It doesn’t sound good.
Keith Earls enjoyed an outstanding Six Nations campaign for Ireland but it ended on a sour note. The Munster wing had to be helped from the field at Twickenham after sustaining an injury during the victory over England.
While he is still to undergo a scan to determine the full extent of the injury, Munster coach Johann Van Graan did not seem optimistic.
“Keith Earls is probably out for a long time. We are still waiting for the feedback on him,” Van Graan said during Munster’s weekly press briefing at UL on Monday.
“I spoke to him personally. He was in a lot of pain. If you just looked at the clip, he seems to be in a bit of trouble and knowing Earlsie he is quite a tough man.
“He has been through a lot and just watching the footage, if you look at him celebrating in the circle afterwards, he jumped on one leg. I don’t have any medical confirmation at this stage, but I fear he is going to be out for quite a long time.”
Superb performance from @KEITHEARLS87 throughout the victorious 6 Nations campaign, all the best to the Moyross man as he recovers from injury and we hope to see him back in red soon! #ENGvIRE #ShoulderToShoulder ☘☘☘ pic.twitter.com/RQSVmh2kEF
— Munster Rugby (@Munsterrugby) March 17, 2018
Earls adds to a mounting injury list for Van Graan, who has already been forced to adjust after losing Tyler Bleyendaal and Duncan Williams for the rest of the season. Simon Zebo (hamstring), Rory Scannell (shoulder), Andrew Conway (knee) and Alex Wootton (hip) are also not fit while the province’s backline has taken a devastating hit with Chris Farrell, Chris Cloete and Jaco Taute all out for the foreseeable future.
Earls is now a major doubt for Munster’s European Champions Cup clash with Toulon on Easter weekend.
Having rode the crest of the Irish Six Nations wave – being nominated for Player of the Tournament – the bleak prognosis on Earls is a real kick in the teeth.
