Door open for return of 'ahead of schedule' Cian Healy 

POSSIBLE RETURN: Injured Cian Healy of Ireland watches on during the Rugby World Cup warm-up match between Ireland and Samoa. Pic: Harry Murphy/Sportsfile

Ireland have opened the door for Cian Healy to join their World Cup squad after the veteran prop declared he was recovering from a calf injury “ahead of schedule”.

The 35-year-old Test centurion would need a current member of Andy Farrell’s 33-man playing group to go down with a tournament-ending injury for him to get the call to play in his fourth World Cup having been initially ruled out on the eve of the head coach’s squad announcement in Ireland’s final warm-up game against Samoa on August 26.