Oli Jager: Homesickness drove my move to Munster

Munster prop Oli Jager admits his call-up to the wider Ireland squad has come a lot earlier than he expected.

The tighthead was named alongside his Munster teammate Tom Ahern and Leinster's Sam Prendergast as "training panellists" to supplement Andy Farrell's full 34-man squad, and will link up with the group when they begin their Six Nations preparations next week.

"It's an awesome feeling, a really, really cool feeling to have," the 28-year-old tells the RTÉ Rugby podcast.

Jager joined Munster at the start of December in a surprise move from the Crusaders.

The Kildare man had been in New Zealand since he was 18-years-old, where he progressed through the ranks of Canterbury and then the Crusaders, playing more than 50 games for the franchise and winning multiple Super Rugby titles.

And while he says playing for Ireland was a motivating role in his return, he admits he wasn't expecting to get an opportunity to impress the Irish coaches this soon.

"I was just coming home to play some rugby for Munster and focus on that side of things. I didn't expect anything like this to happen this early, if at all.

"I'm just stoked to be part of it, and really looking forward to it.

"No, I think I just came home and pretty much got settled in myself. I've only been in Limerick for about a month and a half, so I haven't been here too long. I’m still finding my feet in some ways."

While Jager had been on the radar of Munster previously, the move did come as a surprise when it was first reported in late November.

Having been first choice tighthead in the past two seasons for the Crusaders, it looked more likely that Jager would be playing Test rugby for New Zealand rather than Ireland. Speaking to RTÉ at the start of 2022, Jager had his sights set