Form dip sends Kidney looking at Academy options

MUNSTER’s Development squad jetted out on a four-day camp to Biarritz last night keenly aware that the province’s unexpected Magners League crisis has propelled them into the spotlight.

The squad, led by Academy boss Hamish Adams and Development officer Ian Costello, will play matches tonight against Spanish outfit Ordizia and on Thursday against a Spanish and French Basque Barbarians XV. The trip was planned in advance but the province’s lack of squad depth in key positions will give the development squad players a target for next season.

European success is what Munster are now judged on, but the Magners League table made for miserable reading for coach Declan Kidney, who is travelling to the French-Spanish border for Thursday’s game.