow's trip to Galway. As expected, both Brian O'Driscoll and Luke Fitzgerald will not be risked against Connacht but Leo Cullen is named in the starting line-up for the first time this season.

After their back-to-back Heineken Cup wins over Racing Metro and Saracens, and consigned to losing a raft of frontliners over the course of November, Schmidt has seen little need for wholesale changes ahead of the journey west.

O’Driscoll (hamstring) and Fitzgerald (hip/ribs) remain on the injured list, meaning Eoin O’Malley and Fergus McFadden form the midfield partnership, while Gordon D’Arcy and Eoin Reddan are afforded well-earned breaks.

Up front, the inclusion of Cullen for Nathan Hines is the only change to the side that started at Wembley last weekend as the province seek to improve their Magners League standing.

“I was pretty happy to get the win because to get an away win in the Heineken Cup, in the pool that we’re in was always going to be a tough task,” Schmidt said. “To have achieved that was a really good step forward.

“But we very quickly turned the page and we have re-focused ourselves on to the Magners League and Connacht who have made a really good start to the year. I saw the quality of the Bayonne team that went there and were beaten, so Connacht have a fair bit of form about them as well.”

Connacht coach Eric Elwood has kept faith with the side that overcame Bayonne last weekend, with the only change coming on the bench where Ezra Taylor replaces Andrew Browne.

Former Leinster academy players Ian Keatley, Jamie Hagan and Fionn Carr are all named in the Connacht side for the match at the Sportsground.

All three were overlooked by the Ireland selectors earlier this week and have another chance to show Declan Kidney what he could be missing during the autumn internationals.

Connacht:G Duffy; D Fanning, N Ta'auso, K Matthews, F Carr; I Keatley, F Murphy; B Wilkinson, S Cronin, J Hagan; M Swift, M McCarthy; J O'Connor, R Ofisa, J Muldoon. Replacments:A Flavin, B Fa'amasuili, R Loughney, B Upton, E Taylor, C Willis, M Nikora, T Nathan

Leinster:R Kearney; S Horgan, E O'Malley, F McFadden, I Nacewa; J Sexton, I Boss; C Healy, R Strauss, M Ross; L Cullen, D Toner; S O'Brien, S Jennings, J Heaslip. Replacements:J Harris-Wright, H van der Merwe, S Shawe, N Hines, D Ryan, E Reddan, G D'Arcy, A Conway