Munster’s expected team to face Racing 92 contains three seismic calls

Patrick McCarry

Johann van Graan will have tossed and turned over this team selection all week.

Munster were no sooner back from their winning, two-match tour to South Africa than they were packing up for Bordeaux. If they beat Racing 92 on Sunday, they and their supporters will be frantically booking and plotting for Bilbao and the Champions Cup final.

Andrew Conway’s stunning try against Toulon still needed to be converted by Ian Keatley for Munster to win 20-19 but no-one is arguing that the versatile back was the quarter final match-winner. Looking ahead to this weekend’s clash with Racing, Conway said:

“They are the days you will remember in 30-40 years when you look back on your career and say those are the special ones. I’m sure hopefully Bordeaux is similar in terms of what the crowd bring, but then it is down to us to perform on the pitch.

“The crowd will definitely do something for us, but they don’t win you semi-finals as we saw last year, so we just need to perform.”

Conway will definitely be in from the start but he is expected to change from right wing to fullback for the tie. Munster received a huge boost as Keith Earls recovered from a knee injury he sustained on Ireland duty, back on March 17, and he is set to edge out Darren Sweetnam for the No.14 jersey.

Conway’s move to fullback comes as van Graan seems set to take a tough but necessary call on Simon Zebo. The Cork native has been carrying a rib knock for the past four months, with the issue flaring up on more than one occasions during games.

Zebo took some heavy contact early in the quarter final win over Toulon but soldiered on for 26 minutes before being replaced by Sweetnam [with Conway dropping to the back-field]. He featured in the PRO14 win over Cheetahs but was cautioned in the first half and did not emerge for the second. If Earls gets the all clear, Zebo will make the bench and Sweetnam will be the unlucky one to miss out.

The destination of the No.7 jersey is less certain but it would be a minor miracle if Jack O’Donoghue [pictured with Earls above] recovers sufficiently from his ankle injury to start. Van Graan says the Waterford native will start if he is ‘100% ready to go’. That is wishful thinking at this stage of the season but the head coach is willing to make a late call on this one.

It looks all but certain that Connacht-bound Robin Copeland will be drafted in with Conor Oliver in reserve but O’Donoghue is expected to travel with the squad.

MUNSTER’S EXPECTED XV

15. Andrew Conway

14. Keith Earls
13. Sam Arnold
12. Rory Scannell
11. Alex Wootton

10. Ian Keatley
9. Conor Murray

1. Dave Kilcoyne
2. Rhys Marshall
3. Stephen Archer
4. Jean Kleyn
5. Billy Holland
6. Peter O’Mahony
7. Robin Copeland/Jack O’Donoghue
8. CJ Stander