Rugby - Squad news:After seven weeks out injured, Ireland outhalf Jonathan Sexton has been named in the Leinster squad to face Brive in the Heineken Cup on Saturday. The former St Mary's College student has not played competitively since kicking Ireland to victory against world champions South Africa at Croke Park in November.
Should Sexton feature against Brive he, along with Ireland prop Cian Healy, will make his 50th appearance for the province.
Also in the squad is Shane Jennings, who was due to captain Leinster on his return from suspension against Glasgow last weekend before the game fell victim to the weather.
“For (Shane) Jennings maybe more than (Jonathan) Sexton nothing replaces playing (and) both of the players who took their places played well. So it makes selection quite difficult,” said coach Michael Cheika.
Come Saturday Cheika’s side will not have played in three weeks - hardly ideal preparation for the defending champions’ first game of 2010, though it is at home against the pool’s bottom side.
“It has been pretty difficult to get everyone into an environment where we can get some training done because the fields have been pretty heavily affected and the conditions haven’t been the greatest. But somehow we have come through it without missing any days. We did a lot of contact work today and everybody was chomping at the bit to get stuck into that, so that’s always a bit of good fun.
“We’re lucky in one respect that we got a game in over Christmas,” added the coach. “The international players, who have had big workloads, understand what’s required when you have a lay-off for a couple of weeks. They have done it before. There’s always a risk that you haven’t played together but we’ve gotta deal with that and other teams are dealing with the same issue.
Ireland captain Brian O’Driscoll and international team-mates Rob Kearney and Gordon D’Arcy are also back in the frame, as are forwards Nathan Hines and CJ van der Linde and Cheika will not underestimate Saturday’s opposition.
“The team that we’re playing now is very different to the Brive side we played in October. In their last four games they have beaten Toulouse and Perpignan at home and defeated Albi away in the snow. It was an interesting game to watch because the entire pitch was white.
“They have a far more engaging philosophy now; they’re very much more forward orientated with a lot of mauling and a lot of aggression. They’re very hard on the ground and the two new coaches have obviously put their own stamp on things in the contact area, which is something that we’re very mindful of.
“Depending on the conditions, I think that we’re going to be in for a real torrid battle on the ground. They have accumulated a lot of points in their own championship now and that’s a consequence of improved play.
“We have put ourselves into a situation where every match is a cup final by losing the first game,” said Cheika. “And we’re still right in the middle of that. Even though we have had a few wins since then, that changes nothing from the fact that we have to win this game.”
Cheika is expected to name his side at lunchtime on Friday.
Leinster squad (v Brive)
Forwards:L Cullen, J Fogarty, C Healy, J Heaslip, N Hines, B Jackman, S Jennings, R McCormack, K McLaughlin, S O'Brien, M O'Kelly, M Ross, CJ van der Linde, S Wright
Backs:S Berne, G D'Arcy, G Dempsey, S Horgan, R Kearney, S Keogh, I Nacewa, P O'Donohoe, B O'Driscoll, E Reddan, J Sexton
