JACK CROWLEY SAYS the Munster squad will use the challenges facing the province off the pitch as motivation for their URC season run-in.

Clayton McMillan’s team are on a troubling run of form with URC wins against the Dragons and Zebre the only victories across their previous 10 games in all competitions.

Having dropped out of the Challenge Cup with defeat to Exeter in the round of 16, Munster had no game last weekend as the Champions and Challenge Cup quarter-finals were played, and now face a massive few weeks as they look to secure Champions Cup rugby for next season.

With just four games of the URC regular season remaining Munster sit seventh in the table, and this week travel to play Benetton as they look to turn their poor form around and finish in the play-off positions.

“We didn’t really have a have a week off (last week), we were in training and like that, reflecting on it for a day or two ourselves,” Crowley says.

“Then we met as a group and had really good, honest conversations with one another, and ultimately we came down to the responsibility of the players to deliver on-field performance, and with that, the individual responsibility of each player in the whole group to be pushing themselves every day to be getting the best out of themselves in the preparation, and we just asked for lads to be honest with themselves if they’re giving everything.

“We’ve had a really good response and as a group we’ve acknowledged everything in terms of performance that we need to get better at.”

Munster out-half Jack Crowley. Dan Sheridan / INPHO Dan Sheridan / INPHO / INPHO

Munster’s disappointing run of defeats – which included a 45-0 loss at the Sharks and going 31-0 down at Exeter – came alongside news the club would be offering voluntary redundancies to staff as financial challenges take a toll. Munster head coach Clayton McMillan has acknowledged the players can have a ‘significant impact’ on those financial pressures by delivered a strong end to the season.

“On a personal level, like, Munster, it’s a community and there’s a lot of players in the group that have family or connections or friends that are working in Munster,” Crowley says.

“So again, acknowledging that it’s never a place we want to be as an organisation, but I suppose flip it on its head and us as players, we have a choice now in how we respond.

“We are the fortunate few that get to go out onto the field and represent a community far greater than ourselves. We’re just a few individuals in the jersey, representing many before us and that’ll come after us, and our responsibility now is to focus on this week, this training week, every day, to get better so that we can deliver a performance on Saturday that the people of Munster will be proud of, those people (potentially facing redundancy) will be proud of, and we flip this thing on its head and move the whole thing in the right direction.

It’s a challenging time for everyone, but that’s something that’s going to motivate us to make those people that are maybe going through tough times as well to be proud to be a Munster person, and do the best we possibly can for them, because that’s our responsibility.”

Crowley’s own recent form has been one of the few bright points for Munster, the out-half carrying the momentum which saw him reclaim the Ireland 10 shirt during the Six Nations back into the Munster camp. McMillan needs others to raise their game and support the likes of Crowley, Tadhg Beirne and Craig Casey.

After Saturday’s meeting with Benetton, Munster will play Ulster (home), Connacht (away) and the Lions (home) in their push to make the URC play-offs. Crowley says the squad only have to look at their previous strong finishes to seasons as a reminder of what can be achieved over the coming weeks.

“Anything’s possible, 100%. There’s great belief in the group, there’s great motivation in the group, and we certainly believe that there’s something quite (special) possible, you know, and it starts with this week. Genuinely, it starts this week. We deliver a performance, who knows? We may be having a laugh about this next season when go great or whatnot, but we’ll see.”

While the province are clearly in a tough place heading into the URC run-in, Crowley is framing the challenge ahead as something that can stand to the group in the long run, and act as a potential turning point.

“You know, something like lifting a trophy is amazing, but there’s there’s also… If I fast forward to a few weeks, and let’s say we deliver everything that we say we’re going to deliver and deliver performances and we’re in a far better position, sometimes we look at ‘a getting there’ moment and with that view, you tend to lose sight of what’s in front of you and you don’t take enjoyment from the everyday.

“So for us, that’s exactly where if we keep our focus right in front of us, where our feet are, getting through this challenging time together as a group, that’s fulfilling and that sometimes can be far more fulfilling than lifting a trophy because ultimately, it’s in challenging times where you see the true nature of one another and you see the true character of one another, and that’s massive.”

Earlier today, Munster announced the appointment of Roger Randle as their new attack coach on a two-year contract.

Munster Rugby player and Pinergy Brand Ambassador Jack Crowley was speaking as Pinergy makes its Acutrace energy measurement platform available to all commercial clients, underscoring the crucial link between data, performance, and sustainability.