Alan Gaffney has been appointed as successor to Munster rugby coach Declan Kidney.

Australian Gaffney will take over when Kidney bows out after this season's Heineken Cup campaign.

Gaffney stepped down as Leinster assistant coach earlier this week.

Leinster coach Matt Williams appointed Gaffney as his assistant in August 2000.

He also previously worked with Williams at Super 12 level at New South Wales.

Gaffney played with the Randwick club from 1965 until 1976.

He was appointed as coach to Randwick in 1984 and was also backs coach to the New South Wales Under 21 side which won the 1996 Australian Championship.

Henderson preferred

Munster play Leinster in the Guinness inter-provincial Championship in Musgrave Park on Friday night.

Kidney has preferred Lions centre Rob Henderson to Mike Mullins in what is a championship decider.

Henderson has missed most of the season through injury, but forces his way into a side that looks like a trial run for the Heineken Cup semi-final against Castres.

With Peter Clohessy likely to miss out following his accident at home, Marcus Horan is drafted into the loose-head berth.

Meanwhile, Leinster will be without Girvan Dempsey, Denis Hickie, Gavin Hickie, Shane Horgan and Victor Costello for the game.

Making their inter-provincial debuts are Blackrock centre David Quinlan and Lansdowne flanker Aidan McCullen.

Munster: D Crotty; J Kelly, R Henderson, J Holland, A Horgan; R O'Gara, P Stringer; M Horan, F Sheahan, J Hayes, M Galwey (capt), P O'Connell, J Williams, A Foley, D Wallace. Replacements: M Cahill, J Blaney, M O'Driscoll, A Quinlan, M Prendergast, M Mullins, J Staunton.

Leinster: G D'Arcy; J McWeeney, B O'Driscoll, D Quinlan, P McKenna; N Spooner, B O'Meara; R Corrigan (Captain), S Byrne, P Wallace, B Casey, M O'Kelly, A McCullen, E Miller, K Gleeson. Replacements: Peter Smyth, P Coyle, L Cullen, L Toland, B Willis, S Keogh, J Norton.