munster
HC QF & SF Draw
24/01/10 22:06 Filed in: Sport
Munster’s reward for
topping the seedings after the Pool stages of the
Heineken Cup is to be drawn against the last team
they played against in the competition -
Northampton. This had become evident by Saturday
afternoon as the action around the grounds
unfolded. If memory serves me correctly, this is
the first time this has happened for Munster.
Northampton are the only Guinness Premiership team left in the competition, and you can be sure that Sky Sports will be bigging them up come quarter-final day. Sky always try to put forward the impression that they are impartial, but whenever a Premiership team is in the hunt, particularly one with a smattering of young English internationals, the mask slips. Barnes and Harrison were painful to listen to on Friday night. In their eyes, Shane Geraghty was running the show, when in fact he was having a mare.
I think it’s good to have tough opposition in the quarters, because if Munster can get past a difficult opponent at that point, they get momentum for the next two games. Last year, they slaughtered a poor Ospreys at Thomond in the quarter finals, and then got done over by Leinster in the semis - a team they had beaten twice in the Magners League earlier in the season.
If we get past Northampton, then an away semi final awaits, against either Biarritz or the Ospreys.
Leinster will entertain Clermont Auvergne at home in the quarters and if they get through that, they will be on the road to France for the semi against either Toulouse or Stade. Which opens up the possibility of an All-Ireland Final in Paris, the first one to be played offshore since Cavan bate Kerry in New York in ’47.
Northampton are the only Guinness Premiership team left in the competition, and you can be sure that Sky Sports will be bigging them up come quarter-final day. Sky always try to put forward the impression that they are impartial, but whenever a Premiership team is in the hunt, particularly one with a smattering of young English internationals, the mask slips. Barnes and Harrison were painful to listen to on Friday night. In their eyes, Shane Geraghty was running the show, when in fact he was having a mare.
I think it’s good to have tough opposition in the quarters, because if Munster can get past a difficult opponent at that point, they get momentum for the next two games. Last year, they slaughtered a poor Ospreys at Thomond in the quarter finals, and then got done over by Leinster in the semis - a team they had beaten twice in the Magners League earlier in the season.
If we get past Northampton, then an away semi final awaits, against either Biarritz or the Ospreys.
Leinster will entertain Clermont Auvergne at home in the quarters and if they get through that, they will be on the road to France for the semi against either Toulouse or Stade. Which opens up the possibility of an All-Ireland Final in Paris, the first one to be played offshore since Cavan bate Kerry in New York in ’47.
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Munster Prevail In Nerve Shredding Encounter
22/01/10 23:10 Filed in: Sport
Despite the best
efforts of the referee Romain Poite, Munster
managed to keep their noses ahead of Northampton in
tonight’s Heineken Cup sixth round pool match at
Thomond Park.
I always think that it’s a poor show when the ref ends up as the most influential man on the pitch, and so it was tonight. There was hardly a single decent scrum in the whole match, with the front rows unable to engage properly. Any other top level referee would have stopped the rot early on, hauling the two front rows out and explaining that they had to come in straight. Instead he let them infringe at will. When Paul O’Connell tried to draw his attention to it, he was accused of trying to interfere.
In case anyone needs reminding, this little bollix was the very same ref who tried to ruin the Munster - All Blacks match in November 2008.
But still we won. It wasn’t pretty, but then Northampton came here looking for a win in order to ensure qualification. The bonus point they picked up means that they probably still will get through, and might even end up back at Thomond for the quarter final.
Moment of the match was when Northampton has a succession of five-metre scrums on the Munster line. At the time they were getting all the scrummaging decisions going their way. Munster held them out and looked like they had turned them over, but Monsieur Poite decided that Paul O’Connell had handled in the ruck and binned him. Then the seven men of the Munster pack managed to get one against the head of the dominant Northampton eight-man unit. In an intensely ugly match, it was a rare moment of beauty.
This was Munster’s toughest match to date. There will be sore bodies tomorrow morning, but at least the pain will not have been borne in vain. Munster are three matches away from regaining the Heineken Cup. They must show the same level of doggedness and tenacity in the knockout stages, whoever they meet. Improvement is needed too in certain areas, especially the scrum.
The elite players go off now to International duty. When they come back (hopefully with the Six Nations Trophy safely back in the IRFU cabinet), they will have to be prepared for even more of the same.
I always think that it’s a poor show when the ref ends up as the most influential man on the pitch, and so it was tonight. There was hardly a single decent scrum in the whole match, with the front rows unable to engage properly. Any other top level referee would have stopped the rot early on, hauling the two front rows out and explaining that they had to come in straight. Instead he let them infringe at will. When Paul O’Connell tried to draw his attention to it, he was accused of trying to interfere.
In case anyone needs reminding, this little bollix was the very same ref who tried to ruin the Munster - All Blacks match in November 2008.
But still we won. It wasn’t pretty, but then Northampton came here looking for a win in order to ensure qualification. The bonus point they picked up means that they probably still will get through, and might even end up back at Thomond for the quarter final.
Moment of the match was when Northampton has a succession of five-metre scrums on the Munster line. At the time they were getting all the scrummaging decisions going their way. Munster held them out and looked like they had turned them over, but Monsieur Poite decided that Paul O’Connell had handled in the ruck and binned him. Then the seven men of the Munster pack managed to get one against the head of the dominant Northampton eight-man unit. In an intensely ugly match, it was a rare moment of beauty.
This was Munster’s toughest match to date. There will be sore bodies tomorrow morning, but at least the pain will not have been borne in vain. Munster are three matches away from regaining the Heineken Cup. They must show the same level of doggedness and tenacity in the knockout stages, whoever they meet. Improvement is needed too in certain areas, especially the scrum.
The elite players go off now to International duty. When they come back (hopefully with the Six Nations Trophy safely back in the IRFU cabinet), they will have to be prepared for even more of the same.
When The Saints Come Marching In
21/01/10 21:39 Filed in: Sport
How many times have
we been here before? Last round of the pool stages
of the Heineken Cup, and Munster welcome a
high-flying English team to Thomond Park for a
winner-takes-all do-or-die encounter. Gloucester
have been here, as have Sale and Wasps. The only
team ever to have spoiled the party for Munster was
Leicester back in 2007, but we were qualified by
then anyway.
