Ireland and Leinster have been hit with the news that full-back Rob Kearney will be ruled out for 10 as he has to undergo an operation on his troublesome back.
The full-back will miss the November Tests in the Guinness Autumn Series as Declan Kidney named his squad on Wednesday with four uncapped players included.
Leinster are 9/2 joint favourites with
Ladbrokes, alongside French heavyweights Toulon, to win their third successive Heineken Cup title this season, while the province is 11/8 to win the RaboDirect Pro 12 Grand Final followed by in-form Ulster at 10/3. Joe Schmidt’s charges are 13/8 to win the Pro 12 Regular Season with current leaders Ulster priced at 2/1 for the top finish this season.
Ireland are 7/2 to win the RBS Six Nations outright in 2013 with holders Wales installed as 2/1 favourites followed by England at 11/4 and France are 3/1, while Scotland and Italy are 20/1 and 100/1 rank outsiders. Kidney’s Ireland side are 8/1 to emulate their Grand Slam win in 2009 this season and are 4/1 to win the Triple Crown, while Wales are 6/1 to repeat their Grand Slam feat from last season in the new campaign which starts in February.
The 2012 European Player of the Year was troubled by back problems towards the end of last season and then sustained a slightly freakish bang in his lower back into his seasonal re-appearance in the away defeat to Connacht at the end of September He will undergo surgery on his back and will miss at least 10 weeks.
As well as missing the November Series for Ireland, the 26-year-old full-back will miss the province’s crunch back-to-back Heineken Cup matches with French powerhouse Clermont Auvergne in December, which will effectively decide who wins the Pool outright and qualify for the quarter-finals.
If all goes to plan, Kearney will hopefully return in time for the final two rounds of the Heineken Cup pool stages in the New Year as well as reclaim the Ireland number 15 jersey for the Six Nations in February which he has been an ever-present in for the last dozen tests for Kidney’s charges.
Ireland coach Kidney revealed his usual strong squad as expected with four uncapped players named in the Ireland squad to play in the 2012 Guinness Autumn Series games against South Africa, Fiji and Argentina in November.
Centre Luke Marshall and forward Iain Henderson are both in line to earn their first caps after they were involved in the Ireland training camp in September.
The newcomers to the squad are prop David Kilcoyne and South African and Leinster hooker Richardt Strauss, who is now eligible to play for Ireland based on his residency for the past three years.
Kidney also announced that current Munster assistant coach and former international Anthony Foley will join the Ireland coaching team for the Autumn Series and their charge for Six nations glory in February.
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