Payne focuses on the positives

MUNSTER manager Shaun Payne yesterday attempted to put a positive spin on the province’s front row crisis by describing the loss of five players as “a big opportunity for a couple of lads”.

The Magners League champions head to Edinburgh on Friday without the services of John Hayes (suspended), Dave Ryan, Tony Buckley and Jerry Flannery (all injured), along with Marcus Horan who is undergoing medical tests to determine the nature of his sudden ‘light-headedness’ against Treviso on Saturday.

Munster may have to rely on the relatively inexperienced trio of Julien Brugnaut, Darragh Hurley and Stephen Archer to anchor the scrum in Scotland, while a vacant front-row space has been left in the 26-man squad announced yesterday, with academy prospects Pa O’Regan and Dave Kilcoyne in contention for a call-up.

However, Payne was keen to emphasise the positives rather than dwelling on the endless stream of disruption.

“Hopefully we’ve had our little patch of bad luck,” he said.

“We’ve had a couple of injuries, but I wouldn’t call it a nightmare; I’d call it opportunity. The glass is half full.

“It’s a big opportunity for a couple of lads. In a way, it’s a good thing for us to be throwing lads in there. It’s when you find out a lot about fellas.

“We thought Darragh (Hurley) did well at the weekend. He’s obviously had problems with his neck, but he’s busting to get back. Stephen Archer (Cork Constitution) is another good player; he’s in our academy and performed particularly well in the A team game against Leinster last week.

“If he plays at the weekend, it will be a massive opportunity for him to really lay down a marker.”

Payne also ruled out the possibility of signing another prop on a short term basis to help ease the current situation, maintaining “there are plenty of options”.

Doug Howlett, meanwhile, has been included in the extended squad despite his injured hamstring, though his chances of playing are rated no greater than 50-50.

MUNSTER SQUAD (V EDINBURGH) Forwards: D Hurley, J Brugnaut, S Archer, An Other, D Fogarty, D Varley, P O’Connell, D O’Callaghan, D Ryan, M O’Driscoll, A Quinlan, D Leamy, N Ronan, D Wallace, N Williams.

Backs: T O’Leary, P Stringer, R O’Gara, P Warwick, L Mafi, J de Villiers, I Dowling, D Hurley, D Howlett, K Earls, F Jones.