Leo Cullen not taking any risks with Luke Fitzgerald

Leinster coach Leo Cullen has confirmed that Luke Fitzgerald will not play in Friday night's game against the unbeaten Guinness Pro12 leaders the Scarlets at the RDS, following a neck/shoulder injury that forced him off against Benetton Treviso last Sunday.

Fitzgerald remains a doubt, too, for the province's opening Champions Cup game against Wasps at the RDS on Sunday week, with Cullen stressing that the player's previous neck and shoulder issues will ensure that Leinster err on the side of caution.

“He’s just getting assessed. I think anyone who’s had surgery that he’s had before – he’s a long-term fear for sure,” Cullen explained.

“But for the moment he’ll rehab. We won’t play him on Friday but you know we’ll be hopeful he’ll be back in time for Europe.”

It's the latest in a series of cruel injury blows for a player who was instrumental in Ireland's short-lived comeback against Argentina at the World Cup.

Pastoral role

In the early part of the season Cullen has given an opportunity to a host of young players, and Leinster's new captain Isa Nacewa, while adopting a pastoral role on the pitch as a senior figure, has been impressed by the way they have grasped the opportunity.

He was specifically asked to address the performances of Ireland Under-20 international Garry Ringrose.

“Garry was man of the match in his last outing at the RDS and he has taken every opportunity he can to perform.

“Everything he has done off the field has been spot on as well. He’s just excited to be around all the internationals and to play alongside them.

“Ross Molony as well has been a standout forward in the last six weeks for us.

“Garry admitted it was intimidating for him but then he just gets excited.

“He took me completely by surprise when I got here in the amount of work he does off the field for a young guy. He has never been fazed between swapping between 12, 13 and the wing.

“Even in training he just happily puts his head down and goes and reviews training and gets on with the job the next day. He’s going to be a world-class player but he’s taking it a week at a time because he knows that’s as far as he wants to look ahead.”

Nacewa admitted that the returning Ireland players had re-energised the training environment ahead of what will be a three-match run – Scarlets, Wasps and Bath – that could have a major impact on how competitive the province will be this season.

“We had a really young squad during the World Cup but it brought a different level of energy and buzz around the place,” said Nacewa. “There was a genuine competition when the guys were away, a fight for places. Throw 19 more players in the mix and the standard goes up a good few notches.

“Johnny [Sexton] not being involved post-France [for Ireland] was great for us because he got a run out against Treviso and everything goes up a notch. The excitement too.”

Retirement

From a personal perspective, Nacewa is glad of his current playing load, two years on from ‘retirement’.

He smiled when it was suggested that the composition of the back three was going to give Cullen some tough decisions, preferring to focus on his own well-being. “Eighty minutes every week is a good way to get match fitness back.

“It has been physically demanding and then the style of play against Treviso went up a massive notch.

“The speed of the ball with Eoin Reddan and Johnny in there adds a couple of hundred metres to what you run. You just want to be involved every week.”