Following the opening round of URC fixtures, Connacht’s Shayne Bolton, Leinster’s Tommy O’Brien and Jack Boyle have been ruled out of the tour due to injuries.
It’s a big disappointment for Bolton after the Connacht winger suffered a laceration to his knee during the Westerners’ narrow loss to Munster.
Speaking after the game, Connacht head coach Pete Wilkins said the delicate location of the cut is the reason for his withdrawal.
“It was a laceration to his knee, and the hope was that they could just stitch him up and get him out there, but where it was on the knee it was just going to keep opening up so we just had to keep him off, which is unfortunate because he’s an x-factor player that might have made a difference [on Saturday]”.
It’s disappointing for Simon Easterby as he said last week that he was very excited to work with Bolton but he will have to wait to get that opportunity now.
It’s another setback for Tommy O’Brien who injured his hamstring in the act of scoring Leinster’s first try on Friday night. O’Brien is another player who Easterby was excited to work with but like Bolton, that will have to come at a later date.
Leinster players, from left, Charlie Tector, Conor O’Tighearnaigh and Gus McCarthy after the URC win against Edinburgh at Hive Stadium in Edinburgh, Scotland. Photo: Seb Daly/Sportsfile
Tector has been rewarded for his impressive performance in Friday’s win over Edinburgh and Leinster backs coach Tyler Bleyendaal said the coaches are very impressed with his skillset and versatility.
“He has been training in the midfield a lot during the pre-season because we have a number of 10s and he’s probably seen that he can get more opportunities in training when we put him into the midfield. We think he has the skillset and bravery.
“He was really impressive in how he handled around the contact area. His work-rate off the ball that is not shown on the TV, but if you look from the wide view at his ability to run across and fill gaps.
“He was really efficient on attack too and he has the ability to play like an out-half as well as all of that”, Bleyendaal said this week.
It’s a chance for Chav Mullins to dip his toe back into the 15-a-side international game after he represented Ireland at the Olympic Sevens in Paris.
The squad will convene on Wednesday morning in the IRFU High Performance Centre before travelling to South Africa on Saturday.
Emerging Ireland Squad
Forwards (18): Jack Aungier (Clontarf FC/Connacht); James Culhane (UCD RFC/Leinster); Mark Donnelly (Garryowen FC/Munster); Jordan Duggan (Naas RFC/Connacht); Sean Edogbo (UCC RFC/Munster); Ronan Foxe (Garryowen FC/Munster); Cormac Izuchukwu (Ballynahinch RFC/Ulster); Sean Jansen (Connacht); Alex Kendellen (UCC RFC/Munster)(captain); Gus McCarthy (UCD RFC/Leinster); Darragh Murray (Buccaneers RFC/Connacht); Evan O’Connell (UL Bohemian RFC/Munster); Conor O’Tighearnaigh (UCD RFC/Leinster); Danny Sheahan (Cork Constitution FC/Munster); Harry Sheridan (Dublin University FC/Ulster); Stephen Smyth (Old Wesley RFC/Leinster); Alex Soroka (Clontarf FC/Leinster); Scott Wilson (Queen’s University Belfast RFC/Ulster)
Backs (15): Hugh Cooney (Clontarf FC/Leinster); Ethan Coughlan (Shannon RFC/Munster); Matthew Devine (Corinthians RFC/Connacht); Cormac Foley (Lansdowne FC/Leinster); Hugh Gavin (Galwegians RFC/Connacht); Chay Mullins (Connacht/Ireland Sevens); Jack Murphy (Clontarf FC/Ulster); Seán O’Brien (Clontarf FC/Munster); Ben O’Connor (UCC RFC/Munster); Andrew Osborne (Naas RFC/Leinster); Jude Postlethwaite (City of Armagh RFC/Ulster); Sam Prendergast (Lansdowne FC/Leinster); Rob Russell (Dublin University FC/Leinster); Charlie Tector (Lansdowne FC/Leinster); Zac Ward (Ballynahinch RFC/Ulster/Ireland Sevens).
