Relieved Horan ‘good to go’
A delighted Horan said yesterday he was good to go and was keen to win back his place on the Munster team in time for the concluding Heineken Cup pool games against Treviso and Northampton next month.
However, he will want to prove his fitness this weekend and is likely to be given further game time on the Munster team to play Scarlets at Musgrave Park on Sunday week.
The very experienced prop was relieved after making a full recovery that allows him continue his rugby career.
The problem, which Horan admitted had troubled him for about four years, really came to a head when he was forced to leave the pitch 10 minutes into Munster’s game with Treviso on October 17 suffering from dizziness.
But any lingering worries about his health have been allayed and he is eagerly looking forward to getting back into a match-day situation.
He said: “Everything has been going well in training, and all the boxes have been ticked. I was aiming to get back for the Connacht game although that was probably a bit unrealistic; then it was the Ulster match but Tony McGahan suggested getting a bit of game time with Shannon. In a sense, I’m delighted to be getting back to where it all started and I honestly can’t wait to get back on the pitch.”
The illness struck at a bad time for Horan in that it ruled him out of two key Heineken Cup games for Munster and three international matches for Ireland.
He was disappointed at not being involved in what he describes as “some pretty good matches and victories”.
“I suppose I wondered whether I might ever get the chance to play again and whether that game (against Treviso) was to have been my last game at Thomond Park. Had that been the case it would have been disappointing, because when I retire I would like it to be on my terms,” he said.
“When I started back, it was hard watching the boys training and especially hard watching them playing so well against Perpignan; I can’t say how much I would have loved to have been involved in that game because it was one of those special days.
“But I really was so proud of the boys, each and every one of them; I knew how they must have felt going there because so many people had written them off. Yet, that was probably a big part of why they were able to produce a performance like that. It was in the Munster mould with a bit of bitterness in the camp.
“The season has been a mix of ups and downs but I honestly feel that some players and the team in general had been criticised unfairly; it didn’t surprise me to see them produce a performance like that,” he said.
Yet, Horan is in no doubt Munster will treat it only for what it was – an excellent win on the road – and take little stock of the five-pointer beyond that.
“In much the same way that you don’t have a bad season based on one defeat, you don’t have any guarantee of a good season based on a great victory. We have to keep it in perspective and the players will do that,” He said.
As Horan gets back into battle dress, he will spare more than a thought for the unfortunate Denis Leamy, injured in the dying seconds of that game in Perpignan.
He observed: “Denis was so unfortunate to pick up another long-term injury; it has been one after another throughout his career and it was such a pity because he has been working really hard on his game and played like a man possessed down in France.
“He is the kind of guy who will bounce back, however, and he has been down that road with that particular type of injury so he will know what is required to get back, which he will surely do.
“It was a bad time for the team as well, but now it’s a challenge for others to step up to the plate and take over. I think we have been incredibly lucky in Munster with the quality of our squads over the years; a prime example is when Paul (O’Connell) was injured for much of the season in which we won the Heineken Cup (2007/2008) and Mick (O’Driscoll) and Donncha Ryan filled the vacancy brilliantly.”
Horan is looking forward to a better 2010 but knows that come what may, Munster will be pushed and cajoled all the way by what he described as the best supporters in Europe.
“It really was amazing and it meant a huge amount to the team,” he said of their huge presence during the Perpignan clash.
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