MYSTERY OF CONOR MURRAY’S INJURY
CONOR MURRAY is injured, that much we know.
We also know that Alby Mathewson, the 32-year-old former All Black, has been recruited by Munster on a fourmonth contract with the blessing of the IRFU.
Everything else, informed or otherwise, is speculation.
Munster released an injury update on Monday which details their walking wounded. Beside each name is the part of the body they’ve hurt; Tyler Bleyendaal (neck), Chris Cloete (groin), Conor Oliver (toe), Chris Farrell (knee), Liam O’Connor (knee), Jack O’Donoghue (knee), and Ronan O’Mahony (ankle).
Alongside them was Murray whose name was included without brackets.
Asked about the absence of his most important player, Johann van Graan said, “I can’t comment on Conor’s injury. He’s got an injury and it’s positive, but we just have to take it day by day.”
It is believed that he is dealing with a neck/shoulder problem that hindered him last season and there are fears that he will miss Munster’s first two European games and might be a doubt for Ireland’s November games.
Murray took some part in Munster’s training session at the University of Limerick on Monday which can only be a positive sign that he is aiming to return long before attention turns to the internationals.
However, the length of Mathewson’s contract suggests that Munster felt they needed cover until Christmas at least.
Apart from the very obvious factor of the province and, perhaps, national team being forced to cope without such a key player for these big games, the major question over Murray’s absence is why there is a need for such secrecy.
Between the IRFU and some leading players there has been a move to be more protective about medical information in recent times.
Jamie Heaslip is perhaps the most high-profile example of a centrally-contracted player who refused to give any information on his injury situation after he suffered a back problem in the warm-up for the clash with England in 2017.
He never played again as a result. “I understand we are in a public forum here,” he said after retiring. “You have got to feed the beast a little bit. I understand that.
At the same time you have to know where the line is and sometimes players don’t know where the line is.
“Take my example. Chinese whispers came into play post-injury a year ago. All sorts of things were said and some of them blatant lies. And they were said in public forums.
“I didn’t tell anyone what was wrong with me. That’s why I made a conscious choice.
“That’s why I stuck to my guns on it. It is up to each individual player. But they’ve got to know what their rights are.”
Heaslip makes a compelling argument, few of us want our medical data out in the open.
For the teams Murray plays for, there may be a competitive advantage in keeping his return date quiet, while for a player approaching the end of his contract there is value in keeping injuries on the down-low.
He may also not want to give opponents a target to hit.
Insurance is also an issue as players begin to approach the end and it is their prerogative how they deal with the information.
But there are valid reasons for wanting more transparency.
For one thing, the players are public figures whose income is subsidised by the tax-payers.
That income is derived from the gate receipts, television subscriptions and merchandise sales from the fans who are left in the dark about the condition of their best players.
For another, rugby is battling a perception that it has become a dangerous game to play and one wonders what message is being sent by the minimalist information.
It is also a sport at risk from doping and transparency plays a big part of the fight against performance-enhancing drugs.
No one is suggesting any wrong-doing in this case, but standards must be maintained across the board for trust to exist.
All of these wider issues come into play when injury information is deliberately vague.
That is the balance when there is a public demand for private information and by keeping the details under lock and key they are only encouraging the speculation they so dislike.