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Rugby

29th Sep 2015

Not such a pain in the arse as Rob Kearney cleared to face Italy on Sunday

Gluteus maximus

SportsJOE

Joe Schmidt has 31 fit players to choose from ahead of Sunday’s clash with Italy.

Rob Kearney was the biggest doubt after injuring his glute muscle in the act of scoring a try against Romania, but the Leinster full-back has been cleared to play – a scan revealing a “mild gluteal strain”.

While he avoided on-field training today, the 29 year old looked fit enough earlier as he worked out at the team’s base in Guildford.

It was good news on the treble for Ireland, with Keith Earls and Robbie Henshaw also cleared to face the Azzurri.

Munster man Earls had to undergo Return-To-Play protocol after receiving a bang on the head at Wembley, but can line out in the Olympic Stadium on Sunday after completing the third stage of mandatory testing.

Henshaw, the only member of the squad yet to see any action at the World Cup, trained fully again after recovering from a hamstring injury.