Johnny Sexton ruled out of Leinster’s Rainbow Cup opener

Leinster have ruled Johnny Sexton out of their opening Rainbow Cup match against Munster at the RDS this Saturday, (kick-off 7.35pm, live on eir Sport) as he continues to deal with the effects of the head injury he sustained against Exeter last Saturday week.

In their weekly injury bulletin, the province stated: “Johnny is having further assessment and once complete and all information is to hand, a further update will be given.”

Leinster face La Rochelle away in their Heineken Champions Cup semi-final on Sunday week, May 2nd.

Otherwise, Leinster’s update contained mostly positive news, with the province confirming that Scott Penny and Tommy O’Brien have recovered from hand and ankle injuries and are available for selection this week.

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Furthermore, both James Ryan and Caelan Doris are due to increase their participation in training this week as they look to return to full training after completing the Graduated Return to Play Protocols.

Ryan has been sidelined since Ireland’s win over Scotland at Murrayfield on March 14th while Doris hasn’t played since Leinster’s win over Munster on January 23rd.

Garry Ringrose and Will Connors are also inching closer to a return from ankle and knee injuries, with both due to increase their training loads this week pending further assessment. Jamison Gibson-Park's hamstring injury will also be further assessed this week.

Jack Dunne (ankle), Jimmy O’Brien (hamstring), Rowan Osborne (hand), Adam Byrne (quad), Dan Leavy (knee), Conor O’Brien (knee) and Max Deegan (knee) remain long-term absentees.