Ireland star Hugo Keenan to miss Springboks series to chase Olympic gold medal
Hugo Keenan of Ireland and Jesse Kriel of South Africa during the Rugby World Cup.
Ireland fullback Hugo Keenan looks set to miss the two-Test match series against back-to-back Rugby World Cup-winning Springboks in South Africa.
Keenan has dominated the starting fullback role for Ireland since Andy Farrell took over from Joe Schmidt after the 2019 Rugby World Cup, racking up 39 Test caps.
Hugo Keenan to miss South African tour
However, Farrell looks set to be without the star outside back against the Springboks, who is reportedly returning to the Ireland 7s set-up.
According to a report by Murray Kinsella in the42.ie, Keenan could be playing his final XVs game this weekend as Leinster tackle Toulouse in the Investec Champions Cup final before he links up with the Ireland 7s team.
It is reported that the lure of a once-in-a-lifetime chance to play at the Olympics was hard to resist, with the IRFU hoping to compete for both the men’s and women’s gold medals as Keenan provides a boost for the former.
Keenan’s transition back to the 7s team could be swift, with the possibility of him turning out for the team as early as next week. However, this means he will also miss Leinster’s playoff run in the United Rugby Championship.
He could pull on the Ireland 7s jersey in Madrid for the first time since 2019 next week.
Jordan Larmour and Ciaran Frawley will be the front runners to fill the fullback role for Leinster beyond the Investec Champions Cup final and could do the same in South Africa for Ireland, having both started during the Six Nations when Keenan was unavailable.
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Keenan would follow France star Antoine Dupont and ex-Wallabies captain Michael Hooper in making the switch to chase their Olympic dream.
Ireland are well placed to compete for a gold medal at the Olympic Games in Paris, with the men’s team enjoying their best-ever season.
Ahead of the final leg of the World SVNS Series, Ireland are ranked second overall.
The report adds that Connacht back Andrew Smith is another XVs player who could make the switch to 7s for the Olympics.
