Ireland’s World Cup contingent set for break at Christmas

The World Cup may be long over, but the ripple effect is set to spill into the upcoming bout of festive PRO14 fixtures with a larger-than-usual number of Ireland internationals set to be excused in an attempt to avoid burnout.

The Christmas meetings of the four provinces have long been diluted by the need to rest the country’s top players, but Leinster head coach Leo Cullen has confirmed that the list of those given shore leave for the holidays will be particularly lengthy this time.