Injured stars locked in fitness fights

MUNSTER coach Declan Kidney has named a 26-man squad for Saturday’s Heineken Cup final with Biarritz, conscious that one or two of the walking wounded might not make it.

Marcus Horan, Paul O’Connell and John Kelly continue their battle for fitness, while Munster had a further scare yesterday when Ronan O’Gara was ruled out of a training session in Cork with a stomach bug.

It’s far from the ideal preparation, but at least there is optimism in the camp. Kidney dismissed O’Gara’s absence as an inconvenience, expressing hope that Horan, O’Connell and Kelly would all overcome their problems.