Clayton McMillan leaving Furlong citing to the officials as Sharks loom

Munster’s preparations for Saturday night’s URC clash with the Sharks are proceeding as normal, according to head coach Clayton McMillan, with the disciplinary process involving Leinster prop Tadhg Furlong now in the hands of the relevant authorities.

Furlong is facing a disciplinary hearing following an allegation by Munster forward Gavin Coombes that the Ireland international grabbed his groin during Leinster’s 24-18 victory over McMillan’s side at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday.

The URC has confirmed that Furlong will face a disciplinary panel via video conference on Thursday. The panel will be comprised of chairperson Simon Thomas (Wales), Attie Heyns (South Africa) and Pamela Woodman (Scotland).

Match citing commissioner Peter Ferguson lodged a complaint regarding the alleged incident on Monday after it was not identified by match officials during the game. If the allegation is upheld, Furlong could face a suspension that would put his availability for Ireland’s November internationals in doubt.

Speaking on Tuesday ahead of Munster’s final fixture before the November break, McMillan said Coombes had returned to training and was focused on the Sharks’ visit to Thomond Park.

“Nothing has changed for Gavin,” said McMillan. “He turned up on Monday and, obviously, what happened at the weekend is now in the hands of the Judicial Committee.

“Like the rest of the group, he’s just turned up and focused on preparing for the Sharks this weekend, allowing whatever happens in the background to take care of itself.”

McMillan expressed support for Coombes in the immediate aftermath of Saturday’s game, saying he trusted his players would not make an allegation of that nature lightly.

Asked about the decision to cite Furlong, McMillian added the matter was now beyond Munster’s control.

“I think it was obvious after the game, when the citing commissioner was there, that they saw a case to answer, and that’s been proven to be the case,” he said. “Again, we’ll leave it in the hands of the judiciary. There’s nothing more for us to add in that regard.”

Munster’s immediate concern is the challenge posed by the Sharks, although McMillan will have to manage a squad affected by a series of injuries during a demanding opening block of fixtures.

Shane Daly will miss Saturday’s game after suffering a concussion against Leinster, while Seán O’Brien sustained a groin injury.

News among the forwards is more encouraging, with Munster hoping to have some, if not all, of their now-recovered cohort back, including Jeremy Loughman, Lee Barron and Diarmuid Barron, Edwin Edogbo and Jack Aungier, while Will Harrison would bring extra quality and experience to the backline.

McMillan said the decision on their returns will depend on their readiness versus the value of giving them additional recovery time during the international break.

“It’s really just a case of weighing up whether in the last game of this block it’s worthwhile chucking them out, or giving them a couple of extra weeks, given that there’s no rugby after that,” he said.

“Our hand might be forced in a couple of those decisions, given that there were a couple of dings over the weekend, but we haven’t selected a side yet.”

With Tadhg Beirne and Craig Casey out with Ireland, McMillan acknowledged the concentration of injuries in certain positions has left his side short of options.

Munster have also brought in Rob Russell, the former Ireland under-20 international who has played for Leinster and Gloucester, as short-term cover in the outside backs. He will not feature against the Sharks, but McMillan said Russell and Hubert Gilvarry have settled in well.

“Given the run of injuries that we had, particularly in our outside backs probably three or four weeks ago, we brought Rob in and Hubert Gilvarry, who was with us through the whole of preseason anyway, as just additional cover,” he said.

“They’ve both acquitted themselves really well. They’re good men, really grateful for the opportunity to come in.

“Some of the positions where we’ve picked up more injuries just happen to be in the same position, so it’s made things pretty tight. But the positive news is that the break will represent an opportunity for a number of them to come back.”