What modern rugby takes away with one hand it gives back with another.

Keith Earls has sought to put an end to the fallout from his Champions Cup red card against Glasgow Warriors by apologising unreservedly for comments he made having served a two-week suspension.

The sense of dread around a hushed Thomond Park had been palpable as Keith Earls lay prone on the turf, surrounded by attentive medics.

Keith Earls is fine. Let’s just start there.

Their time together in the Ireland team may have been limited to just 15 prior appearances but Keith Earls and Luke Fitzgerald will be delighted if tomorrow’s meeting with Canada goes as well as their first joint-venture against the Canucks.

Keith Earls:

Keith Earls may be back to his brilliant best in a red jersey, but the Munster flyer admits breaking into a winning Ireland team is out of his hands.

Munster 22 Glasgow Warriors 10

Munster 65 Sale 10: European Champions Cup Pool 1: We are used to seeing Munster inflict a round-six rout in Europe but usually it is borne of necessity.

A call from Examiner Towers on Tuesday. What are you rabbiting on about this week? Presume you’re looking back at Saturday?

Munster are holding out hope that Lions winger Keith Earls will be available for their final Champions Cup pool games in the new year, putting him in line for a late run into Ireland’s Six Nations reckoning.

Joe Schmidt’s squad will land in Buenos Aires today with two more uncapped players hoping to give their Ireland Test careers a kick start against Argentina and a forwards coach set to finish his there.

Glasgow coach Gregor Townsend believes his team are coming to Thomond Park at the right time and in the right frame of mind.

Keith Earls became the latest frontline Ireland player to sign a new IRFU contract, but will face an anxious wait to see whether he will play any part in the upcoming RBS 6 Nations.

Keith Earls has emerged as a target for London Irish, as the English club ramp up their efforts to recruit a high-profile Irish player, according to the Evening Echo in Cork.

It took less than three minutes for JJ Hanrahan to change the course of Munster’s season and the time went so quickly even the Kerryman had to stop and ask what had taken place.

Munster 26 Gloucester 10

Ian Keatley steered Munster to a hard-earned RaboDirect PRO12 victory at Thomond Park as they broke Leinster’s two-year stranglehold on this fiercely-contested interprovincial derby.

After a summer of bonding with his young daughter Ella May, Keith Earls will likely pack in some further babysitting duties on Sunday when Limerick take on Clare in the All-Ireland hurling semi-final.

Clermont 16 Munster 10

YOU often hear rugby pundits say the Six Nations is about momentum.

Keith Earls has pointed the finger of blame at referee Steve Walsh for Ireland’s failure to overcome France at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday as the sides played out a draw for the second year in a row.

Rob Penney has made just one change to his starting XV for the return game against Saracens in Vicarage Road on Sunday with Casey Laulala coming into the side in place of the injured Keith Earls.

Munster boss Rob Penney has recalled his international big guns following the conclusion of Ireland's autumn internationals for Saturday's game at home to Glasgow Warriors

Contrary to popular belief, Keith Earls insists he is neither a temperamental baby throwing his toys out of the pram nor a cranky old character mired in his own inflexibility.

Munster’s prospects of victory in Saturday’s Heineken Cup opener against Racing Metro in Paris took a nosedive yesterday when Keith Earls and Wian du Preez were ruled out of the tie.

Despite falling to a 19-20 defeat to Ulster in Belfast on Friday night, Munster head coach Rob Penney was not overly downbeat, choosing to focus on the positives from a game which could have gone either way.

New Zealand 60 Ireland 0

He admits it wasn’t the easiest experience watching from the stands last weekend; Keith Earls lived every moment of that gut-wrenching 22-19 loss in Christchurch.

Ireland captain Brian O’Driscoll has promised a more passionate and aggressive performance from his team this weekend.

Keith Earls has staked his claim to both Munster and Ireland’s No 13 jerseys after stating his ambition to become “the best centre in the world”.

Conditions may be freezing in Paris but the Stade de France still represents a cauldron for Declan Kidney and his team, one which they rarely enjoy visiting.

Declan Kidney doesn’t do surprises. Especially not when he has settled on a team he likes. That’s why there were no great gasps from the fourth estate when he named his team to meet France yesterday.

Ireland's Team Manager has said that the referee's decision to award a penalty against Stephen Ferris for his tackle on Ian Evans in the game against Wales was "incorrect".

Paul O’Connell believes a feelgood factor surrounding the provinces’ march on Europe this season has permeated the national squad heading into this season’s RBS 6 Nations Championship.

Ireland rugby star Keith Earls was last night “hopeful and optimistic” that his newborn daughter will be released from hospital over the weekend, Irish team management said.

Ireland’s coaching staff are backing Fergus McFadden to comfortably fill the breach created by the late withdrawal of Keith Earls from Ireland’s starting line-up to face Wales tomorrow.

Keith Earls has been ruled out of Ireland’s RBS 6 Nations opener against Wales for personal reasons, team manager Michael Kearney has announced this afternoon.