Level-headed Murray ready to step up fight for shirt

Tony McGahan gave Conor Murray his big chance, Declan Kidney shocked the rugby world by bringing him to the World Cup and making him his country’s first choice No 9, a status he has retained over the past 12 months, and now he’s being talked up as a leading candidate for a Lions place next summer.

The good news is that the 23-year-old, 6ft 2ins, 14st 10lbs native of hurling-crazy Patrickswell in Limerick is a level-headed young man under no illusions about what the future may hold. McGahan has moved on to pastures new so Murray must now convince the Rob Penney-Simon Mannix coaching ticket that he remains their best scrum-half option. After that, he fully appreciates he will need to step up still further on all the improvement he has shown this year if he is to remain Ireland’s scrum-half.

“If you stand still, someone is going to come from behind and leap over you and that can happen quickly”, he accepts.