Murray Kinsella reports from Kingspan Stadium
MUNSTER LOST 31-13 to Glasgow Warriors at Kingspan Stadium in the final of the Guinness Pro12.
Read our full match report here.
Offload king Nakarawa
Surely one of the most entertaining individual attacking performance of the season? Leone Nakarawa was utterly effective for Glasgow a year after some of his loose offloading had given Leinster strong attacking chances in last season’s final.
To hear Gregor Townsend admit that he’d told Nakarawa pre-match that he didn’t have to look for the offload every single time he had the ball brought a laugh. Clearly, the Fijian wasn’t listening and thankfully so.
He laid the first two Glasgow tries on welcoming plates for Rob Harley and DTH van der Merwe and kickstarted the passage that ended with the third through Henry Pyrgos. Every fibre of his being yearns to attack with ball in hand.
There was even a gorgeous soccer-style pass along the ground after he lost the ball to deck in the second half, Nakarawa’s skill levels standing out even in a team that excels in that area.
He doesn’t always get it this right, but Nakarawa was a sensation this evening. A joy to watch.
First-half woes
That a 21-10 deficit at half time probably didn’t fully reflect the gulf in class in the opening 40 minutes was telling. Munster’s late try through Andrew Smith before the break dragged them back into the game after they’d been blitzed prior to that.
Missed tackle after missed tackle, poor kick after poor kick and weak chase after weak chase. The errors were of the most basic kind from Munster, that fact being perhaps the most frustrating thing for Anthony Foley.
Of course, no side goes out intent on under-performing and Glasgow’s attack played a central role in those missed tackles. The speed at which Townsend’s side attacked was frightening, never giving Munster even a split second to gather themselves in defence.
The support lines from Glasgow were supreme, while their intent to offload or keep the ball alive through clever rapid pops from the base of rucks that had barely even formed kept Munster uneasy throughout the half.
Their well-organised and enthusiastic counter attack, meanwhile, made massive yards with every thrust, punishing that poor kick and chase from Munster.
Departing faces
Paul O’Connell wasn’t the only man signing off this evening and there were many others who had more telling impacts on their final appearances for both Glasgow and Munster.
On the Irish side, centre Andrew Smith delivered perhaps his most impressive performance of his single year with Foley’s squad. His ball carrying was excellent, including for his try, while he also had one gorgeous first-half offload to Felix Jones.
Paddy Butler battled at the coalface but ultimately couldn’t get a grip on the breakdown, while Sean Dougall did well off the bench. JJ Hanrahan entered the fray heading into the final quarter, but the game was gone literally two minutes later.
On the Glasgow side, their success was as fitting an end for the much-loved Al Kellock as Munster fans hoped O’Connell would have. The 33-year-old replaced Nakarawa with 14 minutes left, receiving a hearty welcome and then the perfect feat to celebrate.
The departing DTH van der Merwe scored a try and looked dangerous throughout, although Bath-bound Niko Matawalu was met by a chorus of boos on his arrival late on. Jon Welsh and Dougie Hall signed off in the best possible way with this Pro12 success.
Hanrahan’s entry
With Munster having fought their way back to 21-13 and with 24 minutes remaining, head coach Foley made the decision to withdraw out-half Ian Keatley and send JJ Hanrahan on to run the show.
Keatley’s kicking had been poor throughout the game, but his passing and running hadn’t showed up badly. It was something of a surprise move from Foley, but it was also a recognition that he had to make one final throw of the dice.
Two minutes later, with Hanrahan not having touched the ball yet, Munster were under their posts and trailing 28-13. Game over.
We’ll never know what might have been if Munster could have got the ball into the Kerryman’s hands earlier, but it would be interesting to get Keatley’s thoughts on being replaced.
Foley has largely avoided using Hanrahan since his departure for Northampton Saints was confirmed, but here Keatley was hauled ashore as Munster found themselves back within a shout.
A sign that Foley feels there is something lacking in his 10? Or simply a desperate final measure to get something from Hanrahan’s creativity before his heads to England?
Townsend’s stock rises
A semi-final in his first season, a final in his second and now a Pro12 title in his third year in charge of the Glasgow Warriors. Gregor Townsend has led the Scots’ upward curve with impressive composure.
The former international out-half is a highly positive character, a man with a growth mindset that is bringing out the best in a talented Glasgow squad. Almost every player in the group has improved under Townsend’s tutelage, his skills-focused approach clearly working.
The style of Glasgow’s play is extremely attractive and it’s so encouraging to see that a team can win a trophy by being so positive with the ball. This was a win for rugby.
As well as those obvious attacking qualities, Glasgow are perhaps more importantly a force of work-rate. Townsend will likely take more pride in the big defensive moments of this win, as the squad’s strong culture shone through to help them scramble and cope.
His ability to maintain competition for places right up to a final has been impressive too, every player in the Warriors group aware that they don’t own the shirt.
Leinster fans would thank Mick Dawson if he broke the bank to convince Townsend to swap sides, but one senses that the former Scotland international believes there is much more to come from his Warriors.
