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Irish Mirror
Irish Mirror
Sport
Michael Scully

Joey Carbery to be out for six to eight weeks as bad news keeps coming for Munster

Munster's bad day has got worse with the news that Joey Carbery will require elbow surgery and he is now a doubt for the opening weeks of Ireland's Six Nations campaign.

The out-half suffered the fracture in the latter stages of Sunday's famous bonus point victory at Wasps that was produced in Coventry without over 30 senior players, and he will undergo surgery on Thursday.

Carbery, 26, left the field with his arm in a sling after suffering the injury.

And it is more rotten luck for the Athy man, who was finding form again having made 13 appearances after 13 months out with ankle and wrist problems.

The news follows the bombshell dropped by head coach Johann van Graan this morning that he is leaving the province when his current deal is up next summer, despite having been in advance talks about taking a new two year deal offered by the Reds.

With Stephen Larkham, Munster's senior coach, also confirmed as a summer departure in 2022, Ronan O'Gara and Paul O'Connell have been installed as the early favourites to take over the helm.

But both are already in big jobs - O'Gara became head coach of La Rochelle on a three-year deal in the summer, while O'Connell is loving his role as Ireland's forwards coach, a post he took on prior to this year's Six Nations.

At least the Reds have all the players who had returned home from Cape Town on Wednesday, December 1 available to train again following the end of their quarantine period, while the 14 players and staff who were quarantining in Cape Town have returned home.

"Despite recent Covid infection with recovery, they have been required to undertake an additional period of self-isolation as advised by public health," read a Munster statement.

"Our priority is the health and wellbeing of our players and staff, and we are hugely grateful to those involved and their families for the manner in which they are handling this situation."

Chris Farrell (abdomen), John Hodnett (ankle), Roman Salanoa (knee) and Academy player Jonathan Wren (leg) all made successful returns from their respective injuries against Wasps.

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