Northampton Saints are the latest to make the trek to Limerick in order to try to upset the Munster applecart. To many of the players, this will be seen as
just another
match. But how that perception will change when
they run out onto the pitch and see the sea of red
and hear the deafening roar. Thomond is as
intimidating a place to come to for an opposing
player as you can imagine. (But in a nice sort of
way, you understand. Munster rugby people are very
welcoming folk in every other way.
Just don’t get
cocky,
or presume that you might win.)
This should be a Munster win. Not necessarily a comfortable one, and a bonus point will not be considered before the game kicks off. Munster need to win in order to get a home quarter final, and they have been in this type of situation before.
“But Munster have never beaten Northampton in the Heineken Cup, and the Saints have a better scrum, and they’re third in the Guinness Premiership, and, and, and…”
And bollocks. Northampton have never faced Munster in Thomond Park on the last weekend of the pool stage before.
Northampton Saints are the latest to make the trek to Limerick in order to try to upset the Munster applecart. To many of the players, this will be seen as
This should be a Munster win. Not necessarily a comfortable one, and a bonus point will not be considered before the game kicks off. Munster need to win in order to get a home quarter final, and they have been in this type of situation before.
“But Munster have never beaten Northampton in the Heineken Cup, and the Saints have a better scrum, and they’re third in the Guinness Premiership, and, and, and…”
And bollocks. Northampton have never faced Munster in Thomond Park on the last weekend of the pool stage before.
The Munster Way
21/12/09 22:04 Filed in: Sport
There is a thing
about Munster and respect (as Bock
noted yesterday.) Famously, whenever a kicker
- home or away team - is addressing the placed
ball at Thomond Park, the crowd fall silent to
allow the kicker to concentrate. You never see a
Munster player showboat when scoring a try. He
may celebrate, of course, but he will do so
respectfully. Munster have only lost one
Heineken Cup match there in the entire history
of the competition, but it remains the top
ground for rugby fans all over Europe to come
to. Your team may take one hell of a beating,
but at least they and the supporters will be
treated with respect. (The only visiting team to
depart from that script was Leicester, when they
beat Munster at Thomond in 2007. But there is
huge mutual respect between Munster and
Leicester, so we have no issue with that fact.)
What you should never do when you come to Thomond is abuse that respect afforded to you. In the home fixture last Saturday night week, Phillip Burger of Perpignan scored a peach of a try. Most Munster folk, rugby people to their fingertips, would have applauded the score had it not been for what Burger did once he’d touched down. The cheeky pup cupped his ear as if to say “We don’t hear you signing any more.” Bad mistake.
The great thing about Munster is that most of the players are actually from the province. We have a few high-profile imports, who by and large, a bit like the Anglo-Normans who came to Ireland in the 12th century, have become as much Munster as the natives. Given that such a big percentage of the players are of the province itself, it follows that their supporters should be made up of many of their family members, friends and neighbours.
Burger’s gesture was fundamentally disrespectful to the Munster fans, and by extension, the team. And when you do that to Munster, they will punish you. Just as Munster did to Perpignan yesterday.
Before the match, I wasn’t too hopeful that Munster would get much out of their visit to Stade Aime Girail. A losing bonus point would have been a decent day’s work, I reckoned. Munster hadn’t put in a truly convincing Heineken Cup performance since they dismembered the Ospreys in last year’s quarter final, and their away form this season was dismal. Things just weren’t clicking. The scrum was not performing as it should, the backs weren’t making their presence felt and ROG seemed to be trudging across the Valley of Lost Confidence.
Now, of course the reason behind Munster’s incredible performance yesterday may have had nothing at all to do with Burger’s little sideshow. It may have been Vivalda’s comment that he felt he was playing the Munster Academy in Thomond (mind you, the Academy provided a good few player to the team that only narrowly lost to the All Blacks last November twelve months.) Or maybe it was the players collectively deciding that they simply were not going to allow themselves to come out second best any more. Whatever it was, it worked.
As well as watching the match live (a big thank you to Aoife for taking her nap while the match was on), we Sky+’d it too and I watched it again last night. When you’re not concentrating on how the match might end up, it’s easier to be more analytical and appreciate the individual performances of the players. There were huge performances from all areas of the park. The dominance of the breakdown was a pleasure to behold. O’Connell at the lineout and the restarts. Leamy, Wallace and Quinlan hitting the rucks. Earls taking the ball at speed. ROG’s kicking. O’Leary’s breaks. Wallace’s defence. Warwick’s presence at the back. Quinny’s garryowens (his what??)
As the press said today, this was up there with the best of Munster’s previous smash and grab forays in the south of France. But, going back to my original point, did you see any Munster player disrespect the home crowd or their team?
No. Because it’s not the Munster way.
What you should never do when you come to Thomond is abuse that respect afforded to you. In the home fixture last Saturday night week, Phillip Burger of Perpignan scored a peach of a try. Most Munster folk, rugby people to their fingertips, would have applauded the score had it not been for what Burger did once he’d touched down. The cheeky pup cupped his ear as if to say “We don’t hear you signing any more.” Bad mistake.
The great thing about Munster is that most of the players are actually from the province. We have a few high-profile imports, who by and large, a bit like the Anglo-Normans who came to Ireland in the 12th century, have become as much Munster as the natives. Given that such a big percentage of the players are of the province itself, it follows that their supporters should be made up of many of their family members, friends and neighbours.
Burger’s gesture was fundamentally disrespectful to the Munster fans, and by extension, the team. And when you do that to Munster, they will punish you. Just as Munster did to Perpignan yesterday.
Before the match, I wasn’t too hopeful that Munster would get much out of their visit to Stade Aime Girail. A losing bonus point would have been a decent day’s work, I reckoned. Munster hadn’t put in a truly convincing Heineken Cup performance since they dismembered the Ospreys in last year’s quarter final, and their away form this season was dismal. Things just weren’t clicking. The scrum was not performing as it should, the backs weren’t making their presence felt and ROG seemed to be trudging across the Valley of Lost Confidence.
