MATT: IT’S ALL UP TO JONNY
BY DAIRE WALSH
AS Leinster prepare to defend their Pro12 title, the build-up has been dominated by the ongoing saga over Jonathan Sexton’s possible return to the province.
A broken jaw sustained against Toulon at the weekend could keep the Racing Metro out-half sidelined for up to two months. But speaking at the squad’s UCD base yesterday, Leinster coach Matt O’Connor revealed that the ball was very much in Sexton’s court.
He said: “There is a decision for Jonny to make. We’re waiting to see what he does. It’s his call. There is no time restraint from our end.”
A more pressing matter, however, is the impending arrival of lock Kane Douglas into the Blues set-up, and O’Connor is hopeful the Wallaby will be released from his ARU contract – which runs to the end of 2014 – very shortly.
“We’ve had a few positive conversations in relation to that (Douglas’ arrival) and it will certainly be well in advance of that date.
“We’re just trying to work out the logistics of when that will actually be. There is a release process. We need to get him signed off by them. Nothing can happen until that’s achieved. All things being equal, that’s looking quite positive”.
O’Connor was also positive about the progress of injured winger Luke Fitzgerald.
“Lukey’s doing really well. He’s probably at the very end of his rehab. He’s probably a couple of weeks away from rugby.
“The medical team is pretty confident that moving forward he should be over that hump and on an injury-free run, hopefully.”
Scotstoun will be the venue this Saturday as Leinster begin their Pro12 season by renewing acquaintances with last season’s beaten finalists Glasgow Warriors.
Gregor Townsend’s charges will be hell-bent on exacting revenge for May’s Grand Final defeat, so O’Connor knows they will need to hit the ground running.
“It is an incredibly tough challenge that we’ve got going to Glasgow. They would have been incredibly frustrated all summer off the back of the Grand Final result,” O’Connor said.
“We are under no illusions about how motivated they will be on Saturday and we will have to mirror that motivation”.
Despite back-to-back pre-season defeats against Northampton and Ulster, O’Connor is pleased with the way his young players performed and a number of them are in contention to start against the Warriors.
“If you get your opportunity, it’s for you to take. There will be a few guys you will be surprised by when the team is announced later in the week because they’ve done a fantastic job for us in those friendlies.”