New Munster captain to named in 'next couple of weeks'

Mike Prendergast expects Munster to name Peter O'Mahony's successor over the "next couple of weeks".

The Ireland flanker surprisingly stepped down from the role last month after serving 10 years as skipper.

Among the names mentioned as possible successors are Ireland internationals Tadhg Beirne and Craig Casey, and World Cup winner Jean Kleyn.

Jack O’Donoghue and Diarmuid Barron have both been stand-in captains during the early stages of the BKT United Rugby Championship.

Head coach Graham Rowntree has insisted he won't be rushed into a decision and for the moment the call will be made week to week.

"I just think Graham wants to leave it for a couple of weeks and see how people operate," attack coach Mike Prendergast told RTÉ Sport.

"Obviously, he’s been here for a good few years but he wants to see it from a leadership point of view.

"Diarmuid is in there at the moment, doing a very good job, wants to see how that goes. He definitely doesn’t have his mind made up.

"We talk about it, not a huge amount but we trust Wig to make the right decision there from a staff point of view.

"He’s getting a feel of how people are going about their day-to-day business in terms of leadership etc.

"There’s a couple of names that people are talking about but that [decision] will be made over the next, I would imagine, couple of weeks or so."

Hooker Barron (above), who signed a new contract this week, has been in fine form this season, scoring two tries in six appearances.

Asked if he was the type to knock on the boss’s door and make his case, the 25-year-old said: "No, I think it’s an actions thing.

"He understands well what a captain of Munster should look like and how they should behave.

"I don’t think knocking on the door would make any difference.