Now, of course the reason behind Munster’s incredible performance yesterday may have had nothing at all to do with Burger’s little sideshow. It may have been Vivalda’s comment that he felt he was playing the Munster Academy in Thomond (mind you, the Academy provided a good few player to the team that only narrowly lost to the All Blacks last November twelve months.) Or maybe it was the players collectively deciding that they simply were not going to allow themselves to come out second best any more. Whatever it was, it worked.
As well as watching the match live (a big thank you to Aoife for taking her nap while the match was on), we Sky+’d it too and I watched it again last night. When you’re not concentrating on how the match might end up, it’s easier to be more analytical and appreciate the individual performances of the players. There were huge performances from all areas of the park. The dominance of the breakdown was a pleasure to behold. O’Connell at the lineout and the restarts. Leamy, Wallace and Quinlan hitting the rucks. Earls taking the ball at speed. ROG’s kicking. O’Leary’s breaks. Wallace’s defence. Warwick’s presence at the back. Quinny’s garryowens (his what??)
As the press said today, this was up there with the best of Munster’s previous smash and grab forays in the south of France. But, going back to my original point, did you see any Munster player disrespect the home crowd or their team?
No. Because it’s not the Munster way.
Munster v Treviso
18/10/09 22:22 Filed in: Sport
So, I got my ticket
for the Treviso match through the Supporters' Club
lottery (tho' in fairness, I don't think it was all
that much of a lottery. If you applied for one, you
got one.) We went to Cork for the weekend, so I
scabbed a lift to Limerick from Mr & Mrs
Munstermad.
To say that the first thirty minutes or so were worrying would be understating things a tad. I had to rub my eyes a couple of times whenever I looked at the scoreboard and saw Munster 0, Treviso 10. But, in truth, the scoreboard told no lie. Munster were second best in the opening quarter if the game. The scrum was a shambles, and there was little or no shape to the team overall. ROG's crisis of confidence when addressing the dead ball clearly hadn't been resolved.
Munster started the match with only one of the regulars in the front row. John Hayes was out due to suspension and Jerry Flannery was lost to injury. Marcus Horan went off midway through the first half, so we had our second choice front row in its entirety. They did manage to steady the ship, but I never felt confident at scrum time, especially on Treviso's put in.
Thankfully, things turned around as the first half drew to a close. First, Paul Warwick got over after a sustained period of pressure in Treviso 22. This was followed on the stroke of half-time by a wonderful cross-field kick from Keith Earls down the gullet of Ian Dowling (on for Doug Howlett, who had pulled a hamstring). The video ref had to take several looks before he decided that Dowling had not lost control of the ball before grounding it, but in the end awarded the five-pointer.
The second half was all Munster. Denis Leamy was in shortly after the match resumed, and another four were to follow, scored by Denis Fogarty, David Wallace, Ian Dowling (his second of the afternoon), and late on Jean de Villiers opened his account.
That's it now for the Heneken Cup till December, when we welcome USA Perpignan to Thomond. The Catalans are a tough bunch, and although they were beaten by Treviso in the first round, they came back to see off Northampton at the weekend.
To say that the first thirty minutes or so were worrying would be understating things a tad. I had to rub my eyes a couple of times whenever I looked at the scoreboard and saw Munster 0, Treviso 10. But, in truth, the scoreboard told no lie. Munster were second best in the opening quarter if the game. The scrum was a shambles, and there was little or no shape to the team overall. ROG's crisis of confidence when addressing the dead ball clearly hadn't been resolved.
Munster started the match with only one of the regulars in the front row. John Hayes was out due to suspension and Jerry Flannery was lost to injury. Marcus Horan went off midway through the first half, so we had our second choice front row in its entirety. They did manage to steady the ship, but I never felt confident at scrum time, especially on Treviso's put in.
Thankfully, things turned around as the first half drew to a close. First, Paul Warwick got over after a sustained period of pressure in Treviso 22. This was followed on the stroke of half-time by a wonderful cross-field kick from Keith Earls down the gullet of Ian Dowling (on for Doug Howlett, who had pulled a hamstring). The video ref had to take several looks before he decided that Dowling had not lost control of the ball before grounding it, but in the end awarded the five-pointer.
The second half was all Munster. Denis Leamy was in shortly after the match resumed, and another four were to follow, scored by Denis Fogarty, David Wallace, Ian Dowling (his second of the afternoon), and late on Jean de Villiers opened his account.
That's it now for the Heneken Cup till December, when we welcome USA Perpignan to Thomond. The Catalans are a tough bunch, and although they were beaten by Treviso in the first round, they came back to see off Northampton at the weekend.
Heineken Cup Draw & Other Stuff
09/06/09 20:58 Filed in: Sport
Despite the presence of an Italian team in Munster’s pool, this will once again be a tough assignment for the two-time Heineken Cup Champions and current Magners League champions. Perpignan are the current Top 14 champions, and Northampton won the Challenge Cup this season. However, in comparison to recent seasons, it is somewhat more favourable.
Meanwhile in South Africa, Ireland lost another Lion. Stephen Ferris has been ruled out of the rest of the tour after suffering a knee injury, and his place has been taken by Welsh captain Ryan Jones. Ferris joins a growing list of Irishmen who have been forced out of the tour, either through injury or suspension. So far, along with Ferris we have lost three Munstermen - Tomás O’Leary, Jerry Flannery and Alan Quinlan, and with Gordon D’Arcy joining the squad, the Irish contingent has gone down from 14 to 11.
You Can't Win 'Em All
02/05/09 22:08 Filed in: Sport
A couple of weeks
ago, I was on the phone to my brother, talking
about his eldest daughter’s upcoming First
Communion. It’s on the weekend of the 16th, and the
following weekend, my sister’s youngest daughter
will have hers. I mentioned that this was the
weekend of the Heineken Cup Final, and we discussed
the possibility of a clash with the ceremony and
the match.
“But they might lose to Leinster in the semi”, he said, knowing what my reaction would be. And predictably, I replied “They will in their holes lose to Leinster.”
