Ireland scrum coach John Fogarty has confirmed that Conor Murray will start Saturday’s crunch Guinness Six Nations round two game against France at the Aviva Stadium (kick-off 2.15pm, live on RTÉ 2 and ITV).
Murray’s father, Gerry, is being treated for serious injuries in hospital after being hit by a lorry while cycling near his home on the N20 near Patrickswell on Tuesday afternoon.
Murray left the Irish squad’s base to be with his family but returned to take part in the team’s Captain’s Run at the Aviva Stadium on Friday, after which Fogarty was asked about the scrumhalf’s wellbeing.
“He’s back in with the group and he’s in good form and he’s looking forward to tomorrow,” said Fogarty, adding: “We wish his dad the very best from the squad and a quick recovery.”
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Murray is Ireland’s most-capped scrumhalf and will make his 102nd appearance for Ireland against France. Asked if there had been any discussions about standing Murray down from the game, Fogarty said: “Not that I’m aware of. Conor’s good, he’s great, all considered.”
Both sides recorded bonus-point wins away to Wales and Italy on the opening weekend, and Ireland go into this match as the world’s number one ranked side, but France are ranked second and are the reigning Grand Slam champions. They have also won the last three meetings in the Six Nations.
“It’s a big game, it’s the next game but it’s a big game,” said Fogarty. “The last three times we played these guys we didn’t come out the right side of it so we want to be the best version of ourselves and I guess that’s what people are focusing on now, that’s what the lads are focusing on now, putting on a performance that we can be proud of.
“We felt we didn’t do it the last two times so there’s a little bit of thought around that; let’s make sure we’re putting out the best performance against this team.”
Fogarty’s own domain of the scrum could have a big bearing on the outcome. “I guess giving them access into the game through penalties is going to be huge and the battle at scrum time is going to play a big part. It’s a challenge for sure.
The 162kg (25st 7llbs) Uini Atonio is unusually tall for a prop at 6′ 5″ and Fogarty likely had the French tighthead in mind when commenting: “Wayne Barnes is going to be the ref and there are going to be bits around the bind, space between their bind and making sure that’s maintained, so they’re not loading on us. There are still bits like that have to be boxed off.”
“We’ve had a good two weeks. Rob Herring is very experienced at what he does, he learned from the best in Rory Best. He’s got a really good feel, he fires well on set and that’s what we want, we want to get across the line, get some height and it will be a big battle. It’s something we’re looking forward to.”
