Ireland captain Dion O'Cuinneagain will miss Ulster's European Cup clash with London Wasps at Ravenhill on Friday night. The South African-born backrow forward popped the A/C joint in his shoulder during last weekend's 26-12 defeat by Bourgoin at the Stade Pierre Rajon.
It is not the same shoulder he injured during the recent World Cup. O'Cuinneagain consulted a specialist yesterday afternoon to find out the extent of the damage. The injury occurred 20 minutes from the end of the Bourgoin match and amazingly he played on until five minutes from full-time. "The medical team asked me to stay on the pitch and see how things went. I couldn't tackle, do anything really and came off." O'Cuinneagain's bravery did not compound the injury, sustained when the point of his shoulder collided with the ground. His rehabilitation will take two to three weeks but the talented flanker expects to be fit for Ulster's game against Llanelli in a fortnight's time. "It's very frustrating. I never had a shoulder injury prior to the one I suffered in the World Cup: now I have had two in the space of two months."
O'Cuinneagain is extremely disappointed at being hors de combat. "I'd much prefer to be playing. The Irish management won't be sad that I'm not, but I will. I was particularly looking forward to the game against Wasps on Friday.
"It was an opportunity to play against John Mitchell, my old coach at Sale. They have Lawrence Dallaglio, probably the top loose forward around. I'd like to have been playing against him. You want to measure yourself against different people."
The Irish captain admitted that the Ulster players had taken the Bourgoin defeat badly, tantalised by the knowledge that for more than half the match they had outplayed their opponents. "Harry (Williams, the Ulster coach) made an interesting point.
"He said that we had dominated a game for 60 minutes, the first half and the last 20, yet ended up losing. The negatives would have been that we didn't take our chances and when you contrast that with Bourgoin, who took four out of five in the first half, then it's easy to see why we lost.
"Obviously the scrummaging was also a factor. Cleverly in the second half, they kicked long and tried to force as many scrums as possible, an area in which they enjoyed a marked superiority." O'Cuinneagain couldn't explain why Ulster's scrummaging was so poor other than pointing out that the referee took a big dislike to Fijian prop Joeli Veitayaki's style.
"There were positives and that is something on which we will dwell. We had been struggling in the lineout in previous matches yet it was an area that went very well for us. "Another positive is that Jonathan Bell is back from injury and that will help in several respects." Bell has recovered from the thumb injury that caused him to miss the Bourgoin match. He can be expected to partner Jan Cunningham in the centre when the team is announced today, the latter continuing in the absence of Riaz Fredericks who is unlikely to play before Christmas.
International flanker Andy Ward, also an absentee at the weekend, has a better than 50/50 chance of being fit. A final decision will be taken later today on whether the hairline fracture of the foot has healed sufficiently. Ulster coach Harry Williams did not travel to watch Wasps' victory over Llanelli at Loftus Road on Sunday, instead catching the game on Eurosport: it confirmed to him what a fine side Friday's opponents are. The Ulster squad will involve themselves in promoting cross community activity at Ravenhill today.
St Colmcille's, Knocklyon was twinned with Holywood Primary - Williams is a former principal of Holywood - four years ago and the Dublin school is currently visiting Belfast. They will be honoured guests at Ravenhill this morning when they will join the Ulster players in a series of Leprechaun rugby activities.
Meanwhile Leinster coach Mike Ruddock is untroubled by injury concerns ahead of the game against Glasgow Caledonians in Glasgow on Friday night. Malcolm O'Kelly, who retired at half-time in the win over Leicester, is back in training, as are Gary Halpin and Trevor Brennan, late withdrawals for the Tigers match. Ruddock and his assistant Matt Williams travelled to Paris to take in Glasgow's visit to Stade Francais and were impressed with the Scottish district team's fluency and mobility.
Dominic Crotty is Munster's only concern ahead of Sunday's match against Saracens at Vicarage Road. The full back is still struggling with a toe injury. Coach Declan Kidney dispatched Ireland under-21 backs' coach Pat Cross on a spying mission to take in the Colomiers-Saracens match last weekend.
The AIB League Division Two programme which begins his weekend will have two matches less following the postponement of the games between Blackrock College and Old Belvedere and Belfast Harlequins and UCC. If a club has more than two players required by a province then they can seek to have a fixture rescheduled.
Blackrock have six (Gary Halpin, Leo Cullen, Shane Byrne, Emmet Farrell, Brian O'Driscoll and Rob Casey) in action for Leinster on Friday while Belfast Harlequins players, Spencer Bromley and Niall Malone, will be in action for Ulster.
Indeed Blackrock are likely to receive two further postponements as fixtures with Greystones and Bective Rangers clash with Leinster weekends. This weekend's postponed games have been rescheduled for April 15th.
All Black star Jonah Lomu has signed a two-year contract with Super 12 team Wellington Hurricanes. His move to Wellington is his third Super 12 team in as many years. Lomu, who joined the Chief's from Auckland last year, will partner Auckland fellow All Blacks Christian Cullen and Tana Umaga in a lethal backline.
Connacht: S Alnutt; P Duignan or C Kilroy, M Mostyn, M Deane, N Carolan; E Elwood, J Ferris; (props from) J Screene, J Maher, M Cahill; B Jackman; G Webster, M McConnell; (backrow from): U O'Callaghan, J Charlie, B Gavin, I Dillon.