During the week, I warned about the dangers of presumption, but of course I was as guilty of it as anyone else. Given the form of these two teams going into the match, I honestly didn’t believe that Leinster would pose a credible threat to the might of Munster. Where heretofore Leinster had struggled, Munster had been invincible. Munster walked all over Leinster home and away in the Magners League this season.
As a Munster fan, my natural instinct is to ask just what went wrong today. A Leinster fan would just be happy that it all went right. The simple fact is that Munster were beaten by a better team on the day. I read somewhere during the week that for Leinster to have a chance, they would have to be at their absolute best and hope that Munster would have an off-day. And that is what happened. Leinster dominated all over the park, and with the exception of the lineout, had the measure of Munster in every department. The Munster team and the fans can have no complaint. Leinster fully deserve their victory.
Munster sometimes suffer inexplicable losses like today. Back at Christmas-time, we were hockeyed 37-11 in Thomond by Ulster. It is disappointing when it happens, but we just have to put it behind us and look forward.
As I said in my preview post, whoever wins this match deserves the support of the losing team’s supporters in the final. Back in 06, I knew of several Leinster fans who were in Cardiff to cheer on Munster in the final. OK, their fans may be hard to take at times and their captain may look like Miley from Glenroe, but Leinster are an Irish team, and I for one would much prefer to see Miley hoisting the Cup rather than Paul Tito of Cardiff, or Geordan Murphy (or whoever it is captains Leicester these days.)
As the title of this post suggests, you can’t expect your team to win everything. If you do, you’re probably a Manchester United supporter. Following a team brings good days and bad, and you have to be able to take both with good grace. Sometimes you may think that your team will never win the big prize, and if they do, you must savour that win, because you don’t know when that time will come again. Us Munster fans have been fortunate enough to witness our team win two Heineken Cups, but by God, we know how long we were knocking on the door before it finally opened. This will be Leinster’s first crack at a Heineken Cup Final, and I hope for their sakes that today’s win wasn’t the performance reserved for the final.
“But they might lose to Leinster in the semi”, he said, knowing what my reaction would be. And predictably, I replied “They will in their holes lose to Leinster.”
During the week, I warned about the dangers of presumption, but of course I was as guilty of it as anyone else. Given the form of these two teams going into the match, I honestly didn’t believe that Leinster would pose a credible threat to the might of Munster. Where heretofore Leinster had struggled, Munster had been invincible. Munster walked all over Leinster home and away in the Magners League this season.
As a Munster fan, my natural instinct is to ask just what went wrong today. A Leinster fan would just be happy that it all went right. The simple fact is that Munster were beaten by a better team on the day. I read somewhere during the week that for Leinster to have a chance, they would have to be at their absolute best and hope that Munster would have an off-day. And that is what happened. Leinster dominated all over the park, and with the exception of the lineout, had the measure of Munster in every department. The Munster team and the fans can have no complaint. Leinster fully deserve their victory.
Munster sometimes suffer inexplicable losses like today. Back at Christmas-time, we were hockeyed 37-11 in Thomond by Ulster. It is disappointing when it happens, but we just have to put it behind us and look forward.
As I said in my preview post, whoever wins this match deserves the support of the losing team’s supporters in the final. Back in 06, I knew of several Leinster fans who were in Cardiff to cheer on Munster in the final. OK, their fans may be hard to take at times and their captain may look like Miley from Glenroe, but Leinster are an Irish team, and I for one would much prefer to see Miley hoisting the Cup rather than Paul Tito of Cardiff, or Geordan Murphy (or whoever it is captains Leicester these days.)
As the title of this post suggests, you can’t expect your team to win everything. If you do, you’re probably a Manchester United supporter. Following a team brings good days and bad, and you have to be able to take both with good grace. Sometimes you may think that your team will never win the big prize, and if they do, you must savour that win, because you don’t know when that time will come again. Us Munster fans have been fortunate enough to witness our team win two Heineken Cups, but by God, we know how long we were knocking on the door before it finally opened. This will be Leinster’s first crack at a Heineken Cup Final, and I hope for their sakes that today’s win wasn’t the performance reserved for the final.
Heineken Cup QF Round Up
13/04/09 21:41 Filed in: Sport
Irish rugby continued
on its winning odyssey this weekend, with Munster
and Leinster booking their places in the Heineken
Cup semi-final. Sadly, it’s the same semi-final
that they are destined to be in, which means that a
rugby All-Ireland Final will not happen. However we
will get an All-Ireland semi-final, and what better
venue could we have for such an encounter than
Croke Park? Even at 83,000 capacity, tickets will
be scarce.
I saw three of the four matches over the weekend. The opener, Cardiff v Toulouse, was a dour encounter. As the game wore on, I remarked to Munstermad (as we were all in Cork for the weekend) that we were not watching the eventual winners of the Heineken Cup. Cardiff prevailed 9-6, and thus French interest in the Cup ended at this stage for the first time since God knows when. Leicester v Bath was up next, and I missed this one. Leicester came through 20-15.
What can I say about this Munster team that hasn’t been said already? Their 43-9 dispatch of Ospreys was possibly their most complete performance ever. Back in the 1970s, Ajax of Amsterdam were developing a system of playing that became known as “Total Football”. Yesterday, we saw something similar, as Munster played something that could be called Total Rugby. Even though there were brilliant individual performances, such as those from Paul Warwick, Lefeimi Mafi and Paul O’Connell, it was the unstoppable momentum that built up as the match progressed that showed that this was an exceptional performance by a team, not just a collection of individuals who happens to be wearing the same colour jersey.
One aspect
about the modern game that I abhor is the tendency
to name rugby teams after predatory animals. Look,
if you want to go see lions, tigers, etc., just go
to a fucking zoo. Thankfully, Munster have eschewed
this nonsense (the stag motif on the badge
notwithstanding), but ironically yesterday, they
displayed the temperament of a big cat in the wild.
Lure the prey to your territory, toy with it for a
while, allowing it to think that it can get away
unharmed. And then, go in for an efficient,
clinical kill. Coming out after half time, the
Ospreys were still, just about, in the game.
Fifteen minutes later, they were roadkill. The
other three teams in the competition will have
looked at that Munster performance and thought
“Shit! That’s what we have to beat.”
