Tyler back in the groove

His career as a water carrier brought to an ignominious end by the arrival of defence coach JP Ferreira, Tyler Bleyendaal must content himself with a return to the day job, delighted to be free of the neck injury which had left him such a frustrated figure on the Munster sidelines.

Contrary to the word on the street around the province, the fly-half’s mid-season hiatus, which saw the 27-year-old absent from October to just 11 days ago, was not an ominous precursor to a dreaded retirement announcement, though Bleyendaal’s injury profile over the past three and a half seasons at Munster would forgive such speculation.

Rather it was simply a case of a player having to bide his time and wait for the all-clear.