Clash of Limerick giants set to brighten AIB League
After a suggestion from Shannon and discussions with the Munster Branch, it was agreed to bring the fixture forward from tomorrow in a bid to test the viability of Friday night club rugby.
Apart from one televised Heineken Cup game — between Glasgow and Toulouse — there is no reason for Limerick rugby supporters to miss out, and Shannon spokesperson Andrew McNamara is optimistic that it will work.
“From word of mouth over the last couple of weeks, there appears to be a deal of interest but we will just have to wait and see how many turn up on the night,” he said.
Unusually, these two giants of Irish club rugby go into the fixture with a less than impressive record after two rounds of the competition, Garryowen with two defeats and Shannon with a win and a loss.
In a season when all clubs will be seeking to claim at least a place in the top eight — next year the best clubs will form an elite division — Shannon are currently 11th and Garryowen 12th.
It’s hardly what one would expect of these two tournament specialists, with 11 titles between them (Shannon eight, Garryowen three).
The sides have met once this season in the Limerick Charity Cup final, with victory going to Shannon on a 27-9 scoreline!, but the bragging rights were minimal on that occasion. Of far more importance will be Garryowen’s desire to repeat last year’s league semi-final (31-6) success or Shannon’s ability to gain revenge.
Since that September game, Garry-owen have lost tight games to Clontarf (13-14) and Blackrock (26-30) with Munster-contracted players Mark Melbourne, John O’Sullivan, Ciaran O’Boyle and Kieran Lewis all lining out. O’Sullivan is likely to miss out tonight.
Shannon, having lost to Blackrock (27-41) and beaten Buccaneers (25-21), hope to have either Tony Buckley or Donncha Ryan released by Munster, but they have lost the services of Mossie Lawlor to Wasps and could be without Fiach O’Loughlin (knee injury).
More positive news is that Andrew Thompson, their record AIB League scorer, returned from injury to appear as a replacement centre last Saturday and could be pressed into action from the start depending on his fitness. Second row Padraig O’Brien is also available for selection having recovered from injury.
Both teams will be finalised at lunchtime today.
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