Coombes is the youngest-ever recipient of the award at 23 years and 184 days after setting a club record for most tries in a season (15).

This includes four in his final outing of the season against Zebre.

The Skibbereen star averaged a try every 87 minutes in his 22 appearances this season, 17 of which were starts.

Coombes was devastating in attack with powerful ball-carrying but was equally effective in defence.

Often, he was Munster’s standout player in both aspects of the game with his work at the breakdown being unrivalled.

The future looks bright for the new Munster Men’s Player of the Year as he is set to earn his first Irish cap this summer.

Dorothy Wall – Munster Women’s Player of the Year

#WomensSixNations

Test try #⃣2⃣ in green for Dorothy Wall! #ShoulderToShoulder #IrishRugby pic.twitter.com/JPbKvfrzu5

— Irish Rugby (@IrishRugby) April 26, 2021

Dorothy Wall was the winner of the Munster Women’s Player of the Year award after her terrific season for the province.

The Munster back-rower, like her male counterpart, is a relentless defensive presence for the Red Army and is a fantastic ball-carrier too.

The Tipperary Titan starred in the interprovincial championship for the province and is a leader on the pitch.

Her performances for Adam Grigg’s Ireland side were factored into the decision to award her with the accolade due to government restrictions and limited activity across domestic rugby.

With only seven Ireland caps to her name at the moment, it is only a matter of time before that number skyrockets for the 21-year-old.

Craig Casey – Young Player of the Year

Craig Casey stood out alongside Gavin Coombes as one of the mens’ best players of the season.

The 22-year-old produced some spectacular performances in his 19 appearances and led by example in his 12 starts.

His three Player of the Match awards reflects this.

Casey kept the Munster attack ticking and manufactured a high-tempo style that led Munster to the Pro 14 final.

Casey made his Ireland debut in the Six Nations against Italy after his impressive club-level performances.

The Shannon RFC and Ardscoil Rís product will earn more caps this summer during the Vodafone Summer Series.

Ben Healy – John McCarthy Award for Greencore Academy Player of the Year

Ben Healy excelled in his second season as part of Munster’s Greencore Academy, earning 17 appearances for the senior side.

His season-opening 50-metre winner at Parc y Scarlets set the tone for an impressive season for the young fly-half.

His ability to kick from distance continued to stand out as an important asset for the province throughout the season.

The 21-year-old got his first senior contract in March after a stellar season and will be part of the senior squad next season.

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Munsterrugby.ie report that 140 tests were conducted last week, with all 140 coming back negative. Munster began their training at the High performance centre in Limerick. However, it won’t be normal training as there will be a lot of restrictions. Munster say that training will be done in small groups of seven. It is expected that each set of 7 players will work with one coach without any interaction with the other groups. In addition, strict measures are in place in terms of the use of gym equipment.

Players will have to arrive, train and then go home. No use of showers, changing rooms or kitchen areas/video analysis rooms will be permitted. Players and staff will have to undergo mandatory daily temperature checks. This is in order to gain access to the High performance centre. As I reported earlier last week, automatic temperature checks can be conducted using DAMOC Thermo Check which was installed by the IRFU at the 6 High Performance Centres last week.

In terms of the team itself, CJ Stander and Chris Cloete have just returned to Ireland and both of these players will have to self isolate for two weeks. Joey Carbery is continuing with recovery, but he should play in the knockout stages of the Pro14. Munster Rugby state that Tadhg Beirne, Damian De Allende, Calvin Nash will return in August. Keith Earls is also expected to be back in August.

Leinster have also returned to training. Of course, these under the exact same restrictions as Munster. Leo Cullen was excited to be back. Cullen said, “It’s great seeing some of the faces coming in today, the guys are out there testing away which is great to see and the guys seem to have turned up in very good condition from the naked eye, so we’ll see what the numbers tell us”. Squad news wasn’t available on Monday, but it is expected on Tuesday.

Leinster and Munster will in both sides first game back on August 22nd. Leinster will top conference A, while Ulster, Munster and Edinburgh are expected to remain in the other three positions.

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Teams from the same country will face off against each other in home and away games.  The season is concluded with semi-finals and a final. BBC Sport report that the Pro14 final will take place on Saturday the 12th of September. The venue on this has yet to be decided. There was eight rounds of games remaining, however these will now not be played. This means the season will be cut by 6 games, from 21 to 15.

