CROKE PARK IN Round 4 always stood out as a likely early-season highlight in Irish rugby.
Munster’s visit to take on Leinster being scheduled a few weeks into the new season looked ideal, given that Clayton McMillan would have a bit of time to get his feet under the table in the southern province before the trip to Dublin.
And that match-up has only become more intriguing based on the opening two rounds of the URC, with Munster earning a haul of nine match points against Scarlets and Cardiff but Leinster picking up only one losing bonus point on their tour of South Africa.
Leo Cullen, Jacques Nienaber and co. will be happy that the long-haul trip is now done and dusted for the season, but they won’t be happy with that fairly meagre tally from the defeats to the Stormers and the Bulls.
The defending champions were much better in Pretoria last weekend, bouncing back from the 35-0 hammering at the hands of the Stormers to come close to a stirring victory over the Bulls. It wasn’t to be, but Cullen was undoubtedly relieved to see his players far more mentally and physically at the pitch required.
And yet, Leinster’s poor start meant they had to chase the Bulls from 12-0 down after just 15 minutes. Johan Ackermann’s side were clinical in taking their chances in that opening passage, but Leinster’s defence broke too easily.
Nienaber, Leinster’s defence specialist, wants his work to be judged on Leinster’s points and tries conceded totals. They were impressive numbers last season but 74 points and 10 tries conceded in the opening two games of this campaign are figures that will cause him stress.
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Leinster senior coach Jacques Nienaber. Steve Haag / INPHO
Steve Haag / INPHO / INPHO
Forwards coach Robin McBryde will have been pleased to watch Leinster bounce back at scrum and lineout time after that chastening day at the set-piece against the Stormers. That improved platform helped Leinster to deliver in attack as they came up short against the Bulls.
Leinster will be gutted to lose out in such a tense endgame when out-half Sam Prendergast was wide with a long-range drop-goal and penalty, as well as throwing an intercept pass for the Bulls’ last try. Prendergast and Leinster want to be specialists in such stressful situations, but they couldn’t get over the line in this one.
Leinster will enjoy being back on home soil for Saturday’s clash with the Sharks at the Aviva Stadium. John Plumtree’s side have started the season with a defeat in Glasgow, then a shaky draw away to the Dragons last weekend, so they haven’t been firing yet.
With the Croke Park showdown with Munster looming, Cullen will be happy to welcome back his Lions frontliners over the next two weeks. That might bring further issues of rebuilding connections under match pressure but it will also mean a huge injection of quality.
Leinster will have been watching McMillan’s first few games in charge of Munster with great interest. Two wins from two makes for good reading, even if the opposition was weaker than Leinster’s.
Their opening win away to Scarlets was good, with Munster bringing an aggressive, confrontational edge to their game that allowed Mike Prendergast’s attack to flourish. As McMillan himself noted, that edge was missing too often against Cardiff last weekend.
Squeezing out a 23-20 win without playing especially well is pleasing, of course, but McMillan will have found it educational to get an in-person glimpse of why Munster have been dogged by inconsistency in recent seasons.
They certainly missed the injury Craig Casey, who was brilliant in the opening round and who they hope to have back from his hamstring issue for the Leinster game. His energy and accuracy at scrum-half are game-changing for Munster.
Jack Crowley was in strong form for Munster. Nick Elliott / INPHO
Nick Elliott / INPHO / INPHO
But in his stead, out-half Jack Crowley grabbed the game by the scruff of the neck. His second-half drop goal was a highlight, with the number 10 calmly dropping into the pocket and taking three points to give Munster scoreboard breathing room that proved crucial. There were lots of flashes of attacking skill from Crowley, but it was his management of the game that probably pleased McMillan most.
Cardiff played some thrilling rugby as out-half Callum Sheedy and 19-year-old wing Tom Bowen showed their class, but Munster had enough to make it two wins from two.
They have another home game to look forward to this Friday against Edinburgh in Cork, a fixture that Munster essentially failed to turn up for last season as they lost to the Scots. In that sense, it’s a nice test of their ability to start being a more consistent force.
It could well be that Munster head into the Leinster game with three wins from three games and a nice pep in their step.
While Leinster have high-profile frontliners to welcome back, Munster are being boosted by some of their injured players getting back to action.
It’s exciting that both second row Edwin Edogbo and tighthead prop Roman Salanoa are now in full training after long-term Achilles tendon and knee injuries, respectively. They are two powerful operators and McMillan will welcome having their collision-winning qualities to work with.
Tom Farrell, Mike Haley, Michael Milne, John Ryan, and Andrew Smith being back to full training is a further boost, all the more so given that competition for places goes up a few notches.
