RG Snyman is set to bookend his 16-month injury-enforced sabbatical with matches against the Scarlets. The first took place in October 2021, when in his third comeback game following a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament, he suffered an identical issue in a tackle and the second will hopefully be Friday night if the World Cup winner is named in the team to face the Welsh club.
Even the most flinty-hearted will be hoping that the 28-year-old Springbok international can compile an uninterrupted body of matches going forward. He’s demonstrated a remarkable strength of character to assimilate two such significant setbacks, never mind the burns suffered in a barbecue accident.
Since Snyman joined Munster in the summer of 2020 – he suffered the original ACL tear on his debut against Leinster – the South African has managed just 54 minutes across four appearances. Munster defence coach Denis Leamy confirmed that the secondrow is available for selection for the game at Musgrave Park.
“RG is in good nick and he’s up for selection along with the other 55 players that we have available to us, at the moment. It is exciting to have him back around the place. He is a world class player, a World Cup winner, just the energy that he has, the experience he has, even in reviews and stuff like that, he really has an awful lot of knowledge that we can draw on.”
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Leamy then offered an insight into Snyman’s virtues as a person as well as the player. “He is a remarkable person in that he’s 6ft 10in and he’s lean as lettuce. He can run like the wind, and he’s got the ball-handling ability of a basketballer. So, he is a remarkable rugby player.
“We don’t see these guys very often, but I think he has inspired everyone in the building, just the way he has applied himself. Getting cruciate ligament injuries is so difficult. To get another one straight away after coming back, after putting a body of work behind him only to get another one straight away, that’s incredibly difficult.
“You can’t understand how difficult that is and to go about his business day-to-day, get a couple of setbacks within that and still go trucking on, I think that’s really testament to what the person is. He’s a great example to everyone in the building.”
Leamy confirmed that’s it’s been a good news week for a couple of other secondrows returning from injury problems, namechecking the imminent return of Tom Ahern and Edwin Edogbo. On a brief tangential note, he was asked to explain the disparate challenges of playing number eight and blindside flanker, referring to the remit handed to Caelan Doris with Ireland, something he did to a high level as a player.
Leamy explained: “I think in my experiences, playing at eight, obviously you are closer to the ball, you’re in that sort of ball-carrying role an awful lot more. The tendency with six is a little bit more around the unseen work. The tight work, the tackle, the breakdown, that sort of area.
“Certainly, defensively your role around six would be managing short sides a little bit more, managing what happens off lineouts. The six is interesting the way it has evolved. Certain teams pick tall lineout players, other teams pick maybe a Sean O’Brien-type player who’s more involved as a carrier, who’s dynamic, explosive.
“So, you see different types of profile now filling the jersey while the number eight now is probably more consistent in profile, you know, athletic, a tendency to be big, fast, ball-handling skills. I think we’re very lucky in this country that we’ve had three or four guys who can do a really good job at that level and Gavin is one of them, there’s no doubt in my mind.”
Leamy explained that Munster have front-loaded the week so that they can go to the funeral of Tom Tierney. Leamy offered a homily to his former team-mate: “Yeah, absolutely. Incredibly sad news filtered into the building on Friday morning, and it was with great shock that we learned of the death of Tom.
“I played with him here for a couple of years and then he went on to Leicester and to Connacht, and I played against him quite regularly over those years. Always a character on and off the pitch and the building is a much lesser place without him.
“He had the ability to light up a room when he came in and, look, first and foremost our condolences to Mary, Isobel and Julia, we really are thinking of them at this very sad time and our thoughts and prayers are with them.”