It is expected the remainder of the season will be played over four consecutive weekends. Leinster currently top Conference A, with Edinburgh ahead in Conference B. In terms of how teams will qualify for Europe, it will be based on finishing positions after round 13. The EPCR are also said to be in talks of increasing the number of teams in the Champions Cup from 20 to 24. This would mean an extra place for a team from the Pro14. This position would be to the Dragons of Wales. A meeting of the EPCR is to take place on June 24th where this will be discussed.

A statement released by Pro14 on Wednesday said, “The 2019-20 season will have an abbreviated finish that features the most attractive matchups and rivalries from the Guinness Pro14 with two rounds of derby games in each territory counting towards final positions”. The statement continued, “Games postponed prior to the indefinite suspension will be deemed 0-0 draws as previously stated by Pro14 Rugby on 28 February, 2020.”

It is likely that these games will be played without spectators. This will likely come down to 6 government jurisdictions. The director of the Pro14 Dave Jordan said, “Safety has been, and will continue to be, the highest priority. “We are very fortunate to be in a position where everyone involved is confident that we can conclude the season on the field of play. “The work and diligence of our leading medical personnel at our unions, our clubs, World Rugby and key stakeholders to get us to this point has been immense.”

Schedule of Games:

Round 14: Saturday, August 22

Round 15: Saturday, August 29

Semi-Finals: Saturday, September 5

Final: Saturday, September 12

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BBC report that plans are currently been discussed to resume a curtailed Pro 14 championship on August 22nd.

Talks have been ongoing between the Pro 14 and clubs. It is likely that if the games were to be played they would be played behind closed doors. This would mean no spectators present in the stands. A full return of the Pro 14 competition would be difficult as it covers five countries, Ireland, Wales, Scotland, Italy and South Africa. Therefore, it wouldn’t be feasible in the current climate to just begin games.

BBC report that a virtual meeting was held on Thursday. Proposals were put in place to play two rounds of conference with sides playing teams from their own country from August 22nd. This would mean for example fixtures between Leinster, Connacht, Munster and Ulster. However, when you look at Wales, Scotland and South Africa, it would potentially mean teams would have to play each other on consecutive weekends.

Scottish rugby chief operating officer Dominic McKay, who is also a board member of the PRO 14 said that any resumption to the competition will be dependent on government approval. He said, “We are still looking at scenarios that might see some way of potentially finishing the PRO 14 season”.

Wales Online have released the potential fixtures which have been pencilled in for August 22nd, which shows in terms of Ireland provincial games,  Leinster playing Munster and Connacht versus Ulster. August 29th will see Leinster travel to Ulster and Connacht travelling to Munster. Heineken Champions Cup games are also scheduled to resume with these beginning on September 12th. The semi-finals are to take place on September 26th. Whether these are likely to be given the go ahead remains questionable. This is my opinion because teams will have to travel to different countries.

A fixture list has also been drawn up which Wales Online report is likely to see the season finish in August/September. They report that the Pro 14 play-off semi-finals are pencilled in for the 5th of September. The final scheduled to take place around the 17-19th of September. Obviously, these are only drafts as if the games were to go ahead they will have to get the green light from government officials.

At present rugby is seen as non essential. This is just like every other sport as we still are in midst of the coronavirus pandemic. In fact, rugby falls under stage 5 in terms of the governments 5 stage plan here in Ireland. This would mean rugby can commence from August 10th. However, as previously stated if it was to return the number of spectators will be limited or non existent. Previously, discussions took place on whether to call the season and give Leinster the trophy. This was because they had the most points of all the sides in conference A and B. European place were also going to be awarded on the basis of the teams position in the table. However, this is obviously not going to happen now owing to the new proposals which have been drawn by the PRO 14 hierarchy.

Personally, I can see the games returning. However, they will obviously have to be behind closed doors. The only concerning aspect is probably when we reach the semi-finals stages where are the games going to be played for example? Would it be okay for example for Edinburgh or Glasgow to travel over to the RDS? These are all the questions that have to be answered.

But we can now disclose fixtures featuring Cardiff Blues, Dragons, Ospreys and the Scarlets, as well as those involving the Irish and Scottish teams, could all be switched to the Republic and probably be played behind closed doors.

