O'Driscoll to captain Munster against Eagles

Veteran lock Mick O'Driscoll will captain Munster in their seasonal opener against US Eagles in Hartford on Saturday (8pm Irish time).

It will be the first opportunity for Keith Earls, a massive success at The Churchill Cup, to push his case for more regular first-team rugby with the province.

The frontline Ireland internationals have been held in reserve with the returned Mike Prendergast, Tony Buckley, O'Driscoll, Paul Warwick, Lifeimi Mafi and Federico Pucciariello ensuring there is enough experience to make Munster competitive.

MUNSTER (v US Eagles): Denis Hurley; Brian Carney, Keith Earls, Lifeimi Mafi; Anthony Horgan; Paul Warwick, Mike Prengergast; Federico Pucciariello, Denis Fogarty, Tony Buckley; Mick O'Driscoll (capt), Donnacha Ryan; Billy Holland, Niall Ronan, John O'Sullivan.

Replacements: Darragh Hurley, Frak Sheahan, Mark Melbourne, Tommy O'Donnell, Tomas O'Leary, Jeremy Manning, Rua Tipoki, Barry Murphy, Ian Dowling, Kieran Lewis.