O'Connor 'very confident' of Douglas signing

Leinster coach Matt O'Connor says he is "very confident" that Australian second-row Kane Douglas will sign for the province.

There had been speculation that 24-year-old Douglas, who has 14 caps for Wallabies and started all three Tests against the Lions last year, would sign for Leinster.

O'Connor was in positive mood when asked about the likelihood of Douglas signing.

"Things have progressed pretty well there," O'Connor said. "We aren't too far away from making an announcement."

"[Sean O'Brien] brings a pretty unique energy to the training environment" - Matt O'Connor

O'Connor said of Douglas: "The profile is perfect [...] a young guy, who wants to get better, who wants to experience winning things in the northern hemisphere. It's fantastic for us.

"Hopefully that gets over the line, and we can tell you more about it at the time."

O'Connor said that Rob Kearney and Brian O'Driscoll were in "perfect" condition for Leinster's Pro12 semi-final against Ulster.

However, he said that although Luke Fitzgerald was making progress in his recovery from injury, he would not be back in time for Saturday's game (live on RTÉ Two, kick-off 7pm).

He said that Fitzgerald's injury had been a "niggler, but it's not a career-ender".

O'Connor said Richardt Strauss had had a "horrific run" of injury, and had surgery on an injured hamstring. The injury would rule Strauss out for four or five months.

He said Mike McCarthy had made quicker progress than expected following his injury against Edinburgh last weekend, and had trained. Leinster would monitor his reaction to the training, O'Connor said.

Speaking about Sean O'Brien's return from long-term injury, O'Connor said it had been a "huge boost" for the squad.

"He brings a pretty unique energy to the training environment, and to have him involved last week, and him [being] a little bit closer to being back to his best, this week, is huge for the group."

Looking ahead to the game against Ulster, he said he expected them to treat it as "sudden-death rugby".

He said the fact that Ulster's seasons had been ended by Leinster over the last two seasons would give added motivation for Ulster.

LIVE RUGBY: Watch live Television coverage of Leinster v Ulster, RaboDirect PRO12 semi-final, kick-off 7pm (Saturday 17 May, RTÉ Two and RTÉ.ie, 6.30pm, Ireland only).
Listen to live Radio commentary of Leinster v Ulster, RaboDirect PRO12 semi-final, kick-off 7pm (Saturday 17 May, RTÉ Radio 1 and RTÉ.ie, 6.45pm).

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