The fixture list

AUGUST 22

Proposed fixtures

Leinster v Munster

Ospreys v Dragons

Connacht v Ulster

Edinburgh v Glasgow Warriors

Zebre v Treviso

Southern Kings v Cheetahs

Scarlets v Cardiff Blues

Proposed fixtures

Ulster v Leinster

Cardiff Blues v Ospreys

Dragons v Scarlets

Glasgow Warriors v Edinburgh

Benetton v Zebre

Cheetahs v Southern Kings

Munster v Connacht

SEPTEMBER 5

Winner Conference A v Runner-up Conference B

Winner Conference B v Runner-up Conference A

SEPTEMBER 12

European quarter-finals

SEPTEMBER 17-19

PRO14 final

SEPTEMBER 26

EPCR semi-finals

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RTE Sport report that their is also restrictions on public gatherings and sporting events. These are the Italian regions of Lombardy, Emilia Romagna and Veneto. The women’s Six Nations meeting between Scotland and Italy was postponed as were four Seria A League games. Pro 14 rugby said they will remain in contact with Italian rugby authorities. They said on their website, “To ensure the safety of our players and spectators PRO14 Rugby fully supports the preventative measures taken in Italy and will adhere to the directives from the World Health Organisation (WHO) and local authorities,”.They stated that the current restrictions will remain in place till March 1st.

The Ireland v Italy game is also under threat. Six Nations released a statement saying that everything’s been monitored closely and they are in constant contact with FIR and all other rugby unions. Simon Harris Minister for Health also expressed his concern about the virus and what it could to do some events. Speaking to RTE News he said “The rugby game is something that needs considerable consideration”. “There will be some big decisions that have to be made in the coming days including mass gatherings.

As of now the IRFU have stated that the games will go ahead as planned. However, the union said it will follow government advice on the matter. It wouldn’t be the first time a Six Nations game was called off though. In 2001 Ireland’s Six Nations meeting with England was postponed due to the outbreak of foot and mouth. The game was eventually played the following October.

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Connacht were dealt a massive blow early on when Finlay Bealham had to be stretchered off in what looked a serious injury. He was replaced by Dominic Robertson McCoy with 4 minutes on the clock. Simon Hickey landed two penalties to give Edinburgh the lead. The hosts were then awarded a penalty try after Matt Scott broke but a high tackle on him just before the try line therefore meant a penalty try was awarded. A double whammy for Connacht as Jack Carty was sin-binned. Edinburgh took advantage of the extra man. Simon Berghan going over from close range to get a try. Connacht did respond though as Tiernan O’Halloran powered over to cut the gap before the break.

Úd #5 faighte ag @EdinburghRugby. An mbeidh @connachtrugby in ann rudaí a chasadh timpeall roimh an chéad chluiche eile?

Disappointing night for Connacht tonight losing to Edinburgh on a scoreline of 41-14.@PRO14Official #EDIvCON #RugbaíBEO pic.twitter.com/UF90W2CEml

— Spórt TG4 (@SportTG4) February 21, 2020

O’Halloran was once again on the scoreboard from a try on the resumption. It was also converted. Edinburgh hit back with a nice try from Pierre Schoeman, before Van Der Merwe went over to extend the lead in a sparse crowd at Murrayfield. The bonus point all wrapped up. There was still time for more tries though. Nick Haining and Eroni Sau were both given yellow cards for Edinburgh, as were Conor Fitzgerald and Eoghan Masterson for Connacht. Edinburgh had the final say with second penalty try of the game to claim a 27 point win.

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Nárbh iontach an úd é sin a fuair Cian Kelleher do @leinsterrugby

Kelleher spotting the gap on the wing to get in for his 4th try of the season.@PRO14Official #OSPvLEI #RugbaíBEO pic.twitter.com/YxoycGoNww

— Spórt TG4 (@SportTG4) February 21, 2020

It was the Ospreys who had the first chance to get on the scoreboard through Luke Price who opted to kick for goal from a penalty despite a strong wind. However, he had the distance but his effort hit the post on 7 minutes. It took 18 minutes for a score to arrive. It was Leinster. Some good build up play going through the phases before the ball found Tommy O’Brien who went in for a try. Ciaran Frawley added the extra points from the conversion. Ospreys though had their chances Kieran Williams going close.

Luke Price made amends for his earlier miss knocking over a penalty on 39 minutes. Ospreys then got a lucky break and ran in a try. Leinster fumbled the ball, before Luke Morgan picked up and ran through for a try under the sticks. Price added the conversion it was 10-7 at half time.

Leinster opened the second half in the ascendency. They put their opponents under severe pressure in their own 22. Leinster were then dominating a couple of scrums. Ospreys probably should have been reduced to 14 men for the number of infringements. However, they eventually paid the penalty with Wexford man Josh Murphy going over. Ciaran Frawley added the extras. The score now 14-10 after 49 minutes in favour of Leo Cullen’s men.

