Relaxed Mood In Munster Camp

There was a relaxed mood in the Munster camp today ahead of this evening’s Celtic League clash with an Edinburgh side that contains no fewer than 14 internationals.

There was a relaxed mood in the Munster camp today ahead of this evening’s Celtic League clash with an Edinburgh side that contains no fewer than 14 internationals.

The Munster party arrived in the Scottish capital at midday yesterday (Thurs) and are staying in the King’s Manor Hotel on Milton Road, just five miles from Edinburgh city centre.

Coach Alan Gaffney took his players for a light run an a nearby soccer pitch yesterday evening and this morning the players were given time off before going through their line-out drills in the afternoon.

Gaffney was particulary happy with the general mood but was expecting a tough encounter later in the evening.”I think they’ll be what I’d term typically Scottish, if that doesn’t sound too obvious. But what I mean is I think they’ll play it fast and furious, very controlled, try to move the ball quickly and with pace. They’ve selected a very experienced side especially in the centre with Joiner and Shiels and there’s isn’t many back-rows better than their combination of Todd Blackadder, Martin Leslie and Simon Taylor. I call them pretty hot.” said Gaffney, “It’s always a tough test coming to places like this but I know our boys are up for it. They’re a nice edge to them and hopefully things that we’ve worked on in practice will come off and we just take it from there.”.

The squad had a light midday snack with the pre-match meal scheduled for 3pm. The afternoon saw the arrival of supporters in the shape of David Wallace and Anthony Horgan, both out injured yet still prepared to lend their support to the Munster effort. The game will be played at Meadowbank, where the Commonwealth games were held in the 80’s.

The Teams:

Munster

Jeremy Staunton; John Kelly, Mike Mullins, Rob Henderson, John O Neill; Jason Holland. Dominic Malone; Marcus Horan, Frank Sheahan, John Hayes; Donncha O Callaghan, Mick O Driscoll; Jim Williams, Alan Quinlan, Anthony Foley.

Replacements: Simon Kerr, James Blaney, Mick Galwey, Eddie Halvey, Mike Prendergast, Killian Keane, Dominic Crotty.

Edinburgh

Brendan Laney; Derrick Lee, Craig Joiner, Graham Shiel, Chris Paterson; Duncan Hodge, Mike Blair; Allan Jacobsen, Dougie Hall, Craig Smith; Nathan Hines, Scott Murray; Todd Blackadder, Simon Taylor, Martin Leslie.

Replacements: Andrew Kelly, Joel Brannigan, Alastair Kellock, Andrew Dall, Mark McMillan, Tom Philip, Simon Webster.

Munster v Edinburgh

Kick-off: Friday (13/09) 19:30 (GMT) Venue: Meadow Bank Sports Centre, Edinburgh, Scotland. Conditions: Sunny spells, with some strong winds. TV Coverage: TG4 Referee: Nigel Williamson (WRU).