SECOND ROW Steve Jameson (rib injury) and centre, Martin Ridge (chest infection) both withdrew last night from the Leinster side to meet the Irish XV at Donnybrook tomorrow evening (6.0). Jameson is replaced in the second row by Neil Francis and Ridge's place in the centre goes to another former international, Vincent Cunningham.
Cunningham's place on the replacement bench will be taken by Ray McIlreavy.
Jameson had been under treatment all week for a damaged rib cartilage and his chances of being fit were deemed slim. He failed a fitness test last night when the team assembled for training. The withdrawal of Ridge was not anticipated and is a blow to the Old Belvedere centre, who is striving to revive his representative career after a frustrating time last season.
Meanwhile, nine of the Ireland players have dual assignments this weekend when they play for their clubs in the English first division this afternoon and then travel to Dublin to play for the Irish XV.
The Ireland selectors today make what is becoming a weekly pilgrimage to England to watch Courage league matches involving Irish players.
The Ireland manager Pat Whelan, coach Murray Kidd, and selector Frank Sowman will all be at the Stoop Memorial Ground to see Harlequins play, London Irish; Donal Lenihan will watch Northampton play Bristol and Joe Miles will be at the Saracens Gloucester encounter.
Ireland squad players Niall Woods, Robert Henderson, David Humphreys, Gabriel Fulcher, Malcolm O'Kelly and Victor Costello are in the London Irish team. Harlequins include three Irish players who are not squad members: Jim Staples and Michael Corcoran, both former London Irish players and Keith Wood.
Wood, now fit again after a year out of the game will certainly be a contender to return to the Ireland squad. Harlequins also give a debut to Wigan rugby league international Gary Connelly in the centre. Connelly is on a short term contract with Harlequins before he returns to Wigan to play in the Super League next January. He has some Irish family connections but Whelan said: "Quite honestly I am not sure what his Irish connections are or his future intentions are." In fact Dick Best, director of rugby at Harlequins, and the man who signed Connelly for Harlequins, has suggested to the English Rugby Union that they should try and buy out Connelly's Rugby League contract so that he could be available for England in the Five Nations Championship.
Whelan said yesterday that he hoped that the nine players who are engaged in the English League today will all be fit to line out tomorrow for the Irish XV. They are Richard Wallace (Saracens), Henderson, Jonathan Bell (Northampton), Paul Burke (Bristol), Allen Clarke (Northampton), Paul Wallace and Paddy Johns (Saracens), O'Kelly and David Corkery (Bristol).
Back row forward Eric Miller, who has been called in to replace the injured Eddie Halvey on the Irish XV flank, will not be playing for Leicester. He has been in the Leicester side for the last two weeks but drops out today on rota.
Whelan does not see it as unreasonable to ask the Ireland squad members to play two matches in 24 hours. "The match tomorrow is an important match both for our players and for the Leinster players," said Whelan. "It enables us to see Irish squad members playing against each other in a competitive situation and enables us to try out certain combinations." Whelan is in no doubt that the match tomorrow will be competitive. Nor is Leinster manager Jim Glennon. "It is a very important match for our players," says Glennon. ,"You only have to look at the team and the players who are left out to realise how important it is. We open defence of the Interprovincial Championship next week against Ulster and even though we do not have so many Leinster players with English clubs available to us for the interprovincial series, several places on the side to meet Ulster are wide open." Membership of the Ireland squad does not represent any guarantee of entry into the Leinster side. Alain Rolland is preferred at scrum half to Ireland captain Niall Hogan, who is on the bench for Leinster. So too is another Ireland squad member, Shane Byrne, with Mark McDermott given the hooking berth.
The Ireland selectors give seven uncapped players a chance. They are full back Dominic Crotty, Henderson, wing Jan Cunningham, scrum half Brian O'Meara, loose head prop Paul Flavin, O Kelly, and Miller. The centre combination of Henderson and Jonathan Bell will be of special interest. Places are open for the team to meet Western Samoa in November - Ireland's first international of the season. Ireland A caps against the Junior Springboks are also an incentive.
Munster play at Munchin's selection at Thomond Park this afternoon. Len Dinneen has withdrawn from the Munster team. His place goes to Mick Coughlan, who moves from the St Munchin's second row, with Darragh Kirby coming into the St Munchin's side. There is a doubt about the fitness of Munster scrum half Stephen McIvor.
On the domestic competitive front, there are three senior league ties in Leinster today and six league ties in Ulster, while there are four league matches in Leinster tomorrow. A Limerick Charity Cup match is also scheduled tomorrow.
