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25th April 2022
06:34pm BST

Munster head coach Johann van Graan and Keith Earls of Munster celebrate after a Champions Cup win over Exeter. (Photo by Brendan Moran/Sportsfile)[/caption]
"A lot of Munster fans and Limerick people, I know, were writing him off. If it wasn't for that tackle in the first leg, against Exeter, I don't think Munster would be in the quarter final of the Champions Cup. I really don't, it was that important. "It was also huge, how well he played in that game, and in the second leg. Keith Earls ain't finished yet."https://twitter.com/btsportrugby/status/1512860172242374659
"There's actually not that many players I can think of - Rob Kearney is another one - who have had to consistently re-prove himself. I felt like that's been the way, the whole way through Keith's career. "I meet people and they'd be like, 'I don't rate Keith Earls'. And I'm like, honestly?! Come on. "There will be people listening to this show that will be saying, 'Well, I don't rate Keith Earls'. I'm telling you, I've played with him, trained with him, played against him. He's an unbelievable rugby player. He is electric. He's so quick, so intelligent, he's physical, he can kick well, get up in the air. He's a really good leader. He's just a brilliant player. But he gets a lot of shit, doesn't he?"Hennessy and Greg O'Shea noted how Earls is 'loved in Limerick, loved in Munster' but not often rated as highly as he could be by supporters from rival provinces, and nations. "I was in the academy for four years, with Munster," said O'Shea, "and I learned so much off him. He'd bring me off to the side and teach me these agility drills. Such a nice guy and always so welcoming. "When he was younger, he was faster than everyone else, and he can still move now."
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