James Cronin scored three tries in Highfield's 38-20 win against Naas. Inpho

The Munster squad are preparing for the opening fixture of the season on Friday night as London Irish visit Irish Independent Park (7.30pm).

The Munster squad are preparing for the opening fixture of the season on Friday night as London Irish visit Irish Independent Park (7.30pm).

Tickets for the game are available here. Members of the MRSC who paid for their Season Ticket in full and 10-Year Ticket holders are entitled to free entry, tickets can be redeemed via supporter accounts.

An extended Munster squad for the clash will be named on Thursday with a mixture of senior and Munster Rugby Academy players set to feature.

On the injury front, James Cronin (leg) and Jeremy Loughman (hamstring) have both returned to full training ahead of the campaign after recovering from injuries sustained last season.

In further positives, Brian Scott (foot) returns to training this week and Alex Wootton (knee) is progressing well with his rehab.

Ciaran Parker picked up a calf injury in training last week.

It will be a busy weekend for the squad with Munster A in Celtic Cup action on Saturday against the Connacht Eagles at the Sportsground. Please note the kick-off time of that game has been moved to 1pm.

Pre-Season Fixture

Friday, September 13

Munster v London Irish, Irish Independent Park, 7.30pm; Buy tickets here

Latest Video

Munster Rugby Head of Medical Dr. Jamie Kearns has provided an insight into the Head Injury Assessment (HIA) process and the work carried out by the staff and coaches with the squad during pre-season.