Leinster coach Mike Ruddock has made two changes to the side that defeated Llanelli 33-27 for Friday's European Cup clash with Stade Francais at Donnybrook.
Girvan Dempsey and Angus McKeen who missed the Llanelli match through illness and injury respectively, return at the expense of Gordon D'Arcy and Henry Hurley. The latter pair drop to the replacements.
Dempsey, arguably Leinster's outstanding back this season, withdrew from the Llanelli match 24 hours before kick-off through illness. D'Arcy did an admirable job in deputising including scoring the match winning try, but there was never any doubt that he would step aside on the Terenure player's return to full health.
McKeen damaged a calf muscle in the warm-up prior to Leinster's victory over Ulster at Ravenhill. Clontarf prop Hurley was introduced to the front row with Emmet Byrne switching to tighthead. Despite the success of the revamped formation in both the Ulster and Llanelli games, McKeen has been reinstated.
Hurley may consider himself particularly unfortunate. Leinster's ascendancy in the tight yielded a penalty try at Stradey Park last Saturday and in general underpinned their victory. One presumes that McKeen's greater mobility and contribution around the pitch held sway.
Irish international Reggie Corrigan managed 30 minutes for Lansdowne in a Leinster Senior Championship game at the weekend and took a full part in the Irish squad training at Greystones on Wednesday. He is still though some weeks from full fitness.
Blackrock prop Ian McLaughlin, on the bench against Llanelli gives way to Hurley.
Meanwhile, Munster have made three changes in their back line and leave a vacancy at half-back for Saturday's visit of Neath to Musgrave Park in their second European Cup match. The former Bath full-back Brian Roche, now with Shannon, has dislodged Dominic Crotty on the back of some good form in the Munster A team, Cian Mahony has been chosen ahead of Brian O'Meara in a rejigged midfield and Brian O'Meara returns for the injured Tom Tierney.
Pending a late fitness check on Killian Keane's injured groin, the Munster management will wait before deciding who will fill the out-half position, with Barry Everett and Ronan O'Gara waiting in the wings. The pack remains unchanged, all of which is a pretty fair comment on the strengths and weaknesses of the Munster performance in the win over Padova. The inclusion of Roche and mahony takes to 29 the number of players used by Munster in just six competitive games this season.
Connacht supremo Glenn Ross must will await with interest the recuperative powers of Barry Gavin, Billy Mulcahy and Conor McGuinness. "We want to take 22 players with us who can do what is expected of them," Ross asserted. Connacht begin their European Shield campaign against Newport on Saturday.
European Rugby Cup limited will announce a sponsor for this year's competition in the International Rugby Board's offices in Dublin prior to the Leinster game on Friday. It is expected that Heineken will continue as tournament sponsors now that successors to SKy television,, including RTE have been found to broadcast the event.
Former Irish scrum-half and captain Niall Hogan is to rejoin Terenure College, the club he left two years ago for a stint at London Irish. The player registration has been cleared by the English RFU and pending ratification of his eligibility from the IRFU Hogan expects to line out for Terenure in their Kitty O'Shea Leinster League match at home to Wanderers on Saturday.
Leinster: K Nowlan; D Hickie, S Horgan, M Ridge, G Dempsey; A McGowan, D Hegarty; E Byrne, S Byrne, A McKeen; G Fulcher (capt), P Holden; T Brennan, V Costello, C Brownlie. Replacements: B Carey, G D'Arcy, D O'Mahony, H Hurley, P Smyth, H Kos, D O'Brien.
Munster: B Roche; J Kelly, M Lynch, Cian Mahony, A Horgan; AN Other, B O'Meara; P Clohessy, M McDermott, J Hayes, M Galwey (capt), S Leahy, A Quinlan, A Foley, E Halvey. Replacements - I Murray, D Corkery, D Clohessy, D O'Callaghan, F Sheehan, P Stringer, D Wallace, AN Other, A Thompson.
