MUNSTER’S INJURY ISSUES look set to continue into the New Year after a frustrating URC defeat to Leinster at Thomond Park tonight.
Graham Rowntree’s side are already dealing with a number of absentees and lost three forwards as they fell to a 9-3 defeat to Leinster in Limerick.
Captain Diarmuid Barron limped out in the opening 10 minutes before Dave Kilcoyne’s evening was cut short due to a HIA. However the most concerning injury of the night arrived in the second half when second row Edwin Edogbo left the pitch on the stretcher.
The 21-year-old appeared to twist his knee before carrying into contact and afterwards Rowntree confirmed Edogbo has suffered an Achilles injury. Munster will now await a further medical update on a player who has suffered Achilles injuries previously.
“It’s an Achilles injury there. It doesn’t look good,” Rowntree said. “He’s had Achilles issues before. I’ll wait to see, I’m (not) quite sure if he has done the same one again, but it doesn’t look good. It doesn’t look good.
“Dave Kilcoyne, shoulder. Diarmuid Barron got a foot injury, Alex Nankivell as well. It’s quite a lengthy list there.
“We are already thin on the deck. We are thin squad wise, availability wise. We will see what we can muster up on Thursday, see what the injury report presents itself because we have got another big game at the Sportsground (next week). We drive on.”
Rowntree was bitterly disappointed to see his side come up short on a night where the conditions made life difficult for both sides in Limerick.
“I’m honest with the lads. The lads are an honest group. We will look at that in the cold light of day and see what we can do better. Tough conditions, tough ruck, a street fight of a breakdown that wise.
Frustrated with the result. I’m proud of the lads, they stuck in there when things weren’t going our way. We coughed up a couple of good opportunities to establish phases from lineouts in their 22 in the second half of the game.
“The weather didn’t help. You’ve got to take your chances and we didn’t. We had a couple of opportunities in their 22, the wind changed in the second half. We’ll look at those moments and what we can do better. It doesn’t help if you’re losing players to injury.
“We drive on. I’m incredibly frustrated with the result. We couldn’t get our game going. It wasn’t a try-fest as we all would have hoped for. It became a tight game, you’re battling for every inch at the breakdown, every inch. They missed a couple of shots at goal, we missed a key one, but that was the way the wind was. We’ll look at what we can do better.
“A couple of lineouts went astray against a good defensive lineout team. The scrum was a handful.
“When you’re able to bring on Irish internationals, big cattle in their back five, and we weren’t able to, it tells. As I say towards the end of the game we did well to stick in there, Oli Jager coming back on at loosehead meant we could scrum and didn’t lose bodies elsewhere, so there wouldn’t be space elsewhere at the side of the scrum. We came out of there with a losing bonus-point.”
Leinster boss Leo Cullen admitted the conditions made the result even more satisfying.
“We’re pleased with the win, it wasn’t the free flowing expansive game we were hoping for,” said Cullen.
“Fair play to the crowd for braving the elements. They probably get most of the applause on the day!
“We had to dog it out and win ugly to accumulate the points, it’s four very good points on the road. We’re pleased to get them.
“The way the weather was coming in, it was going to be a set piece battle and we tried to play the game in the right areas. It was hard going out there, it was very hard for both teams to construct meaningful play.
“We had a couple of opportunities in the first half, had a drive going pretty well close to the try line but got held up.
“We were worried if six points was going to be enough at half time and it was a proper dogfight for both teams.”
