Keith Earls' honesty 'will change a lot of people's lives', says Johann van Graan

Head coach Van Graan has heaped praise on Earls, who appeared on the Late Late Show last Friday to open up about his mental health battle down the years and ultimate diagnosis with bipolar II

Tue, 19 Oct, 2021 - 14:44

Brendan O'Brien

Munster head coach Johann van Graan has heaped praise on Keith Earls, who appeared on the Late Late Show last Friday to open up about his mental health battle down the years and ultimate diagnosis with bipolar II.

"Keith Earls is a fantastic man, a Munster man through and through. I remember when I came to Munster initially, he was one of the first guys I talked to about Munster rugby and what it means to play for Munster and come from Limerick.

"Obviously, the things he shared were of a very private nature and the way he said it on Friday evening made such a big difference, not only to ourselves but I'm sure to a lot of people on the outside. For somebody to be that vulnerable and that honest, I believe it will change a lot of people's lives because of that.

"The main thing is Earlsie is just himself when he's in the HPC. He's such a big part of Munster rugby and what we've been doing in the past. I'm very glad that he's part of our group and very proud of him as a rugby player, as a man, as a friend, as a husband, and as a father.

"That's bravery, that's honesty, and we put that in the highest regard at Munster rugby."

Earls was part of the side that scraped the in against Connacht last weekend. So too was Joey Carbery whose late conversion sealed the victory not long after his own clearance was charged down for what could have been a deciding try by Jack Carty.

Carbery has now played a dozen games since returning from his long-term injury issues last February. He has yet to rediscover the sort of form that marked him out as Ireland’s successor to Jonathan Sexton but more game time will undoubtedly help.

"If you looked at Joey's reaction when he kicked that kick and how much it meant... It doesn't matter what happens in games,” said van Graan. “You get some high moments and some low moments but certain guys you want to give the ball to when the big kick matters.

"He has taken that and obviously glad for the team, but so glad for him. He had a pretty big win against Exeter pretty much in the same spot two seasons ago, we won 9-7 that day. Joey is a fantastic rugby player and I’m really looking forward to what he brings in the latter part of the season."

Meanwhile, Van Graan was so eager to see Damian de Allende after the centre’s long absence with the Springboks that he drove to the airport last weekend to pick him up.

De Allende returned to Ireland on Sunday and was back in Munster’s high-performance centre in Limerick the following day, and the head coach revealed that he the player is in his thoughts for this weekend’s URC trip to Swansea where they will face the Ospreys.

"He's a phenomenal player for us and we're really looking forward to seeing him train,” said van Graan. “I spoke to him, he drove from Dublin to Shannon, and I went to Shannon to get him there, so it's great to have him back."

The Munster head coach will also make a decision on whether to use Conor Murray in Wales. The scrum-half has yet to feature this season on the back of his summer stint in South Africa with the British and Irish Lions.

In other player news, Rory Scannell will undergo return to play protocols after being removed with a head injury during Saturday’s win against Connacht at Thomond Park.

Also, Keynan Knox will return to team training this week after a hip issue, James French has returned to modified training, while Thomas Ahern is unavailable this week due to illness.