Luke Fitzgerald return boosts Leinster hopes

Luke Fitzgerald will return to action as Leinster play out the most eagerly anticipated derby against Connacht in their history in Galway on Saturday.

Leinster winger Fitzgerald missed Ireland’s Six Nations campaign when he injured his knee ahead of the Wales game last month, but the province confirmed he will be available as the four-time league winners take on the PRO12 leaders in a top-of-the-table clash.

“It’s great to have Luke back with us, he’s been out on the training pitch, he’s really excited to get back in the fold this weekend,” said Leinster backs coach Girvan Dempsey at the province’s UCD base yesterday.

Dempsey also revealed that Fitzgerald’s fellow Irish internationals, Rob Kearney and Marty Moore, were close to returning from their respective hamstring injuries, while Jack Conan has suffered minor fracture to his left foot and will be out of action for a month. Seán O’Brien is still two to three weeks away from a playing return as he rehabs from a hamstring injury he picked playing for Ireland against France.

Cian Healy should also be made available to Leinster this weekend having returned from injury to play a reserve role for Ireland in the Six Nations, but despite the heavy catalogue of injuries visited upon the prop and O’Brien, Dempsey is convinced that the powerful duo can recapture their best form.

“They’re very competitive, they’re excellent pros and they want to be playing at the highest level and we see the amount of work they do behind the scenes trying to get themselves back on the field,” said Dempsey.

Another Irish international who looks certain to take the field for Leinster on the weekend is Dave Kearney, who began the Six Nations as first-choice left wing for Ireland, but was forced out of the tournament by shoulder issue. The injury was caused by a blindside hit by France hooker Guilhem Guirado that forced him off the pitch in Ireland’s 10-9 loss in Paris.

Replays showed that the tackle was borderline legal and at the time many believed Guirado should have been shown a yellow card. Kearney, however, remains sanguine about the whole incident and revealed that the French skipper came into the Irish dressing room afterwards to apologise.

“Stuff happens. He came in after and shook my hand and said something, I think the initial hit was probably okay. I think he got me here (shoulder). I don’t know if you’d call that high but then he just slipped up and got my neck, which probably was high. But at the time I probably thought it was high.”

As for this weekend’s game, Leinster travel to Galway trailing Connacht by just a point and Dempsey agreed it is the most significant derby between the pair he will have experienced.

“It is massive. They’re playing exciting rugby and scoring 49 tries already this season. So, it’s going to be a test.”