However, it took a further 10 minutes for another score. It once again came courtesy of the boot from Luke Price who cut the deficit to just a single point, 14-13. It took Leinster until the 75 minute to wrap up the win as Cian Kelleher went over. Harry Byrne kicked the conversion this time. It finished up 21-13 to Leinster in a decent win for Leinster at The Gnoll in Neath.

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Click here for LIVE Score Updates 

Preview 

Zebre currently sit in 6th place in the table. Their history in the competition against Irish teams isn’t great considering win over an Irish side was Connacht back in 2018. They have former Munster and Leinster man Ian Nagle starting which is great to see. Mick Kearney also starts the former Leinster man is in the second row.

Munster come into the game on the back of a win over the Southern Kings last weekend, a big win at that 68-3. The performances of Mike Haley and Arno Botha really impressed. Botha grabbed three tries. Players like Tommy O’Donnell, Darren Sweetnam and Dan Goggin are on the bench. Munster have played Zebre 14 times winning all 14. They have accumulated 66 tries in those 14 games, compared to their opponents 17. The last meeting between the sides came in 2019 when Munster beat Zebre 31-12.

Team News

Zebre: Junior Laloifi, Paula Balekana, Jamie Elliott, Tommaso Boni (c), Pierre Bruno, Francois Brummer, Joshua Renton, Daniele Rimepelli, Massimo Ceciliani, Eduardo Bello, Mick Kearney, Ian Nagle, Maxime Mbandà, Jimmy Tuivaiti, Renato Giammarioli

Munster: Mike Haley, Calvin Nash, Sammy Arnold, Rory Scannell, Shane Daly, JJ Hanrahan, Craig Casey, James Cronin, Niall Scannell (c), John Ryan, Fineen Wycherley, Darren O’Shea, Arno Botha, Chris Cloete, Jack O’Sullivan.

Betting

Munster are 1/8 to win this game. Their opponents are 6/1 to cause an upset and come out on top on home soil. For me it’s about the handicap market here. Munster are in ruthless form and -16 looks a great bet considering they put 60+ points on the Kings. Arno Botha at 16/1 to get the first try looks a great bet considering the form he is in.  Zebre v Munster is live on Eir Sport 1.

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Leinster were battling into the the elements in the opening half. However, they managed to keep the ball in hand and rack up 82% possession in the opening half. Fergus McFadden and Joe Tomane made some good yards with runs. The Cheetahs gave away a series of penalties. Max Deegan broke from a maul on the 20th minute mark before Will Connors touched down after breaking away from a couple of Cheetahs tackles. Ciaran Frawley added the extra points from conversion.

Max Deegan was also pivotal in the second try. He broke after a good pass from Frawley. Kelleher was stopped short of the line, but Michael Bent was on hand to go over from close range. Kelleher got a try of his own just before the break. He first won a penalty after a good turnover. The maul then from that penalty saw Kelleher pouncing for a try. Frawley’s conversion went wide of the posts.

On the resumption Luke McGrath quick thinking launched another Leinster attack. Rhys Ruddock, going over from close range with Ross Molony assisting him. Man of the match Connors got his second try of the day when Molony gathered possession from a lineout, before a drive to the line. Connors broke free and touched down. This time Frawley’s conversion was successful.

WATCH:

Rhys Ruddock gets the bonus point for the home side as things get better for Leinster.

Live on eirSport 1!#GuinnessPRO14 #LENvCHET pic.twitter.com/1gZwvFKhDL

— eir Sport (@eirSport) February 15, 2020

Cheetahs began to come into the game more from here. However, they were a beaten ticket and Leinster probably knew that. Their front row in the scrum were on top though. They forced a few penalties and obviously one to many as Sean Cronin was sin-binned due to a no arms tackle. Rhyno Smith probably should have had a try but he was denied by a determined Leinster defence. The South African side finally got on the scoreboard with a try from De Bruin, Ruan Pienaar added the conversion. Benhard Janse Van Rensburg was then sent to the sin bin after a poor sliding challenge on Fergus McFadden. Davis got the  second try of the day after some good build up play. It was too little to late though as Leinster claim a 36-12 win over the Cheetahs. It seems like things went exactly like Silentbet said in their prediction and betting tips.

Speaking after the game Leo Cullen said of the performance, “To get five tries in those conditions is very, very pleasing”. He continued, “The first half you couldn’t have asked for much more from the players”.

“To get five tries in those conditions is very, very pleasing.”

Watch Leo Cullen’s post-match press conference following our bonus-point win over @CheetahsRugby. #LEIvCHE #JoinTheRoar pic.twitter.com/1cT4ddkn2c

— Leinster Rugby (@leinsterrugby) February 15, 2020

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