The re-signed Guy Easterby and Girvan Dempsey are among the five players added to the Leinster 22 who were on duty in last Friday's 28-14 win over Edinburgh for this Saturday's Heineken European Cup rematch in Murrayfield.

In what may have been a signal that Easterby will be propelled straight back into the starting team when it is announced on Friday, head coach Michael Cheika launched a staunch defence of his decision to coax the 36-year-old back from England's third tier with Otley.

Given the recent incumbent in the absence of the injured Chris Whitaker - who will also miss the concluding two pool games, at home to Toulouse and away to Leicester - is Cillian Willis, a promising, home-grown 22-year-old, there will be disappointment if such an eventuality comes to pass.

After a difficult first night as a 20th-minute replacement for Whitaker in Toulouse, Willis assuredly gave his best performance of his three subsequent starts - all of them in Leinster wins - last Friday.

There were a couple of passes that fell short, and he was twice nabbed at the base, but much of his passing was back to its normal slickness, notably in the build-up to the second and third tries.

He is improving with each game but given the two available options are relatively callow at this level, at the very least it looks as if Cheika will call upon Easterby's experience in the 22, which won't please Chris Keane much either.

"The rules let us bring in a player for an injury and we need to have the options. One, we need to have the play options, and I like the fact that he (Easterby) has got that extra experience for these key games; and, two, if we get another injury I'm going to need a third halfback anyway, and that's always on the cards," reasoned Cheika yesterday.

Mindful of the need for a coach to always give himself as many options as possible, he added, "I think the easier thing to do would have been to leave the status quo and hope everything goes well. The harder decision is to bring in another player and talk to the other players.

"I spoke to the two of them (Willis and Keane) like men. I explained that I wanted to look after them but I also have to look after the team.

"My actions, in terms of confidence building and as a coach who wants to develop players, are not taken in the context of just one action. All of the days that we're out there passing with them and working with them cannot be overruled by one thing.

"They'll be upset and I want them to be upset because I want them to be fighting for their place. And their place is not gone. They're going to have to fight for their place, just like Guy has to."

Juan Gomez, Cian Healy and Christian Warner have also been added to the 22, although scrumhalf apart, the starting XV and match-day squad are unlikely to be altered from that which took that hard-earned win on Friday.

Edinburgh attacked the ball in the tackle effectively to help fashion a number of turnovers and aside from targeting more discipline at ruck time, Cheika also spoke of the need for a better kicking game and a better focus mentally over 80 minutes.

Generally Edinburgh were not given due credit, there being a widespread lack of recognition of the improvements Andy Robinson has brought about after their summer of discontent and exodus of players.

"He's a good coach," said Cheika. "I know he had a bad spell with England but he wouldn't have been able to coach England if he wasn't a good coach and think of the experience he would have got.

"It's like a guy in business who goes bankrupt and comes back stronger, and he looks very confident in what he's doing there; he understands the players he's working with.

"I think they'll fancy taking us up there but we've got a lot to play for. That's one good thing I think we're teaching here - we never discredit our opposition.

"But we understand the necessities of what we've got to do at the weekend. We've just got to be confident in our own game, play it smart and get an away win."

To that end, encouragingly, Leinster have lost only two of their six away matches this season.

Munster will announce their enlarged squad today, with the ex-Leinster flanker Niall Ronan likely to be named after overcoming a hamstring strain picked up the day before the Celtic League match against Leinster.

David Wallace suffered a hyperextension to his left arm, as distinct from hypothermia, in the Stradey storm, and the official line is that he has not yet been ruled out, but Munster will wait until Friday's training run before making a decision. At least the signs are encouraging.

FORWARDS (14): Juan Gomez, Cian Healy, Ollie le Roux, Brian Blaney, Bernard Jackman, Stephen Knoop, Stan Wright, Leo Cullen, Cameron Jowitt, Malcolm O'Kelly, Keith Gleeson, Shane Jennings, Stephen Keogh, Jamie Heaslip

BACKS (13): Chris Keane, Cillian Willis, Guy Easterby, Felipe Contepomi, Jonathan Sexton, Christian Warner, Gordon D'Arcy, Brian O'Driscoll, Gary Brown, Luke Fitzgerald, Shane Horgan, Rob Kearney, Girvan Dempsey