MUNSTER HAVE WELCOMED back Shane Daly, Rory Scannell and Billy Burns to full training, with the trio travelling to South Africa for the province’s upcoming URC meetings with the Stormers and the Sharks.
Out-half Burns has missed three weeks since injuring his shoulder in Munster’s season opener against Connacht, while Daly has recovered fully from the elbow injury he suffered against Zebre in Round 2.
Scannell, meanwhile, has been out for four months since undergoing surgery on an ankle injury sustained in Munster’s final regular-season game of the last campaign, a win over Ulster.
All three players are included in a 32-man squad for Munster’s South African tour.
Emerging Ireland captain Alex Kendellen, along with fellow recent development tourists Ethan Coughlan, Evan O’Connell, Ben O’Connor and Ronan Foxe, all linked up with the Munster senior squad upon their arrival in Cape Town today.
As well as O’Connell, O’Connor and Foxe, fellow academy players Ruadhán Quinn and Kieran Ryan are also included in the travelling party.
Quinn (head), along with Alex Nankivell (shoulder) and Tom Ahern (ankle), came through the game against Leinster without any further complications to the recent injuries from which they had recovered.
Diarmuid Barron, meanwhile, failed a HIA in the first half of that 28-14 defeat but has travelled with the squad on the possibility that he’ll be available to face the Sharks in two weekends’ time. The hooker is currently following return-to-play protocols and is definitively ruled out for Saturday’s game against the Stormers at DHL Stadium in Cape Town.
Back in Limerick, Paddy Patterson (knee), Diarmuid Kilgallen (leg), Brian Gleeson (shoulder), Thaakir Abrahams (thigh) and Liam Coombes (leg) are on track to be available for selection at various points in November.
Josh Wycherley, however, will miss four months following neck surgery last week, and fellow front-rower Mark Donnelly will be unavailable for six to eight weeks after undergoing surgery on an ankle injury sustained on the Emerging Ireland tour.
There are no further updates on Dave Kilcoyne (ankle), Oli Jager (neck), Peter O’Mahony (hamstring), Patrick Campbell (shoulder), Cian Hurley (knee), Edwin Edogbo (Achilles), Roman Salanoa (knee).
Munster squad to face Stormers & Sharks
Forwards: Diarmuid Barron (unavailable v Stormers), Scott Buckley, Eoghan Clarke, Niall Scannell, Stephen Archer, Ronan Foxe, Jeremy Loughman, John Ryan, Kieran Ryan, Tom Ahern, Tadhg Beirne, Jean Kleyn, Evan O’Connell, Fineen Wycherley, Gavin Coombes, John Hodnett, Alex Kendellen, Jack O’Donoghue, Ruadhán Quinn.
Backs: Craig Casey, Ethan Coughlan, Conor Murray, Billy Burns, Jack Crowley, Tom Farrell, Alex Nankivell, Seán O’Brien, Rory Scannell, Shane Daly, Mike Haley, Calvin Nash, Ben O’Connor.
