Munster’s case of virus is last thing they needed
PICTURE the scene. Spirits are high on the flight home from Wales after digging out a last-gasp victory which, in time, could prove to be a crucial moment in the development of this current Munster squad. For a few minutes at least, everything feels normal again as the players and coaching staff bask in the glory of a win that for large parts of the contest looked unlikely.
After a day off on Sunday, it was business as usual as the squad returned to their high-performance centre the following day to review the Scarlets game and build towards Edinburgh this weekend.
The prospect of the latest round of routine Covid-19 testing loomed large among the busy preparations and the buoyant mood, before Munster’s worst fears came to light as soon as the results were released yesterday.
Every time any of the four provinces undergo the routine tests, they each face the stark reality that the curtain could quickly come down on Irish rugby.
For Munster, that prospect became even more real with confirmation that one of their senior players has contracted the virus.
Up until this week, Irish rugby’s Covid cases were limited to the Munster and Ulster academies, but a first senior player testing positive is another serious reminder of the precarious situation that sport, not just rugby, still finds itself in.
Avoiding Level 5 lockdown restrictions came as a welcome relief, yet this latest development in Limerick reminds us all that professional players are not immune to the virus.
Thankfully, the player in question, who was asymptomatic, did not travel to Wales last weekend because if he had, then Munster and the PRO14 in general would potentially be looking at far worse consequences.
Those outcomes could yet come to pass if further testing, which will take place today, shows up any more positive cases.
Given that the player was asymptomatic, he will also be tested again today in order to rule out any doubt over a potential false positive.
As it is, six other Munster players are also self-isolating, as the province reacted as quickly as they could to limit the spread of the virus.
Again, that shows the value of having an emergency system in place, which will hopefully mean that Munster’s PRO14 meeting with Edinburgh can still go ahead as planned at Thomond Park on Saturday evening.
And even if it doesn’t, Munster will not have to forfeit as plans will be put in place to re-fix the game for early 2021.
All going well, the squad will return to training tomorrow, should they get the green light from the medics.
Bursting
It’s hardly ideal preparation for a squad who would have been bursting to get back into training and build on last weekend’s gutsy start to the season.
Today would have been billed as a down day anyway, yet such is the way the cards have fallen, Johann van Graan is now facing the reality of potentially having just one full pitch session ahead of the meeting with Edinburgh.
Sometimes the Munster head coach must wonder what he did to deserve such bad luck, but he can at least draw on the positives from the win over Scarlets.
Had his side been beaten in that game, then the mood around Limerick would be very different.
Having spent so long in lockdown, every team is craving being back out on the training pitch, and for Munster in particular, every second counts as they look to fine-tune their game-plan.
However, cancelling yesterday’s session, both for the senior and academy
squads, was the right thing to do.
Everyone within Irish rugby understands the vulnerable position the sport is in and although full houses at stadiums are a long way from returning, the simple joy of having a game to look forward to every weekend, even if it is from the comfort of your own home, is hugely important.
Munster now face an anxious 24 hours to determine whether or not they caught the virus in time, but all signs would suggest that they have.
Every province will continue to uphold the highest standards in terms of Covid guidelines, but as soon as players and staff leave that bubble, they are as susceptible as everyone else.
This sort of disruption is the last thing Munster needed, particularly as they may have to plan without at least seven players for this weekend.
It’s the latest bump in a long road for Irish rugby and, rest assured, it won’t be the last.