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Fresh injury setback could signal end of McFadden's Leinster career

By Ciarán Kennedy
Leinster's Fergus McFadden has suffered another injury blow. (Getty)

Fergus McFadden’s Leinster career could be over after the province confirmed the Ireland international has suffered another injury setback. A squad update issued by Leinster today announced that McFadden will be unavailable for up to six weeks after sustaining a calf injury.

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It’s a cruel blow which could signal the end of McFadden’s Leinster career given the timeframes involved.

The province are due to play their rescheduled Champions Cup quarter-final against Saracens in just under five weeks time, on September 19.

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McFadden now faces a serious race to be fit for that game, and even if he does win that battle the competition for places in the Leinster team represents another hurdle.

The Champions Cup semi-finals are pencilled in for the weekend after the Saracens game, with the final taking place the weekend of October 17/18.

The Leinster veteran’s last Champions Cup appearance came in the 2018 semi-final win against Scarlets, where he was injured in the process of scoring a first-half try.

The 34-year-old recently postponed his decision to retire in order to see out the remainder of the suspended 2019/20 season with Leinster.

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He has represented the province 184 times since making his debut in 2007, scoring 444 points.

Meanwhile, Leinster have also confirmed that prop Vakh Abdaladze and centre Conor O’Brien will be unavailable for Saturday’s Pro14 derby against Munster at the Aviva Stadium.

Abdaladze is due to have a procedure this week on a long-standing back issue, while O’Brien is expected to be unavailable for a number of months following surgery on a hamstring issue.

Peter Dooley is in line to return to training this week following a shoulder problem, while Dan Leavy will progress his gradual exposure to rugby training this week as he recovers from a serious knee injury.

There was no update provided on either Adam Byrne (hamstring) or James Ryan (shoulder).

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Trevor 57 minutes ago
Will forgotten Wallabies fit the Joe Schmidt model?

Thanks Brett.. At last a positive article on the potential of Wallaby candidates, great to read. Schmidt’s record as an international rugby coach speaks for itself, I’m somewhat confident he will turn the Wallaby’s fortunes around …. on the field. It will be up to others to steady the ship off the paddock. But is there a flaw in my optimism? We have known all along that Australia has the players to be very competitive with their international rivals. We know that because everyone keeps telling us. So why the poor results? A question that requires a definitive answer before the turn around can occur. Joe Schmidt signed on for 2 years, time to encompass the Lions tour of 2025. By all accounts he puts family first and that’s fair enough, but I would wager that his 2 year contract will be extended if the next 18 months or so shows the statement “Australia has the players” proves to be correct. The new coach does not have a lot of time to meld together an outfit that will be competitive in the Rugby Championship - it will be interesting to see what happens. It will be interesting to see what happens with Giteau law, the new Wallaby coach has already verbalised that he would to prefer to select from those who play their rugby in Australia. His first test in charge is in July just over 3 months away .. not a long time. I for one wish him well .. heaven knows Australia needs some positive vibes.

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Bull Shark 4 hours ago
Jake White: Are modern rugby players actually better?

Of the rugby I’ve born witness to in my lifetime - 1990 to date - I recognize great players throughout those years. But I have no doubt the game and the players are on average better today. So I doubt going back further is going to prove me wrong. The technical components of the game, set pieces, scrums, kicks, kicks at goal. And in general tactics employed are far more efficient, accurate and polished. Professional athletes that have invested countless hours on being accurate. There is one nation though that may be fairly competitive in any era - and that for me is the all blacks. And New Zealand players in general. NZ produces startling athletes who have fantastic ball skills. And then the odd phenomenon like Brooke. Lomu. Mcaw. Carter. Better than comparing players and teams across eras - I’ve often had this thought - that it would be very interesting to have a version of the game that is closer to its original form. What would the game look like today if the rules were rolled back. Not rules that promote safety obviously - but rules like: - a try being worth 1 point and conversion 2 points. Hence the term “try”. Earning a try at goals. Would we see more attacking play? - no lifting in the lineouts. - rucks and break down laws in general. They looked like wrestling matches in bygone eras. I wonder what a game applying 1995 rules would look like with modern players. It may be a daft exercise, but it would make for an interesting spectacle celebrating “purer” forms of the game that roll back the rules dramatically by a few versions. Would we come to learn that some of the rules/combinations of the rules we see today have actually made the game less attractive? I’d love to see an exhibition match like that.

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