Leinster Prepare For Treviso Test

The Leinster management are optimistic that the players who were on duty for the 34-23 Magners League victory over the Cardiff Blues will all be available for the trip to Benetton Treviso this weekend.

Shane Horgan (back), Shane Jennings (foot) and Jonathan Sexton (quad) are all expected to be available for the trip to Italy, though a decision on their fitness will be made on Friday afternoon.

Fergus McFadden, a try-scorer against Cardiff, suffered a cut to his head during the game last Saturday but has recovered sufficiently.

In addition, the players who featured in the Leinster ‘A’ game on Sunday will also be in the selection mix.

Commenting on his first appearance of the season against Cardiff, prop Cian Healy said: “It was a little bit tough (against Cardiff). I was blowing hard even though I was on for only 20 minutes.

“It was just good to be back playing and I’m looking forward to hopefully getting some more time maybe this week or next week.

“We’ve put in a good bit of work in the pack on our togetherness as an eight. It worked out a bit better for us (last weekend) than it did in the previous games and we can see, looking forward, what we want it to be.

“Going to Italy will be a tough task but we’d be confident in ourselves and what we can do. Italian sides at home always pose a big threat, but it will be our own challenge as to how we approach the game.

“I just want to get back playing for Leinster at this stage. It feels like an age since I last played and I just want to get back in a rhythm of week in, week out at the RDS hopefully.”

He added: “We’ve been doing a lot of one-on-one work with (consultant scrum coach) Greg Feek in the front row and the back row have been working separately with each other, so it has been a case of players managing their own time and their own meetings and Jono (Gibbes), in fairness, has pushed that on us.

“He told us to get our act together and do our own work in the front row, the back row and the second rows will meet up separately, and that has been really working out for us.”

To watch highlights of Leinster’s win over the Cardiff Blues, click here.