Here are the line-ups:
LEINSTER: The team consists of Hugo Keenan, Liam Turner, Garry Ringrose, Jamie Osborne, James Lowe, Ciarán Frawley, Jamison Gibson-Park, Andrew Porter, Lee Barron, Tadhg Furlong, RG Snyman, James Ryan, Jack Conan, Josh van der Flier, and captained by Caelan Doris. Their substitutes are Gus McCarthy, Cian Healy, Thomas Clarkson, Ryan Baird, Max Deegan, Luke McGrath, Ross Byrne and Harry Byrne.
MUNSTER: The team is made up of Mike Haley, Calvin Nash, Tom Farrell, Alex Nankivell, Sean O’Brien, Jack Crowley, Craig Casey, Jeremy Loughman, Niall Scannell, Stephen Archer, Jean Kleyn, Tadhg Beirne, Jack O’Donoghue, John Hodnett, and Gavin Coombes. The backups include Diarmuid Barron, Kevin Ryan, John Ryan, Tom Ahern, Ruadhán Quinn, Conor Murray, Tony Butler, and Shay McCarthy. The referee is C Busby from Ulster.
Fascinating fact from Kieran Shannon of the Examiner: 14 Leinster/Munster players who participated in the 2009 match wrote their autobiographies mentioning that specific game. From Munster, they are: Ronan O’Gara, Paul O’Connell, Alan Quinlan, John Hayes, Keith Earls, Donncha O’Callaghan and Peter Stringer. Whilst from Leinster, the players are: Brian O’Driscoll, Jamie Heaslip, Johnny Sexton, Bernard Jackman, Seán O’Brien, Rob Kearney, Leo Cullen. The challenge, if you wish to engage, is to list all of the 14 book titles.
Preparation is underway.
The tranquillity before the uproar…
A slight diversion. Recent media sources reveal that Leinster cancelled a scheduled Q&A with their sponsor, Rocky Elsom at Croke Park. Elsom, an Australian who was part of the victorious Heineken Cup team in 2009 and has been residing in Dublin, is now a wanted man as per an international arrest warrant. He was judged in absentia by a Narbonne court for “forgery, use of forgery, and misuse of corporate assets.” Full details can be found in the original story.
Leinster is dealing with a number of injuries within their back three, as Tommy O’Brien, Jimmy O’Brien, Jordan Larmour, and Rob Russell are all sidelined, while Robbie Henshaw is also not available to play. Liam Turner is moving from centre to right wing, bringing his skills with him, and will be accompanied by Jamie Osborne and Garry Ringrose, with Ciarán Frawley claiming the number 10 shirt. Other key injuries to Dan Sheehan and Rónan Kelleher mean Lee Barron steps in to play hooker, and RG Snyman makes his competitive Dublin debut after parting ways with Munster in the summer. Captaining the team is Caelan Doris, while Jack Conan is placed at blindside flanker, and Gus McCarthy provides additional support at hooker following his early return from the Emerging Ireland tour. Ross and Harry Byrne are listed among the replacements, while Chris Busby of Ulster will act as referee. After a 13-year hiatus, Leinster and Munster are returning to Croke Park following Leinster’s victory in their 2009 European Champions Cup semi-final showdown. This new clash will take place as part of the United Rugby Championship (URC). Leinster’s usual residence, the RDS, is undergoing renovations, moving most of their home games to the Aviva Stadium. The decision to relocate this match to Croke Park is justified by the sold-out crowd expected to reach 82,300. Despite being plagued by injury, Graham Rowntree’s Munster has some reason to feel confident as Mike Haley and Alex Nankevill, two standout players, have recovered and will start the game. Seán O’Brien has returned early from the Emerging Ireland tour and will take up his position on the left wing. Jack Crowley and Craig Casey, the first-choice halfbacks, will be seeking a solid start, and even with the absence of Peter O’Mahony, the back five in the pack still boast a wealth of talent. Academy prop Kevin Ryan is set to be among the substitutes along with Conor Murray and John Ryan, while Tom Ahern is fit again after injury and Ruadhán Quinn has completed the return to play protocols.