JOHANN VAN GRAAN has made five changes to the Munster team beaten by the Cheetahs for Friday’s Guinness Pro14 encounter with Ospreys at Musgrave Park [KO 7.35pm, Eir Sport 1, Premier Sports 2 and TG4].
Academy player Jack O’Sullivan comes in for his Pro14 debut at Number 8, while the are also first starts of the season for Calvin Nash, Neil Cronin and James Cronin.
Short-term signing Jed Holloway also makes his first start as he partners captain Billy Holland in the second row.
O’Sullivan, 21, is joined by Jack O’Donoghue and Tommy O’Donnell in the back-row, while front-row trio James Cronin, Rhys Marshall and Stephen Archer complete the pack.
Mike Haley starts at full-back with Nash and Shane Daly on the wings. Van Graan has kept faith with the midfield pairing of Rory Scannell and Dan Goggin, while Neil Cronin and Tyler Bleyendaal line out the half-backs.
On the Munster bench, Craig Casey and Sammy Arnold could both come in for their first appearances of the season.
Munster sit third in Conference B of the Pro14, having claimed two wins from three outings, while Ospreys are sixth in Conference A with just one win to their name.
Munster:
15. Mike Haley
14. Calvin Nash
13. Dan Goggin
12. Rory Scannell
11. Shane Daly
10. Tyler Bleyendaal
9. Neil Cronin
1. James Cronin
2. Rhys Marshall
3. Stephen Archer
4. Jed Holloway
5. Billy Holland (captain)
6. Jack O’Donoghue
7. Tommy O’Donnell
8. Jack O’Sullivan
Replacements:
16. Kevin O’Byrne
17. Liam O’Connor
18. Jeremy Loughman
19. Fineen Wycherley
20. Arno Botha
21. Craig Casey
22. JJ Hanrahan
23. Sammy Arnold
Ospreys:
15. Cai Evans
14. Hanno Dirksen
13. Scott Williams
12. Tiaan Thomas-Wheeler
11. Tom Williams
10. Luke Price
9. Matthew Aubrey
1. Rhodri Jones
2. Sam Parry
3. Tom Botha
4. Dan Lydiate (captain)
5. Lloyd Ashley
6. Olly Cracknell
7. Sam Cross
8. Gareth Evans
Replacements:
16. Scott Otten
17. Gareth Thomas
18. Ma’afu Fia
19. Will Griffiths
20. Dan Baker
21. Reuben Morgan-Williams
22. James Hook
23. Lesley Klim
On the latest episode of The42 Rugby Weekly, Andy Dunne tells Murray Kinsella and Gavan Casey about where it all went wrong for Joe Schmidt’s Ireland