Leinster’s match away to Harlequins was a complete contrast. It finished 5-6, and Leinster were forced to defend with their entire will for the whole match. They almost got a try when Brian O’Driscoll let fly a lovely chip and chase, but he was hauled down just before the line. Similarly in the second half, Luke FitzGerald had to get in to make a last gasp effort to stop a Quins player scoring.
If Munster and Cardiff get through to the final, it will be their second meeting in the space of a fortnight. They are due to play a Magners League match in Cardiff on the second weekend in May.
If it’s Munster v Leicester, it will be the first meeting of the two sides since The Fall of Thomond. We didn’t like that. One little bit.
I saw three of the four matches over the weekend. The opener, Cardiff v Toulouse, was a dour encounter. As the game wore on, I remarked to Munstermad (as we were all in Cork for the weekend) that we were not watching the eventual winners of the Heineken Cup. Cardiff prevailed 9-6, and thus French interest in the Cup ended at this stage for the first time since God knows when. Leicester v Bath was up next, and I missed this one. Leicester came through 20-15.
What can I say about this Munster team that hasn’t been said already? Their 43-9 dispatch of Ospreys was possibly their most complete performance ever. Back in the 1970s, Ajax of Amsterdam were developing a system of playing that became known as “Total Football”. Yesterday, we saw something similar, as Munster played something that could be called Total Rugby. Even though there were brilliant individual performances, such as those from Paul Warwick, Lefeimi Mafi and Paul O’Connell, it was the unstoppable momentum that built up as the match progressed that showed that this was an exceptional performance by a team, not just a collection of individuals who happens to be wearing the same colour jersey.
Leinster’s match away to Harlequins was a complete contrast. It finished 5-6, and Leinster were forced to defend with their entire will for the whole match. They almost got a try when Brian O’Driscoll let fly a lovely chip and chase, but he was hauled down just before the line. Similarly in the second half, Luke FitzGerald had to get in to make a last gasp effort to stop a Quins player scoring.
If Munster and Cardiff get through to the final, it will be their second meeting in the space of a fortnight. They are due to play a Magners League match in Cardiff on the second weekend in May.
If it’s Munster v Leicester, it will be the first meeting of the two sides since The Fall of Thomond. We didn’t like that. One little bit.
Munster v. Ospreys - The Story So Far
08/04/09 22:23 Filed in: Sport
The Heineken Cup
returns this weekend after the break for the Six
Nations. We’re at the quarter-final stage, and of
the eight teams still in the hunt, four ply their
day-to-day trade in the Magners League, three in
the Guinness Premiership, and only one in the
French Top 14. If that doesn’t prove that drink is
good for you, I don’t know what will!
Munster face the Ospreys on Sunday in Thomond Park, and the conventional wisdom would suggest that this should be an easy win for Munster. But we write them off at our peril. The Ospreys are the form Welsh team, and it is from their ranks that the majority of the Welsh national side is drawn. A side, lest we forget, that has won two Grand Slams this decade.
Taking a leaf from the book of my good friend Willie Joe, I think it would be instructive to cast a more analytical eye over the history books, and see exactly how Munster’s record stacks up when it comes to meetings with the Ospreys.
The Ospreys were formed in 2003, with the coming together of Neath and Swansea to form a provincial side for participation in the then Celtic League and the ERC competitions. To date, Munster and the Ospreys have played thirteen competitive fixtures against one another, and Munster just about have the upper hand, winning seven of those encounters. However, the Ospreys have scored more points on aggregate over the thirteen matches - 244 to Munster’s 232 (average of 18.77 to 17.85 per game). Eleven matches were in the Celtic/Magners League and two were in the Pool stages of the Heineken Cup in the 04/05 season.
The good news is that Munster have only lost once at home to the Ospreys, back in February 2004 at Musgrave Park. In our previous Heineken Cup encounters, we beat them home and away. At home, our aggregate score is 119 over six matches (19.83 points per match), while we have conceded 75 points (12.5 per match). Munster also hold the record for biggest winning margin, when they had 27 points to spare at the final whistle on 10 September 2005.
The whole record is as follows:
These stats make Munster favourites on Sunday. The other stats to take into account are that Munster have never lost a home quarter-final, and have only been beaten once in Thomond Park in the Heineken Cup.
I expect those records to remain intact on Sunday.
Munster face the Ospreys on Sunday in Thomond Park, and the conventional wisdom would suggest that this should be an easy win for Munster. But we write them off at our peril. The Ospreys are the form Welsh team, and it is from their ranks that the majority of the Welsh national side is drawn. A side, lest we forget, that has won two Grand Slams this decade.
Taking a leaf from the book of my good friend Willie Joe, I think it would be instructive to cast a more analytical eye over the history books, and see exactly how Munster’s record stacks up when it comes to meetings with the Ospreys.
The Ospreys were formed in 2003, with the coming together of Neath and Swansea to form a provincial side for participation in the then Celtic League and the ERC competitions. To date, Munster and the Ospreys have played thirteen competitive fixtures against one another, and Munster just about have the upper hand, winning seven of those encounters. However, the Ospreys have scored more points on aggregate over the thirteen matches - 244 to Munster’s 232 (average of 18.77 to 17.85 per game). Eleven matches were in the Celtic/Magners League and two were in the Pool stages of the Heineken Cup in the 04/05 season.
The good news is that Munster have only lost once at home to the Ospreys, back in February 2004 at Musgrave Park. In our previous Heineken Cup encounters, we beat them home and away. At home, our aggregate score is 119 over six matches (19.83 points per match), while we have conceded 75 points (12.5 per match). Munster also hold the record for biggest winning margin, when they had 27 points to spare at the final whistle on 10 September 2005.
The whole record is as follows:
These stats make Munster favourites on Sunday. The other stats to take into account are that Munster have never lost a home quarter-final, and have only been beaten once in Thomond Park in the Heineken Cup.
I expect those records to remain intact on Sunday.
The Lengths Some Will Go…
03/03/09 22:03 Filed in: Sport
Munster supporters
are renowned for their ability to source tickets
for Heineken Cup matches, and the stories of how
far they will go to do so are legion. So when I
heard about this via a comment
on Slugger, I have to admit I wasn’t really
surprised.
