Kidney's focus on players fit for job at hand

RUGBY:WITH THE Six Nations squad to be announced after next weekend's round five of the Heineken Cup, the focus has switched to player availability.

Denis Leamy (hip) is gone for the entire international campaign while the rib damage sustained by Gordon D’Arcy in Cardiff on Saturday will be assessed today.

At least Jonathan Sexton’s enforced departure was clarified as cramp, rather than a tightened hamstring, so the Leinster and Ireland outhalf should be available for Sunday’s trip to Glasgow.

Leamy, however, must go under the knife to rectify a long-standing hip problem.

“He will be out probably for four months,” said Munster coach Tony McGahan. “He will have an operation, and is getting it finalised, after going to see a specialist.”

Leamy, who won the last of his 57 caps off the bench against Wales in the World Cup quarter-final, has started just four games this season having lost his place in the starting XV to Peter O’Mahony, who returned from a fractured jaw in Munster’s 29-11 defeat of Treviso in Limerick, also last Saturday.

With the Irish backrow of Stephen Ferris, Seán O’Brien and Jamie Heaslip set in stone for the coming season, there are a number of candidates, including O’Mahony and Kevin McLaughlin, pushing for the replacements bench against Wales on February 5th.

McLaughlin was withdrawn early in the second half of the 23-19 defeat of Cardiff but is expected to recover.

McGahan will add a backrower to his European squad today ahead of Castres’ visit to Thomond Park on Saturday with 21-year-old Paddy Butler expected to be promoted.

“We will have to look at the numbers, we have registration to close at five or six at five o’clock on Tuesday and then we have an opportunity after that deadline if we get through to the quarter-final but we still have a few guys like David Wallace and Felix Jones to come back into the squad so that immediately eats up two places already,” said McGahan.

D’Arcy’s injury was not initially deemed serious so he should return, if not for this week, then before Montpellier’s visit to Dublin for round six.

Ireland go into camp on January 22nd with the next conundrum for coach Declan Kidney is who to select at outside centre instead of a recuperating Brian O’Driscoll. That decision would also be dependent on D’Arcy recovering to feature at inside centre.

Keith Earls appears to be the leading candidate, having played 13 in the World Cup warm-up against England last August, but both Fergus McFadden and Eoin O’Malley have done well for Leinster this season, while Darren Cave has nailed down the role in Ulster.

The other position of interest is Paul O’Connell’s secondrow partner as Donnacha Ryan has usurped Donncha O’Callaghan in Munster.

Meanwhile, Paul McNaughton’s successor as Irish manager is expected to be revealed before the Six Nations. Four candidates are believed to have been interviewed.