RUGBY/World Cup Squad: Candlelit vigils will, hopefully, not be necessary for Shane Horgan in his latest race against time to return from injury. But a grade-two ligament tear, with a projected four-week recovery, is a prognosis he would have accepted on Saturday night.
Encouragingly, Horgan has a history of injuries like these and has proven that when presented with a deadline for recovering, few are more focused or have more powers of recuperation.
Four years ago, indeed, he worked flat out to recover from an Achilles operation in time for the World Cup pool match against Romania, and last season he made an unexpectedly swift return well ahead of schedule for the game against France after sustaining a medial-ligament injury playing for Leinster away to Gloucester.
"He has a grade two NCL tear, which in medical terms is probably a four-week injury, depending on his capacity to recover," confirmed the Ireland coach Eddie O'Sullivan yesterday.
"On that basis he has a chance of playing in the second pool game, against Georgia, and that's the target. Whether he makes that deadline will unfold in the next few weeks and we may make that decision prior to then if we have more information. All going well and he's a good healer, he may make that."
Tommy Bowe, who missed out to Brian Carney in the 30-man squad announced by O'Sullivan yesterday, will travel today with the squad to their training camp in Capbreton as cover, but Horgan will be named in the World Cup squad when it is formally submitted to tournament organisers. The Georgian game is on September 15th, five weeks from Saturday's game, or more precisely the wet Murrayfield warm-up where Horgan twisted the knee prior to Ireland's 31-21 defeat.
"It's now just down to his ability to heal," said O'Sullivan. "He's got a lifeline which last night he mightn't have expected. He was unlucky yesterday, maybe he's lucky today," added the coach, betraying his own relief.
Horgan's injury had no bearing on O'Sullivan's decision to go with a 16-14 split between forwards and backs yesterday as the squad fell largely along predictable lines.
Alan Quinlan's late surge saw him included as a sixth backrower and quasi-fourth lock - an understandable decision that was a tough break for the three excluded locks not used against the Scots on Saturday: Trevor Hogan, Mick O'Driscoll and Leo Cullen.
Aside from Carney's inclusion ahead of Bowe, also as anticipated, Stephen Ferris's versatility saw him included along with his Ulster teammate Neil Best ahead of the more specialist number eight Jamie Heaslip and his Leinster openside teammate Keith Gleeson. Bernard Jackman lost out to Frankie Sheahan in the battle for the third hooking ticket, which O'Sullivan said was closer than many thought.
"It's tough on the locks actually more than the back row," admitted O'Sullivan, "because initially we were to select four locks and five backrows, and that was going to be very difficult.
"The logic in bringing three locks is that if you bring four locks there's a chance that one of them doesn't get much action. I think you get more value out of six backrows; there's more attrition in the back row and it gives you more combinations."
That didn't make it any easier.
"It's tough on Keith Gleeson. As a player he's been the ultimate professional. He's come back from some dreadful injuries. He's been an example in camp to everybody in how he's applied himself but unfortunately for him it hasn't worked out. I felt very bad talking to him this morning.
"As I also said to Jamie Heaslip, things can change," added O'Sullivan, keen to kindle optimism. "He's a young player, a very talented lad and he's trying to get into a World Cup squad in an area that's probably the most competitive in the world. He's lost out for that reason and if he was in there this morning I'd probably say the exact same thing about Stephen Ferris. I'd have to say it's the toughest part of the job, without a shadow of a doubt.
"The news I'm giving some of them this morning is devastating. They've worked very hard for this opportunity and I'm the guy to take it away from some of them. So it's a very strange place to be this morning and I'd have to say I've had more enjoyable mornings in my life."
That said, he admitted, it was "a relief to get it done", not least because now the Irish World Cup roadshow moves on to south-west France today with a new sense of urgency.
FORWARDS
Props: Marcus Horan, John Hayes, Bryan Young, Simon Best. Hookers: Rory Best, Jerry Flannery, Frankie Sheahan. Locks: Paul O'Connell, Donncha O'Callaghan, Malcolm O'Kelly. Backrowers: Simon Easterby, David Wallace, Denis Leamy, Alan Quinlan, Stephen Ferris, Neil Best.
BACKS
Scrumhalves: Peter Stringer, Isaac Boss, Eoin Reddan. Outhalves: Ronan O'Gara, Paddy Wallace. Centres: Brian O'Driscoll, Gordon D'Arcy, Gavin Duffy. Outside backs: *Shane Horgan, Denis Hickie, Andrew Trimble, Brian Carney, Girvan Dempsey, Geordan Murphy.
*On standby: Tommy Bowe.
