Anthony Foley rules out Munster crisis on or off field

With Paul O'Connell in the clubhouse for a time during yesterday's training session at University of Limerick and Denis Leamy in full Munster gear on the sideline, this might have looked like a circling of wagons by the former European champions.

But coach Anthony Foley, who already has other Heineken Cup winners Jerry Flannery and Mick O'Driscoll on board his management team, dismissed notions of a crisis on or off the field and said it was business as usual as Munster will try to rescue a disappointing season by getting their ailing Pro12 campaign back on track next Sunday in Treviso.

Foley, who redirected any questions about the possible appointment of a director of rugby to chief executive Garrett Fitzgerald, revealed that he had talks with the chief executive that morning but that nothing had been decided on his future.

But with the chief executive not present at the media briefing and nothing forthcoming from Munster, speculation about the appointment of a director of rugby remains just that. “That’s probably a question you need to bring up with Garrett [Fitzgerald],” when asked about stories that the province was going to go down the road of bringing in a director of rugby.

Foley, who has a one-year extension to his contract on the table when his two seasons in charge comes to an end in June, said his own future has not been decided yet. “Nothing has been confirmed there as yet. I sat down with Garrett this morning and when there’s something to be announced it will be announced.”

But he dismissed notions of a crisis in Munster and believes they are not far from turning things around. “If we were playing poorly, I would say yes, but we’re creating a lot of opportunities. You go back to the Ospreys game when we didn’t get a penalty shot at goal and against Glasgow when we had one penalty shot at goal.

“In terms of where we are to get points at the moment, it has to be through tries.”

He is boosted by the return of former All Black Francis Saili for Sunday's clash away to Treviso, while prop Stephen Archer is also close to returning from injury.