The money quote:
...as it would appear a number of Munster (or at least Irish) Rugby supporters are purchasing memberships [of the Ospreys Supporters Club] as a means to secure tickets from our allocation, we are NOT accepting any membership applications from Irish addresses.
The money quote:
...as it would appear a number of Munster (or at least Irish) Rugby supporters are purchasing memberships [of the Ospreys Supporters Club] as a means to secure tickets from our allocation, we are NOT accepting any membership applications from Irish addresses.
Rugby Roundup
27/01/09 20:55 Filed in: Sport
Is it really that
long since I last
wrote about rugby?
Since then, Munster lost away to Connacht and got whipped at home by Ulster
in the Magners.
Following these setbacks, they won away to Ospreys
(Magners again); romped into the quarter finals of
the Heineken Cup, having dished out a six-try
spanking to Sale at Thomond; and last weekend
thrashed Montauban five tries to one to set up a
home quarter final against Ospreys. (Whipping?
Romping? Spanking? Thrashing? This post is
beginning to resemble something you might read in
the memoirs of a British cabinet minister of the
Thatcher era.)
Not wanting to tempt fate or anything, but we should be able to get past the Ospreys at Thomond on Easter Sunday. In some ways I would have preferred if we had drawn Toulouse at this point, just so that we could have a better chance to neutralise them on our patch, rather than have to face them later on. As it happens, if we get to the semi, we will face either Harlequins or The Goys. This will be a home match for Munster, even though it can’t be played in Thomond. That raises a problem - where could this match take place?
Lansdowne Road
won’t be available and none of the other provincial
grounds is big enough. There is Croke Park, of
course, but given that the agreement between the
IRFU and the GAA is for international matches only,
that might not be an option. The GAA work to their
own agenda and don’t like being pressured into
anything. However, a Munster-Leinster semi-final
would guarantee a full house at GAA HQ, and the
prospect of all that lovely lolly flowing into
cash-strapped GAA coffers might help sway things.
Also the fact that the fanbases of Munster rugby
and the various Munster counties’ GAA teams overlap
so much could influence a decision in favour of
opening the ground up. We’ll wait and see.
Sad news today from the Munster camp, in that Paul Warwick is
to decamp to
London Irish at the end of the season. Since
arriving from Connacht two seasons ago, he has
added a valuable extra dimension to Munster’s
backs. We saw that on Sunday against Montauban,
where he and ROG were able to mix things up very
effectively between one another. Also, we will
never forget his superb display against the All
Blacks back in November.
In the Irish camp, Brian O’Driscoll has been retained as captain of the national squad. I would like to have seen Paul O’Connell take on the captain’s armband this season, but by all accounts Declan Kidney made his decision having consulted with the senior members of the squad, who strongly favoured retaining BOD in the role. So that’s that then.
I’ll get around to a Six Nations preview before too long.
Since then, Munster lost away to Connacht and got whipped at home by Ulster
Not wanting to tempt fate or anything, but we should be able to get past the Ospreys at Thomond on Easter Sunday. In some ways I would have preferred if we had drawn Toulouse at this point, just so that we could have a better chance to neutralise them on our patch, rather than have to face them later on. As it happens, if we get to the semi, we will face either Harlequins or The Goys. This will be a home match for Munster, even though it can’t be played in Thomond. That raises a problem - where could this match take place?
Sad news today from the Munster camp, in that Paul Warwick is
In the Irish camp, Brian O’Driscoll has been retained as captain of the national squad. I would like to have seen Paul O’Connell take on the captain’s armband this season, but by all accounts Declan Kidney made his decision having consulted with the senior members of the squad, who strongly favoured retaining BOD in the role. So that’s that then.
I’ll get around to a Six Nations preview before too long.
Heineken Cup 2008/09
09/10/08 21:11 Filed in: Sport
Tomorrow night sees
the return of European Rugby’s premier
club/province tournament - the Heineken Cup. Now in its fourteenth
season, it has had its ups and downs. I was at
the 2003 final between Toulouse and Perpignan in
a half-empty Lansdowne Road. At the end of the
2007 season, the French and English clubs were
threatening to pull out of the competition
altogether, which would have doomed it.
But the downs are nothing compared to the ups. The quality of the rugby on display is awesome. The rivalries are intense. This is a very competitive tournament, and of all the teams taking part at least half of them could be touted as potential winners. All-Ireland Hurling Championship it ain’t. And of course, Munster are the current champions, and have won it twice.
From this Munster fan’s point of view, the Heineken Cup is very special. Only in the Heineken Cup has a team I actively support actually won something meaningful.
Apart from the
wins in 2006 and 2008, who can forget that amazing
match against Gloucester in 2003? Or the semi-final
against Leinster in 2006? Or Rob Henderson of
Munster running through Austin Healy of Leicester
in 2003? On the flip side, there was the agony of
losing to Wasps in the semi of 2004, a game cited
by many as one of the finest games of rugby ever
played. The Back-Hander that robbed us in the final
of 2002. John O’Neill’s perfectly good try being
disallowed in the semi against Stade in 2001 (the
day after my wedding.)
Having won the tournament twice, Munster are now one of the most feared sides in Europe. Since 1995, they have been beaten only once at Thomond Park. They have qualified for the quarter-final stage for ten seasons on the trot, contesting four finals (winning twice) and seven semis along the way. This year they have a new head coach and have had a good start to the Magners League with five wins from five. Alongside their many veterans, they have some really exciting talent coming through the ranks, most notably Keith Earls. In addition, there appears to be genuine strength in depth in key positions.
As champions, Munster are also the team that everyone will want to beat, so you can be sure that every match will be high-octane stuff. Munster didn’t like very much losing their 100% record at Thomond Park to Leicester in 2007, and will be keen to re-establish their newly-revamped home as the impregnable fortress it once was. Like last season, Munster are again in a tough group. Last season, they won all their home matches, picking up a bonus point against Clermont, and denying all three visitors the opportunity to pick up losing bonus points. On the road, they beat the Scarlets, and picked up losing bonus points at Clermont and Wasps. They will need to emulate that performance if they hope to get to their eleventh successive quarter-final.
