Leinster await result of Contepomi injury scan

LEINSTER will find out today just how serious an injury their talismanic out-half Felipe Contepomi picked up on international duty for Argentina last weekend.

There was only a handful of minutes left in Saturday’s game against the French at the Stade de France when the Puma centre and Leinster number ten had to leave the field with what looked like a serious knee injury.

Initial prognosis suggested that Contepomi could be out for up to six weeks.

That would definitely rule him out of his province’s crucial back-to-back Heineken Cup fixtures against French outfit Agen this month, as well as a double Magners League date with Ulster over the next five weeks.

As well as Contepomi’s scan, which was originally pencilled in for yesterday, Michael Cheika will also be waiting on news of full-back Girvan Dempsey who came a cropper during the last round of autumn internationals.

Dempsey was replaced at half-time on Sunday after a 36th minute tackle by Pacific Islanders centre Seru Rabeni which Irish coach Eddie O’Sullivan said afterwards left the Terenure man unconscious for a few seconds.

The impact also left him with a badly bruised cheekbone and Cheika will be hoping that is the extent of his misfortune. If it is found that he suffered concussion he will have to endure a mandatory three-week lay-off that would leave him ineligible for the two Agen fixtures.

Whatever the result of both those scans today, there is at least some good news for Michael Cheika this week in the form of his improving scrum-half situation.

Leinster were down to just one fit number nine, the young and inexperienced Cillian Willis, for a number of weeks after both Chris Whitaker and Guy Easterby paid lengthy visits to the casualty ward.

Though Willis proved himself to be a more than adequate replacement on his unexpected elevation, the return of Whitaker for last month’s defeat of Glasgow Warriors in Donnybrook was met with some relief.

With Agen travelling to Dublin just a week later, the Australian is likely to start again in Ravenhill on Saturday in what will be Leinster’s first competitive game in three weeks. That trip to Belfast may prove to be a week too soon for fellow scrum-half Guy Easterby who is still recuperating from a broken cheekbone, but the 35-year old may be in line to challenge for a squad number for the resumption of the Heineken Cup seven days later.