RUGBY:Leinster coach Joe Schmidt faces a difficult decision as he prepares to try and pick a winning team against Munster, writes JOHN O'SULLIVAN

THERE IS no wriggle room for sentiment when Munster and Leinster collide so Shane Horgan won’t be dwelling on a potential 200th cap, should he be selected for Saturday’s Magners League game at Thomond Park. He returned to Leinster colours last weekend in Rodney Parade following two months on the sidelines with a troublesome knee injury, lasting 62 minutes before being replaced by David Kearney. Horgan’s wish-list for Saturday will centre on a victory for the visitors and then the possibility that he may play some part in securing the win.

The 32-year-old knows Leinster coach Joe Schmidt’s only consideration will be picking a team to win the match. Horgan wouldn’t want it any other way, nor would he countenance for one moment being indulged on the cusp of a remarkable landmark, a homily to excellence and longevity and an honour that never crossed his mind when he made his debut for the province in 1998.

He smiled: “When I started it was only about four, five or six games a season; I would have had to play for about 40 years to make that. The situation has changed, it’s very nice, a personal milestone, but I think certainly my focus this week is on this game and Munster and it really does focus the mind.”

Horgan’s lack of game time and Fergus McFadden’s brilliant form – David Kearney and Niall Morris have also stepped in and up – ensures Schmidt faces a difficult decision on the composition of the backline.

Ideally he would love to provide Horgan with more game time in Limerick, especially in the light of the Heineken Cup quarter-final against the Leicester Tigers the following week but that must be balanced by not forcing the player to overstretch his recovery.

Horgan was in brilliant form prior to his injury and would have contended strongly for a place on the Ireland team during the Six Nations. His experience, competitive fire and aptitude for producing top quality performances on high profile occasions may propel Schmidt to at least include him in the match 23 at the weekend.

Indulging the media’s desire for a little retro glance at his career in a blue jersey, Horgan admitted his favourite Magners League moment was of more recent vintage. “Winning the Magners League (in 2008) was fantastic for us a club. We hadn’t won anything in a while and I think the original incarnation of the Magners League, in 2001; that was a pretty special day as well.

“I think as this competition has evolved over the last number of years into the high standard that it is now, that has been really enjoyable and to see it develop and be part of that has been a huge benefit and bonus to my career. It has been good for everyone concerned.”

So what of his Leinster bow, back in the black and white days? He smiles: “My senior debut was against Ulster in Donnybrook and we ended up losing the game. It’s hazy enough, I was playing in the centre that day and Andy Ward was playing (for them).”

He was up against current Saracens coach Mark McCall and the evergreen Stanley McDowell that day. Horgan continued: “When I came in to Leinster, I was playing with guys I would have watched on TV and some of them would have been heroes at the time. It felt weird and took quite a while to settle in. Now guys are in the team for a while but then you were in your club and then you came into Leinster. That debut was a huge deal.”

The fact that Leinster remains a better team when he’s in his pomp, as he was prior to injury, is a testament to his dedication to relentlessly exploit his talent.

There has been no diminution in focus and that’s why if Horgan does play on Saturday, he’ll do so with typically wholehearted commitment.