Getting Casey fit looks crucial ahead of that Leinster game, which can’t come around quickly enough.
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Leinster need to sharpen up defence as Munster's visit to Croker looms
CROKE PARK IN Round 4 always stood out as a likely early-season highlight in Irish rugby.
Munster’s visit to take on Leinster being scheduled a few weeks into the new season looked ideal, given that Clayton McMillan would have a bit of time to get his feet under the table in the southern province before the trip to Dublin.
And that match-up has only become more intriguing based on the opening two rounds of the URC, with Munster earning a haul of nine match points against Scarlets and Cardiff but Leinster picking up only one losing bonus point on their tour of South Africa.
Leo Cullen, Jacques Nienaber and co. will be happy that the long-haul trip is now done and dusted for the season, but they won’t be happy with that fairly meagre tally from the defeats to the Stormers and the Bulls.
The defending champions were much better in Pretoria last weekend, bouncing back from the 35-0 hammering at the hands of the Stormers to come close to a stirring victory over the Bulls. It wasn’t to be, but Cullen was undoubtedly relieved to see his players far more mentally and physically at the pitch required.
And yet, Leinster’s poor start meant they had to chase the Bulls from 12-0 down after just 15 minutes. Johan Ackermann’s side were clinical in taking their chances in that opening passage, but Leinster’s defence broke too easily.
Nienaber, Leinster’s defence specialist, wants his work to be judged on Leinster’s points and tries conceded totals. They were impressive numbers last season but 74 points and 10 tries conceded in the opening two games of this campaign are figures that will cause him stress.
Forwards coach Robin McBryde will have been pleased to watch Leinster bounce back at scrum and lineout time after that chastening day at the set-piece against the Stormers. That improved platform helped Leinster to deliver in attack as they came up short against the Bulls.
Leinster will be gutted to lose out in such a tense endgame when out-half Sam Prendergast was wide with a long-range drop-goal and penalty, as well as throwing an intercept pass for the Bulls’ last try. Prendergast and Leinster want to be specialists in such stressful situations, but they couldn’t get over the line in this one.
Leinster will enjoy being back on home soil for Saturday’s clash with the Sharks at the Aviva Stadium. John Plumtree’s side have started the season with a defeat in Glasgow, then a shaky draw away to the Dragons last weekend, so they haven’t been firing yet.
With the Croke Park showdown with Munster looming, Cullen will be happy to welcome back his Lions frontliners over the next two weeks. That might bring further issues of rebuilding connections under match pressure but it will also mean a huge injection of quality.
Leinster will have been watching McMillan’s first few games in charge of Munster with great interest. Two wins from two makes for good reading, even if the opposition was weaker than Leinster’s.
Their opening win away to Scarlets was good, with Munster bringing an aggressive, confrontational edge to their game that allowed Mike Prendergast’s attack to flourish. As McMillan himself noted, that edge was missing too often against Cardiff last weekend.
Squeezing out a 23-20 win without playing especially well is pleasing, of course, but McMillan will have found it educational to get an in-person glimpse of why Munster have been dogged by inconsistency in recent seasons.
They certainly missed the injury Craig Casey, who was brilliant in the opening round and who they hope to have back from his hamstring issue for the Leinster game. His energy and accuracy at scrum-half are game-changing for Munster.
But in his stead, out-half Jack Crowley grabbed the game by the scruff of the neck. His second-half drop goal was a highlight, with the number 10 calmly dropping into the pocket and taking three points to give Munster scoreboard breathing room that proved crucial. There were lots of flashes of attacking skill from Crowley, but it was his management of the game that probably pleased McMillan most.
Cardiff played some thrilling rugby as out-half Callum Sheedy and 19-year-old wing Tom Bowen showed their class, but Munster had enough to make it two wins from two.
They have another home game to look forward to this Friday against Edinburgh in Cork, a fixture that Munster essentially failed to turn up for last season as they lost to the Scots. In that sense, it’s a nice test of their ability to start being a more consistent force.
It could well be that Munster head into the Leinster game with three wins from three games and a nice pep in their step.
While Leinster have high-profile frontliners to welcome back, Munster are being boosted by some of their injured players getting back to action.
It’s exciting that both second row Edwin Edogbo and tighthead prop Roman Salanoa are now in full training after long-term Achilles tendon and knee injuries, respectively. They are two powerful operators and McMillan will welcome having their collision-winning qualities to work with.
Tom Farrell, Mike Haley, Michael Milne, John Ryan, and Andrew Smith being back to full training is a further boost, all the more so given that competition for places goes up a few notches.
Getting Casey fit looks crucial ahead of that Leinster game, which can’t come around quickly enough.
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Croke Park Leinster Munster Showdown URC