I SCANN MAKE JAPAN SQUAD

MUNSTER hooker Niall Scannell is happy to play second fiddle to Rory Best in the Ireland shirt for now but thinks he is in the hunt to be his understudy at the World Cup.

The 26-year-old has started all three games for the Reds since shaking off the effects of a shoulder injury suffered playing for Ireland in Australia this summer.

But the Corkman knows his two starts in the Southern Hemisphere are not a sign that he is top No.2 just yet.

But he is certainly going the right direction and he hopes to add another good performance at home to Gloucester on Saturday to back up the brilliant showing he produced in a stormy Sandy Park against Exeter last week.

Scannell said: “Rory is obviously the No.1, he’s the skipper and I think the rest of us are fighting tooth and nail for that second spot. That’s the way I certainly see it at the moment. I hope it’s a fairly even race at the moment and I just need to keep playing.

“I did struggle to stay fit last year and I think that cost me. If I can put that form together hopefully I’ll go up that pecking order a bit. I just know from last year if you look too far down the track you’re only one whack away from not being fit.

“I was obviously incredibly lucky as well with Rory’s injury as well. I kind of landed in there (in the squad for Australia) and that was probably better for me because I hadn’t planned it.

“I wasn’t involved in the first game and was wondering how much I was going to be involved in the tour. Then I was starting the next week and I was surprised as much as you were.

“I realised at that point that I needed to take a bit of confidence from that, I needed to take my chance because you don’t get too many of them.”