Damian de Allende and RG Snyman have been named in Munster’s starting lineup for Saturday’s Irish derby against Leinster in Dublin.
It will be Munster’s first game in six months, with new signings De Allende and Snyman both starting in what will be their debut appearances for the club.
Shane Daly makes his fifth start at fulback in his 18th appearance for the province with Ireland internationals Andrew Conway and Keith Earls serving as the starting wings.
De Allende is partnered in the midfield by Chris Farrell with Conor Murray and JJ Hanrahan forming the halfback-axis.
James Cronin, Niall Scannell and Stephen Archer start in the front row with Snyman and Billy Holland in the second row.
The side is completed by captain Peter O’Mahony, Tommy O’Donnell and CJ Stander as the loose trio.
There are five forwards on the bench with Rhys Marshall, Dave Kilcoyne and John Ryan providing the front row cover. South African duo Jean Kleyn and Chris Cloete complete the forward cover.
Craig Casey, Rory Scannell and new signing Matt Gallagher, who is also set to make his debut, are the backline replacements.
Head Coach Johann van Graan said: ‘It was a real squad effort the last nine weeks, everyone gave it their all.
‘Unfortunately, we can only pick 23 players. There were a lot of close calls and that just shows the depth that we’ve created. With such a long season coming up, everybody wants to play the first game but there’s a lot of rugby to be played.
‘We said all along that getting back to playing rugby on Saturday night is our sole objective. A few of the guys in isolation were very close to getting into the team and they worked really hard but obviously the fact they were in self-isolation ruled them out.
‘They are training away at home and as soon as they come out of self-isolation, they will be available for selection again.’
Munster – 15 Shane Daly, 14 Andrew Conway, 13 Chris Farrell, 12 Damian de Allende, 11Keith Earls, 10 JJ Hanrahan, 9 Conor Murray, CJ Stander, 7 Tommy O’Donnell, 6 Peter O’Mahony (c), 5 Billy Holland, 4 RG Snyman, 3 Stephen Archer, 2 Niall Scannell, 1 James Cronin.
Subs: 16 Rhys Marshall, 17 Dave Kilcoyne, 18 John Ryan, 19 Jean Kleyn, 20 Chris Cloete, 21 Craig Casey, 22 Rory Scannell, 23 Matt Gallagher.
Photo: Munster Rugby/Instagram
