RUGBY – TEAM NEWS: Ronan O'Gara has recovered from a hamstring injury and will start for Munster in their crucial Heineken Cup Pool 1 clash against Sale at Thomond Park tomorrow night. There had been concerns over the fitness of O'Gara and Paul Warwick but both make the starting line-up, with the latter in at fullback and Keith Earls set to feature at outside centre.
O’Gara missed last weekend’s top of the table clash away to Ospreys with a hamstring injury and Warwick, his replacement on the day, left the pitch in the first half with an eye injury, but the pair came through yesterday’s training session at Musgrave Park.
Warwick's inclusion means Denis Hurley is named on the bench. Earls partners Lifiemi Mafi, in the absence of the injured Rua Tipoki, and in the pack Marcus Horan returns to the frontrow.
It means Denis Leamy's return to number eight at the expense of John O'Sullivan is the only change from the XV that beat Sale 24-16 at Edgeley Park last October.
The visitors have made one change to last week's starting line-up when they played London Irish, with Richard Wigglesworth named at scrumhalf ahead of Dwayne Peel.
Paul O’Connell will captain Munster with kick-off on Friday at 8pm.
Munster team (v Sale):P Warwick; D Howlett, K Earls, L Mafi, I Dowling, R O'Gara, T O'Leary; M Horan, J Flannery, J Hayes; D O'Callaghan, P O'Connell (C), A Quinlan, D Wallace, D Leamy.
Replacements: D Fogarty, F Pucciariello, D Ryan, N Ronan, P Stringer, B Murphy, D Hurley.
