Pusey poised for Munster debut
Although Pusey is by far the more experienced of the two, given his involvement in Super 12 rugby with the ACT Brumbies, O’Sullivan is regarded as a live-wire candidate to become a new Irish rugby phenomenon.
Certainly, Munster coach Alan Gaffney is looking forward to the prospects for both as they head to Wales this weekend.
“They are really good players. Conrad has been injured but should be ready while David has settled in really well since he came to Ireland just a short time ago.”
These are the only two changes in the Munster team beaten by Llanelli in the last round of the tournament. O’Sullivan takes over from Killian Keane while Pusey is in the side instead of Trevor Hogan.
There is no sign of the ‘retired’ Keane in the squad but that is no reflection on the assistance he readily offered Munster for the first two games of the competition.
Hogan is retained in the reserves of a squad that has been enlarged to 24 players, mainly due to an injury relating to Andy Long.
Coach Gaffney is determined that Munster will perform better this time out. They were eclipsed at Thomond Park by Llanelli and some of their problems stemmed from a lack of success out of touch.
“I take a lot of responsibility for that because we may have thought that we could just move on from last year.
“In the last couple of weeks we have had to take a few steps backwards, look at what went wrong and set out to address the problems we had on the night.”
Munster’s biggest problem was lack of possession in the lineouts. “We have done a lot of work to sort those problems out and tried hard in training to give ourselves more options.”
The arrival of Pusey is timely, of course. “The lineout was not one of our strong points against Llanelli but I watched the Ospreys against Leinster last weekend and it wasn’t one of their strong points either.”
But Gaffney is leaving nothing to chance in terms of preparation. “I was very impressed with them in other areas.
"They have a lot of talent in terms of being an attacking force, some very good players going forward who will pose a major threat for us. We’re going to have to win a lot more possession and defend very well.”
Pusey, meanwhile, is delighted to have finally arrived in Munster and put the recent past behind him.
The 24-year-old has, generally, had to play second fiddle to established players in the ACT Brumbies second row, men like Justin Harrison and Daniel Vickerman. Last season he was struck by injury in what was not altogether a profitable season.
Dwelling on his immediate future, Pusey believed he needed a break and a move to Ireland, due to the fact that his late grand-mother from Skibbereen allowed him access to the green passport, was an obvious choice.
“I had a couple of offers in England, spoke about a move to Saracens but knew a bit about Munster, the tradition and what they had achieved.
“Since I came here I certainly haven’t regretted a moment. I have settled in very well with my partner and really feel at home here.”
Yet Pusey doesn’t quite know what to expect in Swansea on Saturday.
“Obviously I’m not quite clued into the strengths or otherwise of the opposition because of all the changes that have taken place in the last few months.
“Obviously Munster are short a good few players but I believe Neath/Swansea also have a number of players in the Welsh World Cup squad.
Connacht coach Michael Bradley has left one place vacant on the side to play Glasgow in Friday night’s televised clash at Hughenden.
Out-half Eric Elwood, who retired injured at half-time in the Celtic Cup victory over The Borders, is doubtful for this encounter.
There is also a vacancy on the bench as Connacht have a number of problems in the front row.
Coach Bradley wants to take as much time as possible before finalising the side.
CONNECT WITH US TODAY
Be the first to know the latest news and updates