Their pool opponents this season are Clermont, Sale and debutants Montauban. Tomorrow’s match is against the newbies at home. It should be a comfortable win, hopefully with a bonus point for good measure, but to borrow a cliché from the round-ball game, it is a potential banana skin. Montauban are an unknown quantity and have nothing to lose coming to Thomond. An even mildly complacent Munster could have difficulty putting them to the sword, but I don’t believe that this will happen. Munster don’t do complacency, and the team selection for tomorrow night shows that Tony McGahan is taking the opposition seriously.
Elsewhere, Leinster find themselves with their perennial nemesis, Edinburgh, as well as Wasps and Castres. If they can get over their Murrayfield hoodoo this weekend, then they will have a good chance of qualifying from the group. If they don’t (and remember that they are coming off the back of two Magners League defeats to Munster and Connacht), they are sunk.
In Pool Four, Ulster are in with Stade, the Scarlets and Harlequins. The group page on the Heineken Cup website lists the four clubs alphabetically in the table with no games played. By virtue of the initial letter in their name, Ulster are bottom of the table. Expect them to stay there. They shouldn’t even be in the competition and have their place by virtue of being only marginally less useless than Connacht were last season.
I will know in the morning if I am going to be making the journey down the N7 tomorrow afternoon. Me old mucker Munstermad (who used to be one of the contributors at The Fear of God) texted me this evening to tell me that he might be able to get his hands on a spare ticket.
Here’s hoping.
But the downs are nothing compared to the ups. The quality of the rugby on display is awesome. The rivalries are intense. This is a very competitive tournament, and of all the teams taking part at least half of them could be touted as potential winners. All-Ireland Hurling Championship it ain’t. And of course, Munster are the current champions, and have won it twice.
From this Munster fan’s point of view, the Heineken Cup is very special. Only in the Heineken Cup has a team I actively support actually won something meaningful.
Having won the tournament twice, Munster are now one of the most feared sides in Europe. Since 1995, they have been beaten only once at Thomond Park. They have qualified for the quarter-final stage for ten seasons on the trot, contesting four finals (winning twice) and seven semis along the way. This year they have a new head coach and have had a good start to the Magners League with five wins from five. Alongside their many veterans, they have some really exciting talent coming through the ranks, most notably Keith Earls. In addition, there appears to be genuine strength in depth in key positions.
As champions, Munster are also the team that everyone will want to beat, so you can be sure that every match will be high-octane stuff. Munster didn’t like very much losing their 100% record at Thomond Park to Leicester in 2007, and will be keen to re-establish their newly-revamped home as the impregnable fortress it once was. Like last season, Munster are again in a tough group. Last season, they won all their home matches, picking up a bonus point against Clermont, and denying all three visitors the opportunity to pick up losing bonus points. On the road, they beat the Scarlets, and picked up losing bonus points at Clermont and Wasps. They will need to emulate that performance if they hope to get to their eleventh successive quarter-final.
Their pool opponents this season are Clermont, Sale and debutants Montauban. Tomorrow’s match is against the newbies at home. It should be a comfortable win, hopefully with a bonus point for good measure, but to borrow a cliché from the round-ball game, it is a potential banana skin. Montauban are an unknown quantity and have nothing to lose coming to Thomond. An even mildly complacent Munster could have difficulty putting them to the sword, but I don’t believe that this will happen. Munster don’t do complacency, and the team selection for tomorrow night shows that Tony McGahan is taking the opposition seriously.
Elsewhere, Leinster find themselves with their perennial nemesis, Edinburgh, as well as Wasps and Castres. If they can get over their Murrayfield hoodoo this weekend, then they will have a good chance of qualifying from the group. If they don’t (and remember that they are coming off the back of two Magners League defeats to Munster and Connacht), they are sunk.
In Pool Four, Ulster are in with Stade, the Scarlets and Harlequins. The group page on the Heineken Cup website lists the four clubs alphabetically in the table with no games played. By virtue of the initial letter in their name, Ulster are bottom of the table. Expect them to stay there. They shouldn’t even be in the competition and have their place by virtue of being only marginally less useless than Connacht were last season.
I will know in the morning if I am going to be making the journey down the N7 tomorrow afternoon. Me old mucker Munstermad (who used to be one of the contributors at The Fear of God) texted me this evening to tell me that he might be able to get his hands on a spare ticket.
Here’s hoping.
Munster Whitewash Leinster
28/09/08 23:21 Filed in: Sport
Sky+ is feckin’ brilliant. I don’t
watch much telly at the best of times, but it
often happens that what I want to watch is shown
at times that don’t suit. Like tonight, when the
Leinster-Munster clash coincided with bath ‘n’
bedtime for the little ‘un. Where once upon a
time, we were able to dunk her in the bath, get
her into her PJs and Grobag, read the bedtime
stories and have her off to the land of nod in
under half an hour, these days it’s at least an
hour or more. Being an independent little Miss,
she insists on dressing herself. A parental
attempt to put on a vest or PJ top elicits a
sharp cry of “I self!”, followed by a ten minute
process of actually getting the garment on,
usually with parental intervention.
So it was 9.30 by the time I got to sit down and watch the match. I could think about little else today. Opening up the Turbine this morning and reading Neil Francis’s preview almost brought out the Kevin Keegan in me. I was seconds away from donning the headphones, stabbing my forefinger and declaring “I will LUV IT if we beat them” with my voice cracking and tears in my eyes.
Why, oh why, oh why, oh why do the Irish media have such a hard-on about Leinster? OK, Franno is Leinster to his bone marrow, so it is natural for him to talk them up. But tonight, watching the match on Setanta, the commentary was all about Leinster. If a Munster player broke three tackles and was hauled down by the fourth, it was all about the tackle that brought him down, not about the way he skinned the three players en route. Even Donal Lenihan, a Munsterman through and through was commentating on this game like it was Ireland (Leinster) v. Anyone Else (Munster). In case you haven’t noticed, lads, Munster are the current Heineken Cup Champions. They have won it twice in three seasons. They are a decent outfit. Give them some credit, will yiz?
