Munster must seek rule change to fulfil Champions Cup fixtures

Aside from being unable to field the minimum 19 players in a matchday squad, Munster have just three front-rowers at home when Champions Cup rules state there must be six in each matchday squad

A view of the Munster dressing room at Thomond Park. Picture: INPHO/Tommy Dickson

Efforts by Munster to bring in short-term signings for this month’s European pool fixtures may rely on a blanket change in Champions Cup competition rules rather than special dispensation, the Irish Examiner understands.

Both Munster and Cardiff are still waiting to leave Cape Town, where both squads have been forced to isolate in individual hotel rooms following confirmed cases of Covid-19 in their ranks.

The Irish province on Tuesday reported nine more positive cases, a mix of staff and players, as a result of their latest round of PCR testing, bringing the total confirmed cases up to 10 who will unable to return home to Ireland until they have completed their South African isolation period.

With another 10-day self-isolation period required on their eventual return to Ireland, the latest developments have delivered a serious setback to Munster’s bid to field a competitive matchday squad of 23 players for their upcoming Champions Cup opener at Wasps in England a week on Sunday and at home to Castres six days later.

There are just 18 fit Munster players - one less than the competition rules permit for a matchday squad - including eight internationals and seven academy players, currently training under the guidance of academy head Ian Costello at the province’s High Performance Centre in Limerick. They had been, fortuitously as it now appears, excused the trip to South Africa for what was supposed to be United Rugby Championship games against the Bulls in Pretoria and Lions in Johannesburg. 

The emergence of a new Covid-19 variant, now named Omicron, prompted the postponement of all URC games on South African soil last weekend and next but while Scarlets and Zebre Parma produced a clean bill of health in their fit-to-fly PCR testing and departed Cape Town on a charter bound for Dublin last Sunday, both Munster and Cardiff were forced to return to their hotels in the city and continue to isolate in their rooms.

The members of the Munster travelling party who tested positive were described on Tuesday in an update from the province as being “thankfully well and will continue to be monitored medically”, yet reports emerging from the Cardiff camp suggest a less rosier picture with a club source telling Wales Online: “We have got reports of people having panic attacks, we have reports of anxiety and mental health issues.

“We are having to put the WRU mental well-being officer on constant call.” 

The health and welfare of all concerned is clearly the priority in both camps but with the clock ticking down to the Wasps game on December 12 and 34 of Munster’s European-registered squad in South Africa and awaiting a flight home or resigned to an extended stay, it is understood head coach Johann van Graan has been working to bring in new players to enable his side to fulfil their fixtures.

Aside from being unable to field the minimum 19 players in a matchday squad, Munster have just three front-rowers at home - hooker Declan Moore, first-year academy tighthead prop Mark Donnelly, and Ireland loosehead Dave Kilcoyne - when the European competition rules state there must be six front-row players included in each matchday squad.

Yet competition organisers EPCR are understood to be unwilling to allow special dispensation to Munster and Cardiff, who host defending champions Toulouse in the Welsh capital on December 11, to make changes to their registered squads.

It is believed it will require a competition-wide change in the rules to allow all 24 teams to amend their personnel lists lest the EPCR stand accused of a lack of fairness and that may require assent at board level, whose members include the participant unions and leagues.

Munster’s registered European squad (* denotes academy players)

In Limerick (18): Back three: Andrew Conway, Keith Earls, Conor Phillips*, Jonathan Wren*; Centres: Damien de Allende; 10s: Joey Carbery; 9s: Conor Murray, Rowan Osborne, Ethan Coughlan*; Hookers: Declan Moore; Props: Dave Kilcoyne, Mark Donnelly*; Locks: Tadhg Beirne, Paddy Kelly*, Eoin O’Connor*; Back row: Peter O’Mahony, Scott Buckley*, Daniel Okeke*. 

Injured: Chris Farrell, John Hodnett, Calvin Nash, Roman Salanoa, RG Snyman.

In Cape Town: Backs (14): Craig Casey, Liam Coombes, Neil Cronin, Jack Crowley, Shane Daly, Jake Flannery, Seán French, Matt Gallagher, Dan Goggin, Mike Haley, Ben Healy, Paddy Patterson, Rory Scannell, Simon Zebo.

Forwards (20): Thomas Ahern, Stephen Archer, Diarmuid Barron, Chris Cloete, Gavin Coombes, Jack Daly, Cian Hurley, Jason Jenkins, Alex Kendellen, Jean Kleyn, Keynan Knox, Jeremy Loughman, Kevin O’Byrne, Liam O’Connor, Jack O’Donoghue, Jack O’Sullivan, John Ryan, Niall Scannell, Fineen Wycherley, Josh Wycherley.