Rowntree gives European debut to academy wing Shay McCarthy 

EUROPE DEBUT:  Shay McCarthy handed European debut. Pic: ©INPHO/Ben Brady

Injury-hit Munster will go into their home Champions Cup pool opener against Bayonne without a string of first-choice starters and a European debutant in academy wing Shay McCarthy.

Tadhg Beirne will captain the side at Thomond Park on Saturday evening, leading out a team showing six changes from the line-up which started the 40-29 win over Glasgow Warriors at Musgrave Park last Friday.

McCarthy, just a month past his 21st birthday, is one of three academy players in Graham Rowntree’s matchday 23 with fly-half Tony Butler and back-three player Ben O’Connor named among the replacements.

Munster will be without former captain Peter O’Mahony, World Cup-winning locks Jean Kleyn and RG Snyman and a fresh batch of casualties due to minor injuries, including hooker and recent captain Diarmuid Barron, new signing and tighthead prop Oli Jager, academy lock Edwin Edogbo, full-back/wing Shane Daly and fellow back-three players Simon Zebo and Pat Campbell.

Rory Scannell, Conor Murray, Scott Buckley, John Ryan and Fineen Wycherley all come into the side.

Calvin Nash switches from his regular position on the wing for a first Munster start at full-back in place of Daly while Tom Ahern continues at blindside flanker in O’Mahony’s absence to make his first Champions Cup start and there is a tournament debut for summer signing Alex Nankivell, who moves from inside centre to replace Antoine Frisch, who drops out of the matchday 23, with Rory Scannell back in the number 12 jersey.

Jack Crowley starts at fly-half in tandem with veteran scrum-half Murray as Craig Casey moves to the bench for the first time this season having started the last five URC games on his return from World Cup duty with Ireland.

Wingers McCarthy and Seán O’Brien, who makes his first Champions Cup appearance for Munster since a summer move home from Exeter Chiefs, complete the back three alongside Nash.

Scott Buckley is promoted from the bench to starting hooker to cover Barron’s absence in a front row with loosehead Jeremy Loughman and tighthead John Ryan, who returns from injury having missed the Glasgow win.

Wycherley and captain Beirne start in the second row with Ahern, John Hodnett and Gavin Coombes retained as the back row for the third match in a row.

Former academy hooker Eoghan Clarke, who recently re-signed on a short-term contract, is among the replacements and is in line to make his Munster debut from a bench which also includes a fit-again Jack O’Donoghue, back from an ankle injury.

Dave Kilcoyne and Brian Gleeson drop out of the matchday squad from last weekend’s bench with Alex Kendellen the only survivor of the replacements who faced Glasgow.

Former France and Racing 92 scrum-half Maxime Machenaud is perhaps the most recognisable name in Bayonne’s historic first Champions Cup starting line-up alongside Argentina hooker Facundo Bosch, a 2022 winner with La Rochelle, but the tournament newcomers have omitted fellow veteran Camille Lopez and former Wallaby back Reece Hodge from their backline.

More than 20,000 tickets have already been sold for the first Champions Cup night of the season at Thomond Park and they will have the chance to honour recently retired wing duo Keith Earls and Andrew Conway, with the former Ireland internationals set to be introduced on the pitch at half-time.

MUNSTER: C Nash; S McCarthy, A Nankivell, R Scannell, S O’Brien; J Crowley, C Murray; J Loughman, S Buckley, J Ryan; F Wycherley, T Beirne - captain; T Ahern, J Hodnett, G Coombes.

Replacements: E Clarke, J Wycherley, S Archer, J O’Donoghue, A Kendellen, C Casey, T Butler, B O’Connor.

BAYONNE: C Tiberghien; B Pourailly, P Muscarditz, R Buliruarua, R Baget; T Dohagary, M Machenaud; M Perchaud, F Bosch, T Tatafu; D Marchois, K Mikautadze; P Huguet, B Heguy, R Bruni.

Replacements: T Acquier, S Cormenier, J Taqi, A Iturria, R Bordeau, G Aprasidze, A Erbinartegaray, T Spring.

Referee: Luke Pearce (Eng)