Munster head coach Clayton McMillan is hoping that a thigh injury suffered by scrumhalf Craig Casey at training on Tuesday might only keep him sidelined for a couple of weeks.
He explained: “We’re still waiting on the timeline, but he [Casey] picked up an injury at the back end of training, so we don’t know the full extent of it yet, but we anticipate that it’s probably going to be, at best, a two-week injury, potentially a little bit longer.” It was a non-contact issue, and the medical team are trying to ascertain the nature of the problem.
McMillan was asked whether he’d consider giving the recently retired Lions, Munster and Ireland scrumhalf Conor Murray a call to which he smiled before replying: “I haven’t had any contact with Conor for the moment.
“You would have seen that we haven’t really been out into the market [for additional players] and [not] gone outside the guys that were here when I first walked in the door. Our intention is to give everybody that’s in the building every opportunity to put their best foot forward.
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“Obviously, we would have a few concerns if the other two blokes [Ethan Coughlan and Paddy Patterson] that we’ve got running around took a ding. That might put us in a bit of a vulnerable position, but we have every faith in them.
“We’ll do our homework behind the scenes if the situation around Craig is more serious than what we initially think to make sure we’re protected in that space. But at the moment, we are hoping for the best.”
McMillan made six changes to the team, four injury enforced, that started the bonus-point win over the Scarlets for Saturday’s clash with Cardiff at Thomond Park. It’s a hefty casualty list in the wake of what was a fine win, characterised by some excellent rugby.
Fullback Mike Haley picked up a contusion to a thigh in the win over the Scarlets and the prognosis is that he will be out for one to two weeks. Outhalf JJ Hanrahan sustained a head injury and is following the return to play protocols.
Openside flanker Alex Kendellen who made his Irish debut in the victory over Portugal in Lisbon sustained a high ankle sprain late on in last Saturday’s match. Medical opinion advised surgery to speed up the rehabilitation, one that will keep him sidelined for six to eight weeks. Young Munster prop Conor Bartley (thigh) will also be out for six to eight weeks. John Hodnett (cheek) will be back next month.
There was better news elsewhere. Tom Farrell (calf), Mikey Milne (calf), John Ryan (elbow) and Andrew Smith (chest) will return to training next week. Secondrow Edwin Edogbo will increase his training load and should be available soon after his long-term injury, while Diarmuid Kilgallen (ankle) will be back within the next fortnight. Calvin Nash will be available for selection next week.
In terms of the team for McMillan’s first home match, Ben O’Connor replaces Haley at fullback while Jack Crowley makes his first start of the season having come off the bench last week. The second member of the academy in the starting backline alongside O’Connor is scrumhalf Ethan Coughlan.
There is a new backrow, Tom Ahern is named at blindside flanker, Ruadhán Quinn is on the other flank while Gavin Coombes is at number eight. Jack O’Donoghue and Brian Gleeson, who started against the Scarlets are included in the replacements, while hooker Diarmuid Barron, prop Ronan Foxe and outhalf Tony Butler are promoted to the bench.
McMillan enjoyed many aspects of last weekend’s win. “There was a lot to like, and we were good enough to have enough points on the board to win the game. [I’m] not so happy with the last 10 or 15 minutes, where I think we could have managed the game a bit better.
“We gave up a couple of soft tries, and we don’t want to be that team. Feet firmly back on the ground and next job focused. If you look at the game this week, we got a lot of respect for the Cardiff forward pack. They did a bit of a number on us last year, and that hasn’t been lost on the boys this week. There’s a sharp focus for what’s coming.”
Munster: Ben O’Connor, Shane Daly, Dan Kelly, Alex Nankivell, Thaakir Abrahams; Jack Crowley, Ethan Coughlan; Jeremy Loughman, Niall Scannell (capt), Oli Jager; Jean Kleyn, Fineen Wycherley; Tom Ahern, Ruadhán Quinn, Gavin Coombes.
Replacements: Diarmuid Barron, Josh Wycherley, Ronan Foxe, Jack O’Donoghue, Brian Gleeson, Paddy Patterson, Tony Butler, Seán O’Brien.
