RUGBY:MUNSTER YESTERDAY confirmed the signing of Ian Keatley from Connacht as a replacement for the departing Paul Warwick. The back will join the province at the end of the season on a two-year deal.
In what has been a busy week of negotiating for the province, team manager Shaun Payne was also happy to confirm Doug Howlett has signed a one-year extension to his present contract, whilst also giving details on the promotion of several academy/development players to full senior status.
Scrumhalf Conor Murray and hooker Mike Sherry have been bumped up from academy ranks, whilst development players Scott Deasy, Paddy Butler, Dave Foley, Ian Nagle and Peter O’Mahony have been handed full contracts.
In addition, Felix Jones, Darragh Hurley and Tommy O’Donnell have all had their contracts extended as Munster set their sights on the future.
Whilst Payne admitted the exploits of Nagle and co had attracted the interests of various clubs, he insisted it had nothing to do with their rapid promotion.
“There has been a lot of talk about change in the squad, so it was really important to make sure we have all these younger guys signed up,” he said. “There are some exceptional players here who I think will go on to much higher honours than just Munster.
“I’ll be honest, there has been a lot of interest in a lot of those players from outside of the province, and that’s indicative of where those boys are.
“They are performing really well, but this isn’t a reaction from us to hold on to them. This is us going after players we believe are capable of doing the job for us. We’re delighted to have all those guys confirmed.”
With the possible arrival of one or two big-name signings post World Cup, it seems likely Munster may will have to undergo some trimming down at the end of the season to offset the promotion of so many young players.
“There will be a natural progression,” offered Payne by way of elaboration. “I’m not going to discuss who will or will not be contracted next season. It’s been well documented that Paul Warwick is going at the end of the season, and I would expect that there will be some other movement.”
In terms of potential targets from the Southern Hemisphere or elsewhere, Payne was equally evasive. “Contract negotiations are ongoing in a few positions,” he said. “I’m not going to rule anything in or out.”
He did, however, assert that Munster are still an attractive option for high-profile players, despite the clubs’s failure to reach the knockout stages of the Heineken Cup this season.
“Absolutely, more than ever. It’s a World Cup year as well, so there is always talk around this time about what players will be doing post World Cup. The market tends to hot up.”
Munster are back in Magners League action this weekend when they head to Italy to take on Treviso.
Injury victims John Hayes (groin) and Jerry Flannery (calf) are still sidelined and will not be available to play. Prop Tony Buckley took little part in training yesterday and is doubtful to make the trip, though he has not yet been ruled out. He will not come into contention for Ireland selection, however.
Elsewhere, hooker Denis Fogarty could be in line to make his first Munster appearance since September having come through unscathed for Cork Constitution at the weekend, whilst Marcus Horan is also in the mix.
The game will most likely come a week too soon for Alan Quinlan (elbow), however, whilst it’s similarly too soon for Felix Jones, who is beginning to look sharp again after recovering from a cruciate ligament inury.
