MUNSTER LOCK EDWIN Edogbo is set to miss the rest of this season with the Achilles tendon injury he suffered during his side’s St Stephen’s Day defeat to Leinster at Thomond Park.
21-year-old Edogbo has previously ruptured his left Achilles tendon and also injured his right Achilles, with Munster now facing the strong likelihood of the imposing second row spending another spell on the sidelines.
Edogbo will go for a surgical review of his latest Achilles injury next week but Munster are not expecting positive news.
“It’s a huge blow for both [Munster and the player], I’m not going to lie,” said assistant coach Andi Kyriacou today when asked about Edogbo’s injury.
“We saw it instantly in the game and all our heads went into our hands, we were absolutely devasted for him. He’s a kid who’s worked incredibly hard at his game and his craft. He’s shown huge improvements in the technical side, around the tight stuff in the forward side of the game and his mauling is incredible.
“Some of the stuff he did against Leinster was superb, the way he cleans people out in phase play, the way he puts shots in defensively, he was looking good and we were all excited about where he was going so it’s a real shame that he’s not able to continue that this season.
“We’ll get him right. He’s shown huge resilience mentally to bounce back from the last one and we’ve no doubt that he’ll show the same characteristics along this rehab journey he’s about to go on again.”
With RG Snyman and Jean Kleyn also injured at present, Munster may look to bring in short-term cover in the second row, although Fineen Wycherley could return from his shoulder issue for the clash against Connacht in Galway on New Year’s Day, while Tadhg Beirne is available again after sitting out the Leinster game.
“We’ve got good lads here at the minute that we’re looking to develop and bring through,” said Kyriacou. “There’s no getting away from it, it’s tough when you have a physio room as loaded with talent as ours. We’ll drive on, it’s what we do.”
Munster’s injury crisis continued to mount during the loss to Leinster, with the province confirming today that centre Alex Nankivell, hooker Diarmuid Barron, and loosehead prop Dave Kilcoyne all need scans on the injuries they suffered at Thomond Park.
Barron, who has been captaining the province in recent times, has a foot injury and will go for a scan before getting surgical opinion next week. With Niall Scannell already sidelined, Munster are light at hooker.
Nankivell, who has had an impressive start to life with Munster, picked up an ankle injury against Leinster and will now undergo a scan.
Kilcoyne, meanwhile, suffered a shoulder injury in the same game and also requires a scan to determine the severity of the issue.
Former Munster captain Peter O’Mahony remains among the list of injured players who won’t return for the clash with Connacht in Galway.
Also on the Munster injury list are Patrick Campbell [shoulder], Kleyn [eye], Jack Daly [ankle], Liam Coombes [shoulder], Niall Scannell [groin], Snyman [chest/shoulder], Joey Carbery [wrist], Roman Salanoa [knee], Mike Haley [hip], and Cian Hurley [ankle/achilles].
More positively, Munster will be able to call on Beirne and scrum-half Conor Murray again after both Ireland internationals sat out the Leinster game due to the IRFU’s player management protocols.
“It’s great,” said Kyriacou. “We had to give them that down week last week in line with the IRFU, and it’s two lads with unbelievable experience, and behind them world-class players.
“It’s great to have them back in the mix this week, they’ll add value to the group and hopefully the performance come Monday.”
Munster said second row Wycherley will “increase his training exposure” this week before a final call is made on his involvement against Connacht.
Meanwhile, Leinster scrum-half Jamison Gibson-Park remains a doubt for his team’s URC clash with Ulster in Dublin on New Year’s Day.
Ireland international Gibson-Park was named to start Leinster’s meeting with Munster on St Stephen’s Day but he didn’t travel to Limerick and was officially withdrawn before his side’s win.
The influential scrum-half is now a doubt for the home clash against Ulster in four days’ time, with Leinster saying his unspecified injury “will be further assessed” this week after he was withdrawn from the Munster game as a “precaution.”
Leinster can call on hooker John McKee after he returned to full training following his recent hamstring injury.
