REDS DUO OPT FOR FRANCE
FRENCH money has apparently talked twice within a few days at Munster, with Donnacha Ryan said to be poised to follow fellow second row Dave Foley out the door for a stint in the Top 14.
Foley’s end-of-season departure to Munster-flavoured Pau was no great surprise, his career beset with injury after making a November 2014 Test breakthrough.
However, the loss of longserving Ryan, a star in this year’s Six Nations and a mainstay of Joe Schmidt’s squad since Paul O’Connell’s 2015 retirement, would be a far more significant blow for both province and country. The 33year-old centrally contracted lock failed to agree terms with the IRFU, instead preferring to try his luck at Ronan O’Gara’s Racing 92.