But, anyway, on
to the match. Leinster should have been up 9-0 (or
maybe 9-3 if ROG’s attempted drop goal had gone
over) by the end of the first quarter. But Dr
Felipe had obviously left his kicking boots
elsewhere, as he missed three penalties on the
trot. He never got another shot at goal for the
rest of the match. Munster’s lineout was a weak
point for the whole match, and Leo Cullen in
particular made hay on Munster’s throw. But it was
Munster’s tenacity that showed through. They
defended like their lives depended on it. From the
second quarter on, they gave away no penalties
within kicking range (not that it would have made
much difference, as Contepomi couldn’t hit a pig’s
arse with a banjo tonight.) ROG nailed the two
penalties he was offered, and Munster took their
chances to score two tries.
Even though the one-eyed commentary was constantly talking up Leinster’s defence tonight (and it was good, save for the two tries they conceded), there was precious little comment for Munster’s defence. Leinster never looked like scoring tonight. Any promising-looking move was snuffed out well before the line. Munster put in some monster tackles and turned over a huge amount of ball.
This was a very satisfying win for Munster for several reasons. First up, it was a whitewash. On Leinster’s patch. For all their huffing and puffing, and their great pack and their brilliant backs, Leinster failed to score, on their own patch. It was also a big two fingers to the Irish media, who need to be reminded that Munster are still officially the best team in Europe.
So it was 9.30 by the time I got to sit down and watch the match. I could think about little else today. Opening up the Turbine this morning and reading Neil Francis’s preview almost brought out the Kevin Keegan in me. I was seconds away from donning the headphones, stabbing my forefinger and declaring “I will LUV IT if we beat them” with my voice cracking and tears in my eyes.
Why, oh why, oh why, oh why do the Irish media have such a hard-on about Leinster? OK, Franno is Leinster to his bone marrow, so it is natural for him to talk them up. But tonight, watching the match on Setanta, the commentary was all about Leinster. If a Munster player broke three tackles and was hauled down by the fourth, it was all about the tackle that brought him down, not about the way he skinned the three players en route. Even Donal Lenihan, a Munsterman through and through was commentating on this game like it was Ireland (Leinster) v. Anyone Else (Munster). In case you haven’t noticed, lads, Munster are the current Heineken Cup Champions. They have won it twice in three seasons. They are a decent outfit. Give them some credit, will yiz?
Even though the one-eyed commentary was constantly talking up Leinster’s defence tonight (and it was good, save for the two tries they conceded), there was precious little comment for Munster’s defence. Leinster never looked like scoring tonight. Any promising-looking move was snuffed out well before the line. Munster put in some monster tackles and turned over a huge amount of ball.
This was a very satisfying win for Munster for several reasons. First up, it was a whitewash. On Leinster’s patch. For all their huffing and puffing, and their great pack and their brilliant backs, Leinster failed to score, on their own patch. It was also a big two fingers to the Irish media, who need to be reminded that Munster are still officially the best team in Europe.
The Big Rivalry - Part One
27/09/08 22:21 Filed in: Sport
After
a few seasons establishing itself, the Magners
League is shaping up into a fine competition.
Tomorrow sees the first clash between the two Irish
heavyweights, defending champions Leinster versus
Heineken Cup Champions Munster.
Traditionally, this match has been seen as the clash between the brawn of the Munster pack and the flair of the Leinster backs. How that has changed. Leinster now possess a pack capable of beating up any opposition up front, while Munster’s fleet-footed backs have the capability to mix it up behind the pack.
The Irish media,
being mostly Dublin-based, is drooling over
Leinster. The arrival of prop CJ van der Linde and
flanker Rocky Elsom has only added to this. This is
something of a make or break season for Michael
Cheika. The Magners, even though its stature is
growing every season, is still very much a lesser
prize than the Heineken Cup. Bragging rights among
the Celtic nations of These Islands™ is all fine
and dandy, but coming top of the pile in a
competition that includes the best of England and
France is the gold standard for Irish rugby. Cheika
and his charges do not need reminding that their
opponents tomorrow have reached the European summit
twice in the last three years. Leinster’s best
Heineken Cup finish was in 2006, when they got to
the semi-final (beaten by guess who?), whereas
Munster have been to the final four times, winning
twice.
Both teams have had good starts to the Magners and remain unbeaten. Munster have won all three of their matches so far, picking up two bonus points. Leinster were held to a draw in their opening match against Cardiff, and won the next two, picking up a bonus point in their thumping of Edinburgh.
Tomorrow is very difficult to call, because there are too many variables in play. It’s a home game for Leinster, and a noisy, partisan crowd at the RDS will help lift the man in blue. (Not that hostile away matches faze Munster all that much.) Leinster will be keen to maintain the domestic superiority of last season, when they won home and away against Munster. The men in red will want to put that right. Munster have a new coaching line-up in Tony McGahan and Laurie Fisher, who will be eager to best their fellow Aussies Cheika and Alan Gaffney.
What I can predict with a degree of certainty is that it will be a tough match, it will be close, and that one of these two teams will be the eventual winner of the Magners League.
Traditionally, this match has been seen as the clash between the brawn of the Munster pack and the flair of the Leinster backs. How that has changed. Leinster now possess a pack capable of beating up any opposition up front, while Munster’s fleet-footed backs have the capability to mix it up behind the pack.
Both teams have had good starts to the Magners and remain unbeaten. Munster have won all three of their matches so far, picking up two bonus points. Leinster were held to a draw in their opening match against Cardiff, and won the next two, picking up a bonus point in their thumping of Edinburgh.
Tomorrow is very difficult to call, because there are too many variables in play. It’s a home game for Leinster, and a noisy, partisan crowd at the RDS will help lift the man in blue. (Not that hostile away matches faze Munster all that much.) Leinster will be keen to maintain the domestic superiority of last season, when they won home and away against Munster. The men in red will want to put that right. Munster have a new coaching line-up in Tony McGahan and Laurie Fisher, who will be eager to best their fellow Aussies Cheika and Alan Gaffney.
What I can predict with a degree of certainty is that it will be a tough match, it will be close, and that one of these two teams will be the eventual winner of the Magners League.