Quinlan set to get nod from Gaffney as Cup reaches climax

ALAN QUINLAN is almost certain to be one of the two players Munster coach Alan Gaffney will add to his Heineken Cup squad for the European quarter-finals.

Still troubled by the shoulder injury sustained in the World Cup, Munster would have to reach the semi-finals scheduled for April 24-25 for Quinlan to have a serious chance of returning to action.

It was in the Adelaide Oval last October that Quinlan suffered the setback in scoring the try that ensured Ireland's place in the quarter-finals of the World Cup.

It was "a bitter-sweet try" given that in diving to score, Quinlan picked up the injury that has kept him out ever since.

It was a disaster for the player and a huge blow for the country and province. Quinlan's selection for the all-important Argentina game was a surprise but Eddie O'Sullivan's decision was fully justified by Quinlan's sensational contribution in the first 20 minutes before fate dealt its cruel hand.

"It's everybody's dream to play in the World Cup," he says. "I was on the bench for the Romanian game and I was happy with that because of the competition in the back-row. To start against Namibia and play the full 80 minutes was great. To be picked against Argentina was obviously a huge boost and a big vote of confidence from the coaching staff. They had faith in me that I could do a job in that game."

"Obviously, I wasn't looking beyond Argentina. There was a lot of talk that Keith Gleeson would come in for the Australian game and it might have happened because he'd be a more genuine openside. It was going great and then it all turned sour. The line-out is one of my strengths and that's possibly one of the reasons why I was picked. The strategy was to try and secure possession and put them under pressure on their set pieces."

Eddie O'Sullivan sat at the back of the stand in Adelaide that afternoon and must have felt entitled to give himself a pat on the back as he saw Quinlan justify his selection and confound his critics by claiming three clean line-out catches in the opening minutes before producing the high point that try!

"It was an Argentine throw and the ball went loose, someone hacked it through and Woody picked it up," he recalls. "He made a great break, threw a dummy one way and passed the other way to me. My first reaction was to pin my ears backs, maybe get tackled and set up a ruck or pass to someone. It then went through my head that if I was going to be tackled, it would be my legs and maybe I'd have the chance to reach out and touch down. It was an instinctive reaction to put my hand out and that was the most important thing even if I was in a lot of pain and discomfort."

It was only natural Quinlan should have felt a huge sense of anti-climax to be suddenly ruled out of the World Cup and out of the game for a very long time. He admits it was "very frustrating. I went home the day after the Australian game and I had company in Denis Hickie, who also had a very serious injury. I consoled myself that it was a great thing to score for Ireland. When I look back I can say I achieved one of my major goals, which was to play in a World Cup, and in one of the big games and to be part of a huge occasion for Irish rugby and one I'm obviously very proud of."

However, he admits: "There are days when I get down and ask why it had to happen to me. But then I realise there are millions and millions in all walks of life worse off and I get upbeat again. I hope to be into rugby by the end of March. I'm content at the moment but obviously I'm missing the training and the playing and the Six Nations will be difficult."

"If I can get back to playing some rugby in April, and maybe give myself a chance of the summer tour, I'll be delighted. As for the Heineken Cup, who knows." Where Munster winning the trophy is concerned, Alan thinks it will happen this time, especially if the team can be just a little more consistent.

In that eventuality, nobody will be happier than his mother, Mary, arguably the team's greatest fan.

Quinny plays down her role, insisting that "she's no different from all the other parents. They go to support their sons but it's not just the families. The amount of support the team gets is amazing. This whole Munster thing has captured the imagination of so many people. In Tipperary town, you see young fellas in Munster jerseys kicking rugby balls around. You always get people there on the good days, but when I go back home to Tipperary on the days when things haven't been so rosy for me, the people have always stood by me and supported me and that's nice and special."