Munster cash in as Keatley kicks on

Munster supporters are used to seeing their fly-halves live up to top billing, but then again they were spoiled rotten for more than decade by the presence of Ronan O’Gara in that number 10 jersey.

Following O’Gara was always going to be a much harder sell and so, in addition to having to plot the downfall of arch-rivals Leinster, Ian Keatley also had the burden of proving his worth to the Thomond Park faithful as the successor to greatness.

Furthermore, and as if that was not enough to deal with, Keatley was cast as a protagonist in a head-to-head with Leinster’s own fledgling chosen one at out-half, Ian Madigan, in what was considered by some an Ireland trial match for the November Test series.