Connacht will once again be operating without head coach Pete Wilkins for this week's BKT United Rugby Championship Interpro against Munster in Castlebar.
Wilkins was away from the team in the build-up to last week's defeat to the Ospreys, and the province have confirmed he remains on "sick leave", with scrum coach Cullie Tucker leading the coaching team again ahead of this week’s bumper derby.
It’s difficult timing for the province, which is set to welcome more than 25,000 supporters to Hastings Insurance MacHale Park in Castlebar on Saturday afternoon for their high profile game against Munster.
Saturday’s Interpro will be the first time Connacht have played a game at the home of Mayo GAA, following the lead of Munster, Leinster and Ulster, who have all hosted matches at GAA grounds in recent seasons.
Tucker will lead the coaching staff this week, aided by Scott Fardy, Mark Sexton and John Muldoon, but the province haven't drafted in an extra body on a short term basis.
And the regular scrum coach is confident that none of the preparation will fall between the cracks.
"We think we have covered a lot of bases, and feel we have a lot of experience between the four of us, a lot of good rugby knowledge and leaning heavily on the leadership group here," Tucker (below) told RTÉ Sport.
"We feel we'll have the team in a good place to perform on Saturday.
"A little bit of a dissemination of duties around us a little bit more, but the four of us are very clear in how we want to play and how we want to approach the game. We're going to be leading it."
In better news, the province will be able to welcome back their Ireland internationals this week, with Bundee Aki, Mack Hansen, Finlay Bealham and captain Cian Prendergast all available for selection after being rested last week.
"You have to lean on the experience, and the international quality you have in your group. They've already started playing a huge role in the week and I'm sure they'll play a massive role on Saturday for us.
"I think you have to acknowledge the occasion but you have to be process-driven and calm in how you train, we have to go through the exact same steps every week.
Connacht scrum coach Cullie Tucker says "there's a lot of excitement in the group" ahead of their historic #URC clash with Munster at MacHale Park on Saturday pic.twitter.com/4oJpdLTGzg
— RTÉ Sport (@RTEsport) March 25, 2025
"It's a very special week, we have acknowledged that as a group. We've spoken about MacHale Park and there's a lot of excitement within the group about going up there but we'll build calmly through the week and get a feel for it when we go up there on Friday.
"The excitement of our support and what they will bring will be fantastic. We're looking forward to it but we have to go through the same processes and practices when we train to make sure we're putting ourselves in the best place to perform on Saturday," Tucker added.
Shayne Bolton has been ruled out of this weekend’s game, with the winger suffering a sprained foot in last week’s defeat to the Ospreys, while loosehead prop Peter Dooley has been ruled out for a number of weeks due to a calf strain.
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