JOHNNY SEXTON WILL definitely miss Leinster’s Heineken Champions Cup clash with Gloucester at Kingsholm this weekend, but he is set be back in action within a matter of weeks.
That news comes as a major boost for Ireland, with their first Six Nations game against Wales taking place in just under four weeks’ time. Leinster boss Leo Cullen hinted that Sexton will recover in time for the championship.
In the wake of their 12th successive victory in the URC that keeps them well clear at the top of reigning champions the Stormers, Cullen confirmed the Irish captain will miss this weekend’s clash at Kingsholm as he continues to recover from the cheekbone injury he picked up in their win over Connacht.
The Irish captain missed the 24-19 win over the Ospreys in Swansea last night and is fighting to be fit for the opening Six Nations game against Wales on 4 February.
While Wales are sweating on the fitness of George North, who suffered a similar cheekbone injury in the opening round of the Champions Cup against Leicester Tigers, Ireland boss Andy Farrell is watching on anxiously after Sexton underwent a procedure to rectify his problem.
“Johnny Sexton won’t feature next week. You are only talking weeks, it’s all about how it settles down and how he heals,” explained Leinster head coach Leo Cullen.
“It’s reasonably minor, a few weeks, but next weekend will definitely be too soon. I thought Harry Byrne was good in his first start of the season and it was good for him to get through 55 minutes.
“Ross Byrne then came on after he wasn’t involved the previous weekend because Jonny played. We have started three different No 10s in our last three games, and similarly at No 9.
“It’s all about people getting genuine opportunity and ensuring everyone is ready for the big games when they are called upon. That’s what we’ve been focusing on in the last three weeks and it has been particularly pleasing to get two big wins away at Munster and here.”
Leinster were 10 points down in the opening quarter and then trailed 16-10 after an hour. They were under threat, yet never panicked, before emerging triumphant thanks to two tries in four minutes just after the hour mark from Hugo Keenan and Jimmy O’Brien.
“We’ve chopped and changed our team over the last three weeks to create internal competition. Certain players have to be managed at this time of year, so we tried to keep the group fresh,” added Cullen.
“We knew it was going to be a tough challenge and the conditions were difficult as well. They tested us well and got pushed.
“Toby Booth teams are always going to be strong around the set-piece, particularly the scrum, so it was a really good hit out for us.
“Going to Kingsholm will be a totally different challenge, although there are some similarities. They are a Premiership team with a strong emphasis around set-piece, although Gloucester’s emphasis is more around line-out and maul – that’s their big weapon.”
- This article has been updated to note that Johnny Sexton sustained the injury against Connacht and not Munster as previously stated.
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