Rob Kearney likely to be fit for Twickenham clash against England

Ireland assistant coach Richie Murphy has backed Rob Kearney to feature in the Six Nations Championship Grand Slam decider contest against England at Twickenham.

The 26-year-old missed out on the training on Tuesday following an ankle injury but Murphy insisted that the move was precautionary and is confident of the fullback playing the Saturday's encounter.

The skills coach has also confirmed that Johnny Sexton has recovered completely from a gluteal muscle injury that affected his goal-kicking during the game against Scotland.

“Rob’s fine, it’s just a case of managing his load,” said Murphy.

“He picked up a couple of bangs in the Scotland victory, so we’re just easing him back into the week. He’s perfectly fine.

“He just got caught on his ankle, but he’s fine.

“Again, the medics have looked at him, they are very happy with where he’s at.”

Among the squad members, only Kearney and Rory Best are the survivors from Ireland's 2009 Grand Slam triumph and the former's availability will only boost the morale of the side as they take on a formidable England side at their own backyard.

“Johnny trained fully this morning and he’s fine,” said Murphy, of Sexton.

“We were managing him a little bit last week but he’s come through that process.

“He had a little bit of a glute issue. It was slightly restricted, in the previous week. By Saturday he was pretty okay, in relation to what he was carrying.

“But he’s been incredible in camp this time around. He always has been, but he’s really driven the lads hard, and worked with a lot of the young players, and taken a leadership role that we always knew he was good at.”

Also, prop Cian Healy has been declared fit for the final round of the Six Nations Championship after he left the field in the 50th minute of the game against Scotland following a heavy clash.

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