MAGNERS LEAGUE:MUNSTER AND Ireland tight-head prop Tony Buckley turned down offers from France and Britain – believed to be Bath and Wasps – to play with Premiership side Sale next season.
The 30-year-old will arrive at the club’s Edgeley Park in the summer and is the first signing by Steve Diamond, the club’s new executive director of sport.
It is believed Bath wanted Buckley as cover for their English tighthead, David Wilson, who is likely to be part of England’s World Cup bid later this year in New Zealand.
That would have excluded Buckley from Ireland’s campaign, which remains a high priority for him.
Buckley, who made his Test debut on tour in Argentina in 2007, has signed on a three-year deal. He has played for Munster 88 times but in recent months has struggled to get a start with the province.
“I felt I needed a new challenge. I believe the best club to give me that challenge and also help me become a better player is Sale Sharks,” he said. “They are hungry and ambitious for success and I want to be a part of that.
“However, at this moment in time, I am a Munster player until the end of June. My priorities for now are to help Munster achieve success in the Amlin Challenge Cup and the Magners League and to regain a place in the Irish squad.”
Diamond is currently building up a pack for next season at the Premiership side.
“This is a statement of intent of what Sale Sharks want to achieve. We want to build a pack around a dominant set of forwards,” Diamond said. “With Andrew Sheridan having committed himself to the club and now adding Tony, we are shaping up well for next season.”
Munster Rugby yesterday released a statement on Buckley’s departure saying that they regretted his decision to leave.
“Media reports this morning that Tony Buckley will be leaving at the end of the season have been confirmed by Munster Rugby,” said the statement. “The 30-year-old declined an IRFU/ Munster offer in favour of a contract from Sale Sharks, which will see him play for the Edgeley Park club for the next three seasons.”
Munster chief executive Garrett Fitzgerald added: “We are disappointed that Tony has opted to further his career overseas but he leaves Munster with our best wishes.”
Munster also released a 27-man squad for their Magners League game against Edinburgh tomorrow (7.05pm kick-off) in Thomond Park. Several players who were involved in Declan Kidney’s Irish squad have been released for the match including Ronan O’Gara, Peter Stringer and Denis Leamy.
Just the 15 players who started for Ireland against France last week in the Six Nations Championship have been retained by Ireland for a two-day squad session.
Edinburgh interim head coach Nick Scrivener called for a “significant improvement” in how his team performs when the teams meet in Limerick. Scrivener has encouraged his men to take a leaf out of the Irish side’s book in terms of the efficiency and consistency of their work at the set-piece and the breakdown.
“The way Munster play has changed slightly in the last few years, and there’s no doubt they’ve got a number of dangerous weapons in the backs,” said Scrivener. “But the basics of their game are always at a very high level and we should take our lead from that.”
Ulster have named a 32-man squad for their Magners League game against Scarlets tomorrow (7.05pm kick-off). Andrew Trimble, Paddy Wallace and Tom Court are all back with the province and are certain to get some game time.
Ireland Under-20 outhalf Paddy Jackson is added to the panel in the hope of getting his first taste of Magners League action having previously appeared on the bench against Munster on New Year’s Day.
Outhalf Ian Humphreys is also in the mix again despite having to leave the field last week against Ospreys after sustaining a shoulder injury.
The Scarlets have lost five of their recent matches in all competitions but are still in fourth position on the table, two places ahead of Ulster.
Magners League Squads
MUNSTER(v Edinburgh): D Hurley, M Horan, W Du Preez, P Borlase, T Buckley, S Archer, D Varley, D Fogarty, D Ryan, I Nagle, M O'Driscoll, D Leamy, T O'Donnell, B Holland, J Coughlan, D Williams, P Stringer, R O'Gara, S Deasy, D Hurley, P Warwick, S Tuitupu, L Mafi, D Howlett, J Murphy, S Zebo, T Gleeson.
ULSTER(v Scarlets): J Cronin, D Fitzpatrick, P McAllister, B Young, T Court, N Brady, A Kyriacou, R Caldwell, N McComb, J Muller, T Barker, P Wannenburg, TJ Anderson, W Faloon, C Henry, R Diack, R Pienaar, P Marshall, I Humphreys, N OConnor, P Jackson, I Whitten, N Spence, P Wallace, L Marshall, A Trimble, S Danielli, T Seymour, C Gilroy, D McIlwaine, J Smith, A DArcy.
PLAYERS LEAVING
Tony Buckley (Muunster) to Sale; Paul Warwick (Munster) to Stade Francais; Jamie Hagan (Connacht) to Leinster; Mark McCrea (Ulster) to Connacht; Niall O’Connor (Ulster) to Connacht; Seán Cronin (Connacht) to Leinster; Ian Keatley (Connacht) to Munster; Fionn Carr (Connacht) to TBA.
