Injured Irish trio look good to face England
“Both Brian O’Driscoll and Gordon D’Arcy have made excellent progress with their hamstring injuries and trained on the pitch with the rest of the squad this morning,” confirmed coach Eddie O’Sullivan.
“They will be assessed further but we are optimistic Brian and Gordon will be fit in time for Sunday.”
O’Driscoll and D’Arcy were not involved in any contact work, a wise precaution by O’Sullivan who sent the pair to Spala, Poland, last week for cryotherapy rehabilitation treatment.
Instead, they concentrated on warming up, ball drills and physical training, a regimen also programmed for the entire squad today.
O’Driscoll and D’Arcy will be required to partake in a full session tomorrow morning before O’Sullivan finalises his starting line-up.
There was also positive news concerning the fitness of openside flanker Johnny O’Connor.
Ominous reports emerged from the UK over the weekend after the Galway man limped out of Sunday’s London Wasps’ Zurich Premiership game against Northampton in the 54th minute.
It was claimed he had a twisted ankle, with O’Sullivan’s predecessor, Warren Gatland, appearing to lay the blame for the injury firmly at the door of the Irish management.
“He should be okay,” said the New Zealander, before issuing the following advice to O’Sullivan: “A couple of days’ rest will do him good given that he came back to us from Ireland training this week in pieces.”
O’Connor, however unwittingly and innocently, has been the catalyst for previous words between Gatland and O’Sullivan, who is keeping his peace, at least for the moment.
O’Connor took a full part in the contact work yesterday. Furthermore, O’Connor looks to have a better than ever chance of hanging on to the number 7 jersey after the hamstring injury that befell Denis Leamy in Munster’s game against Glasgow in the Celtic League on Sunday night.
The Tipperary man remained in Munster yesterday for treatment but it is feared he may be out of action for two to three weeks.
The negative and premature reports on O’Connor and Leamy prompted O’Sullivan to recall David Wallace to the squad. However, the likely openside replacements are Alan Quinlan or Eric Miller.
O’Sullivan has shown his liking for Quinlan in the past by playing him at seven in the vital World Cup tie against Argentina in Adelaide in ’03.
Apart from his ball skills and work rate, Quinlan offers an extra option at the line-out. On the other hand, Miller has been called off the bench on a regular basis to take over from O’Connor and Leamy so the coach will certainly have him in his thoughts should the Wasps player suffer any repercussions during the week.
The bottom line is that if Ireland did have to have an injury worry or two, then the back-row was the best place to have it.
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