JOE SCHMIDT INDICATED that the outlook on Robbie Henshaw is not positive ahead of the Ireland centre undergoing a scan on his shoulder tomorrow.
Henshaw was forced off during Ireland’s 56-19 victory over Italy in Dublin today after damaging his right shoulder in the process of scoring his second try.
The Leinster midfielder looked to be in severe pain as he left the pitch in a sling and taking on gas.
Although Schmidt stopped short of ruling Henshaw out when asked if the centre will feature in this Six Nations again, it would be a surprise if Henshaw recovers to play for Ireland again in this championship.
“We’ll know post-scan tomorrow, we’ve got a scan booked for him tomorrow,” said Schmidt post-match.
“He looked in a fair bit of discomfort coming off. He’s a lot more comfortable now which is promising, but what’s not promising is the degree of discomfort he was in.”
There was another injury concern for Ireland in the first half, with key man Tadhg Furlong forced off with a hamstring issue in just the fourth minute.
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With the tighthead prop being so important to Schmidt’s side, there is an obvious worry, but the Ireland boss indicated that the initial sense around Furlong’s injury is more positive.
“He felt a tightening on deceleration – for a tighthead prop he probably just moves a little bit more quickly than he should and as a result, he felt a bit of tightening,” said Schmidt.
“We will check him out tomorrow, it will give us a better picture but we would be hopeful that he will still be ok in two weeks’ time.”
Furlong was also injured during Ireland's win. Dan Sheridan / INPHO
Dan Sheridan / INPHO / INPHO
Meanwhile, Schmidt said that Jack Conan took “a dunt on the shoulder” before being replaced by CJ Stander at half-time, but Ireland are hopeful the injury will settle over the next week and leave the number eight available for selection against Wales.
The early substitutions of Iain Henderson, Conor Murray and Johnny Sexton were tactical decisions.
Should Henshaw be ruled out, Munster man Chris Farrell would appear to be in a strong position to earn Ireland’s 13 shirt against Wales, having impressed there in the November Test series.
Farrell was one of Ireland’s extra bodies during their warm-up in Dublin today, providing injury cover.
Another outside possibility is that Leinster’s Garry Ringrose will recover from an ankle injury and come straight back into the Ireland team at 13, with the 23-year-old still a big doubt to make his comeback for Leinster against Scarlets next weekend.
“Garry is making really good progress,” said Schmidt. “Next weekend might just be one weekend too soon but he’s not far away and potentially next weekend.
“Again, it might be the weekend after. For him to come back off an injury lay-off and come straight back in and play against Wales, that would be tough call but it’s a call we’re happy to make based on Garry’s contributions in the last Six Nations and other times he’s played.
“He was superb in the summer tour and he’s such an intelligent player that he adds value when he does come into the side, so that would be one alternative if Robbie is unavailable, which we suspect he potentially will be.”
O'Brien could come into the mix for the Wales game. Dan Sheridan / INPHO
Dan Sheridan / INPHO / INPHO
Ireland could also be boosted by the return of openside flanker Sean O’Brien for the round three clash with Wales in Dublin on 24 February, as his recovery from a hip injury continues positively.
“Sean is trucking along pretty well,” said Schmidt.
“We have a few other loose forwards we need to look at and Sean O’Brien is automatically one of those based on what he’s contributed over the last few years.
“He is making pretty good progress, so we will get an update on Sean during the week and he may well come into the squad prior to the Wales Test match.”
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Outlook on Henshaw not promising but SOB closes in on Ireland return
JOE SCHMIDT INDICATED that the outlook on Robbie Henshaw is not positive ahead of the Ireland centre undergoing a scan on his shoulder tomorrow.
Henshaw was forced off during Ireland’s 56-19 victory over Italy in Dublin today after damaging his right shoulder in the process of scoring his second try.
The Leinster midfielder looked to be in severe pain as he left the pitch in a sling and taking on gas.
Although Schmidt stopped short of ruling Henshaw out when asked if the centre will feature in this Six Nations again, it would be a surprise if Henshaw recovers to play for Ireland again in this championship.
“We’ll know post-scan tomorrow, we’ve got a scan booked for him tomorrow,” said Schmidt post-match.
“He looked in a fair bit of discomfort coming off. He’s a lot more comfortable now which is promising, but what’s not promising is the degree of discomfort he was in.”
There was another injury concern for Ireland in the first half, with key man Tadhg Furlong forced off with a hamstring issue in just the fourth minute.
With the tighthead prop being so important to Schmidt’s side, there is an obvious worry, but the Ireland boss indicated that the initial sense around Furlong’s injury is more positive.
“He felt a tightening on deceleration – for a tighthead prop he probably just moves a little bit more quickly than he should and as a result, he felt a bit of tightening,” said Schmidt.
“We will check him out tomorrow, it will give us a better picture but we would be hopeful that he will still be ok in two weeks’ time.”
Meanwhile, Schmidt said that Jack Conan took “a dunt on the shoulder” before being replaced by CJ Stander at half-time, but Ireland are hopeful the injury will settle over the next week and leave the number eight available for selection against Wales.
The early substitutions of Iain Henderson, Conor Murray and Johnny Sexton were tactical decisions.
Should Henshaw be ruled out, Munster man Chris Farrell would appear to be in a strong position to earn Ireland’s 13 shirt against Wales, having impressed there in the November Test series.
Farrell was one of Ireland’s extra bodies during their warm-up in Dublin today, providing injury cover.
Another outside possibility is that Leinster’s Garry Ringrose will recover from an ankle injury and come straight back into the Ireland team at 13, with the 23-year-old still a big doubt to make his comeback for Leinster against Scarlets next weekend.
“Garry is making really good progress,” said Schmidt. “Next weekend might just be one weekend too soon but he’s not far away and potentially next weekend.
“Again, it might be the weekend after. For him to come back off an injury lay-off and come straight back in and play against Wales, that would be tough call but it’s a call we’re happy to make based on Garry’s contributions in the last Six Nations and other times he’s played.
“He was superb in the summer tour and he’s such an intelligent player that he adds value when he does come into the side, so that would be one alternative if Robbie is unavailable, which we suspect he potentially will be.”
Ireland could also be boosted by the return of openside flanker Sean O’Brien for the round three clash with Wales in Dublin on 24 February, as his recovery from a hip injury continues positively.
“Sean is trucking along pretty well,” said Schmidt.
“We have a few other loose forwards we need to look at and Sean O’Brien is automatically one of those based on what he’s contributed over the last few years.
“He is making pretty good progress, so we will get an update on Sean during the week and he may well come into the squad prior to the Wales Test match.”
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