O’Connell will be fit for World Cup

PAUL O’CONNELL faces an anxious 10-day wait before the full extent of his ankle ligament injury is known and whether he will play again this season.

But his World Cup availability is not in the slightest doubt, according to medical sources.

The Munster skipper, who hobbled off early in the second half of his side’s sensational 24-23 victory over arch-rivals Leinster at Thomond Park on Saturday night, was a relieved man after x-rays taken in Dublin yesterday revealed no broken bones and that he will be ready to help Ireland’s cause in New Zealand.

Medical sources predicted yesterday the big second row will be out for a month and possibly up to six weeks. So, if Munster go all the to the Magners League and Amlin Challenge Cup finals, there is a possibility he could play a part.

Munster will be stepping into something of the unknown in their Amlin Challenge Cup quarter-final match with Brive on Saturday (1pm Irish time). Brive are previous Heineken Cup winners, lifting the trophy in 1997.

Denis Leamy is targeting another medal but expects a really tough encounter against Brive: “It is European rugby in the heart of France and everyone knows it doesn’t get much tougher than that, so we need to be smart and continue to play our style.

“It is bound to be a cracking atmosphere down there but we have played in these big ties before so we know where we are heading and that will really help.”

“The tournament is somewhat uncharted territory for Munster but when you look at the teams involved, you know it is a quality tournament.

“It was a disappointment for the squad not to be involved in the Heineken Cup quarter-finals — and there is no getting away from that — but we have another shot in Europe in the Amlin and we are certainly going to give it a real go, starting Saturday.

“They were in the same Heineken Cup group as Leinster last season, so we have learned a little bit from the way they played those games.”

Munster head coach Tony McGahan echoed those sentiments, adding: “We need to leave the Leinster game at the door and now focus solely on Brive because they will not give a hoot about what we have done against Leinster and whether or not we have prevented Leinster making it six in a row against us.

“It is going to be a big game for them as well because they are probably a little further away from their Top 14 ambitions than they would like to be. So for Brive and all their supporters down there, Munster will be a huge contest.”