Munster still hopeful Billy Burns will be fit for Parma trip

Munster have no plays to ask the IRFU for special dispensation to select Jack Crowley.

HOPEFUL: Munster are hopeful that new recruit Billy Burns will be fit for their trip to Parma to face Zebre in round two of the URC. Picture: Brendan Moran/Sportsfile

Munster are hopeful summer signing Billy Burns will be fit to face Zebre Parma in Italy this Saturday but are fully confident in the abilities of young fly-halves Tony Butler and the uncapped Dylan Hicks to step up in his absence.

Munster assistant coach Andi Kyriacou said on Tuesday there were no plans as yet to ask the IRFU for special dispensation to select Ireland starter Jack Crowley at number 10 ahead of schedule for the URC round two contest, despite Burns injuring a shoulder on his competitive debut in the 35-33 victory at home to Connacht in the league opener last Saturday.

Butler, 22, made his ninth senior appearance and first since graduating from the Munster academy, to kick two conversions in the round-one interprovincial derby, including a touchline two-pointer to secure a hard-fought victory over the Westerners.

Yet despite a gloomy post-match assessment of Burns’ injury from head coach Graham Rowntree last Saturday, Munster are now more upbeat about the former Gloucester and Ulster fly-half passing fit to travel to Parma on Friday.

“He’s not ruled out yet,” Kyriacou said. “We’re just going to wait and see how things show up later in the week. We don’t select until Thursday anyway. He’s not out of the equation yet so there’s promise, hopefully.” 

Asked if the Munster management had confidence in Ennis native Butler and 19-year-old, second-year academy fly-half Hicks, another West Cork recruit from Bantry Bay, against Zebre, Kyriacou said: “Absolutely, yeah.” 

Ahead of the league opener, Rowntree had reiterated the allowance with national management approval for the Irish provinces to recall Ireland frontliners ahead of schedule in the event of being “skinny” in a certain position. Yet confidence in both Butler and Hicks appears to extend to keeping Crowley on course for a seasonal debut in round three at home to Ospreys on October 5 in line with IRFU player welfare protocols.

Kyriacou suggested Munster would not be looking for special dispensation in this instance.

“No. That’s done on a weekly basis and if Graham thinks we need to pull the trigger on something like that I’m sure he’ll go and have a conversation with Andy about it, and the IRFU.

“But we have to be comfortable selecting the players we’ve got available and at the moment it might be Tony and Dylan. We don’t know yet. And if it is that then it’s… we have this next cab off the rank policy.

“They train with us and we have a fully integrated model, they’re well up to speed with the gameplan and what we’re trying to do and it’s up to us as staff and the players to make them feel assured and confident in going out and performing.”