JOEY CARBERY REMAINS sidelined indefinitely with an ankle injury as Munster were unable to provide any fresh update on his return date as the new 2020/21 season looms.
Carbery has had a nightmare year-and-a-half with injuries and his ankle issue looks like keeping him out for several more months at least.
The Munster out-half had the latest setback in August, when Munster initially ruled him out for an indefinite period. The ankle issue dates back to August 2019, when Carbery was injured in a pre-World Cup friendly for Ireland against Italy.
The 24-year-old travelled to Japan with Ireland but had further issues at the tournament and returned to Munster injured. While he made a return for the province around the New Year, he then suffered a wrist injury and while he was recovering from that problem, his ankle continued to give him trouble.
For now, Munster have no certainty on when Carbery might make a return.
“No, Joey will be the same for a number of weeks and months,” said head coach Johann van Graan today.
“He’s doing very well but no update on the injury.”
JJ Hanrahan is Munster’s fit senior out-half, with academy trio Ben Healy, Jack Crowley, and Jake Flannery providing further options for van Graan.
However, there was better news on scrum-half Conor Murray and loosehead prop Dave Kilcoyne, who are currently out of action with thigh and calf injuries, respectively.
While both will miss Saturday’s Pro14 opener away to the Scarlets in Wales, van Graan said they could potentially make a return for next week’s clash with Edinburgh at Thomond Park.
“Conor is progressing well,” said the Munster boss. “He’s got an outside chance to be available next week against Edinburgh but we won’t push him if it’s not 100% ready to play.
“Dave Kilcoyne is progressing well. There’s an outside chance that he’ll be ready for next weekend.
“So a fair bit of experience and seasoned internationals aren’t available but we’re going to get that through the season so we’re very excited with the players we have available against the Scarlets.”
Andrew Conway and Dan Goggin are both back fit and in contention for selection, with Munster having all their international players available to them over the next fortnight.
Having seen their 2019/20 campaign ended by Leinster in the Pro14 semi-finals, van Graan is excited to get stuck into a new season that promises to be hectic.
“You’ve got to consistently perform week in and week out,” said van Graan. “You’ve got to put yourself in a position to get into a semi-final, which we’ve done for the last four seasons and then hopefully improve as the season goes on to get a positive result in a semi-final and get into a final. But that’s a very long way away.
“There’s a few different blocks coming up. We’ve got two weeks with the whole squad and then a whole host of players will go to the national team but the bulk of our squad will remain behind.
“Guys come back the Monday before the Champions Cup [in December] and we’ve got two Champions Cup games, the inter-pros, two more Champions Cup games [in January], and then there’s the Six Nations with some Pro14 games and then you’re into April. There’s such a long way to go so we’ll start with this week.”
