Cunningham not risked

ALTHOUGH Vinny Cunningham's recovery from a leg injury will allow him don the Bective Rangers jersey again this weekend, it won't be with the club's first team who face a vital Division Two encounter with Wanderers at Donnybrook on Saturday.

The Bective selectors have resisted the temptation to recall the former international for duty against Wanderers, who need a win to keep their promotion hopes alive. Instead, Cnnningham will line out with the "seconds" as the selectors feel he can benefit from another outing at a lower level in anticipation that he will be fully match fit for Saturday week's visit to DLSP.

Andrew Johnson and Stuart Wilson are again unavailable to the Division Two leaders due to injuries, and the only change sees Craig Whelan return at full-back with Damien Guerin switching to the wing at the expense of Ben Kealey.

Remarkably, Bective will use the pack which has lined out for the previous seven league games - but while the same eight forwards have performed throughout the current campaign, no less than 21 backs have been used.

Wanderers have yet to name their pack (which will be selected from a shortlist of 12 players), Niall Crowley said: "This is a big match for us and we feel we need the extra time to finalise the balance of the pack." However, the backs show a couple of changes: Mark Wyse misses out due to a hamstring injury sustained in the match with Sunday's Well and Tom Maughan moves from the wing to fill the full-back berth leaving Dermot Finnegan, who has recovered from a knee injury, free to return to the team on the left-wing. The other change sees Michael McNicholas come in for Brian O'Rourke at scrum-half.

Dolphin have also delayed finalising their team for the meeting with North at Ormeau. The Cork side - who are hot on the heels of Bective - have injury doubts surrounding Terry Kingston (hamstring), and Philip Scott (knee), while Eddie Knowles is on the long-term casualty list after suffering a broken ankle against Highfield last Saturday week.

For their part, North have also deferred finalising the starting 15. However, the club's former hooker David Jordan, who is now playing junior rugby with Lurgan, but who has dual status, will wear the NIFC jersey again on Saturday due to injuries.

Clontarf will undertake the trip to play City of Derry with three changes: Tony Lawless has been preferred to Ronan O'Reilly at scrum-half, while Philip Quinn and Shane Guerin return to the pack at the expense of Stephen Lusk and Colm Brady respectively.

Injuries to number eight Conor Keeley and second row forward Michael O'Driscoll have forced UCC, who are just above the relegation zone, to delay their team selection. The students entertain Malone who hope to finalise their side this evening.

The battle for Division Three honours is developing into a head-to-head between western rivals Buccaneers and Galwegians, with Portadown ready to avail of any slips-up. Buccaneers have made one change for the match with Dublin University at College Park, Gearoid Clarke getting the scrum-half position in place of teenager Anthony Lowry.

Galwegians have yet to finalise the team for Saturday's encounter against Waterpark at Crowley Park, although it is expected the same 15 which drew with Buccaneers two weeks ago will be deployed. An added option, however, for the selectors is the return to fitness of second row Jimmy Duffy who was injured against Portadown last December.

The only two teams with 100 per cent records in the All-Ireland League are Suttonians and Ballinahinch, the joint leaders in Division Four, but that statistic will change on Saturday when the two sides clash at Sutton. Suttonians are still without captain Niall O'Reilly, who sustained a knee injury against Ballina in January.