IT’S THE SECOND time in three seasons that Munster will finish a campaign without a Champions Cup win at Thomond Park but head coach Clayton McMillan said they have no choice but to get back on the horse and regroup.
Two seasons ago, a draw against Bayonne and a narrow loss to Northampton Saints at Thomond Park did not cost them a place in the last 16, but this time, they are out of the competition, and McMillan made it clear that making it to the knockout stages of the Challenge Cup wasn’t much of a consolation.
Munster did, at least, manage a home win this season in the Champions Cup, but that 31-3 win over Gloucester in Páirc Uí Chaoimh is scant consolation to a side who built their European platform on Thomond Park being a fortress, going unbeaten a dozen years in the competition before losing there to Leicester Tigers in 2007 and since then rarely being thwarted.
Thomond Park, with over 5,000 empty places in the stands and terraces on Saturday evening, clearly is not the citadel of the glory years and Castres, beaten in all eight previous visits to Limerick, came fully loaded knowing they had more than a fighting chance.
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Castres players celebrate a famous win in Thomond Park. Damien Eagers / PA / Alamy Stock Photo
Damien Eagers / PA / Alamy Stock Photo / PA / Alamy Stock Photo
Munster have made it into the knockout stages of the Challenge Cup by the skin of their teeth, but are in a side of the draw which contains four previous Champions Cup winners.
“There’s nobody in this building that’s happy about receiving the consolation prize of being able to go and play in the Challenge Cup,” said McMillan who fronted the usual Monday press conference himself instead of skills and assistant attack coach Mossy Lawler, who was originally was rostered for duty.
“We also understand that though we have a rich history in the Champions Cup, that that history doesn’t give us a rite of passage there,” added McMillan.
We’ve got to earn our right to be there. And, you know, there’s been lots, I think, to be proud about around how our game is progressing. But ultimately, it hasn’t been good enough.
McMillan, who now needs to get the side ready to host Dragons in Cork on Friday night, said that the disappointment in the changing room after Saturday’s 31-29 loss to Castres was as bad as he has seen.
“There was as much disappointment as I’ve seen in the changing room no matter what environment I’ve been in, so that shows how much it sort of hurt the players,” added the New Zealander.
Munster drop into the Challenge Cup, where they'll travel to Exeter in the round of 16. Damien Eagers / PA / Alamy Stock Photo
Damien Eagers / PA / Alamy Stock Photo / PA / Alamy Stock Photo
“To their credit, they’ve turned up today in a good frame of mind. We did a deep dive this morning, our reviews in the morning, amongst other things, and if you take about an hour, a good couple of hours this morning.
They’re searching for a few answers and some accountability around the performance and how we can go better.
“I think it’s one of the big challenges as a coaching group, really, not just myself, but as a coaching group to navigate over the season and find different ways of previewing and reviewing.
“You know, you find yourself on this merry-go-round where you are going extremely hard at players; other weeks where you give them a big pat on the back around some stuff; other days when you find a bit of a balance of both; some days when you get them to reflect on their performances and feedback.
“You’re constantly looking at different ways of reviewing. There’s always a danger that, you know, when you are just erring on the negative side all the time, that you feel like you never can get anything right, so it is a little bit of a balancing act.
“Today was one of those days where we actually needed to do a deep dive. We needed some honesty, a bit of vulnerability, and we got there,” he added.
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Munster's Champions Cup post-mortem: 'History doesn't give us a rite of passage'
IT’S THE SECOND time in three seasons that Munster will finish a campaign without a Champions Cup win at Thomond Park but head coach Clayton McMillan said they have no choice but to get back on the horse and regroup.
Two seasons ago, a draw against Bayonne and a narrow loss to Northampton Saints at Thomond Park did not cost them a place in the last 16, but this time, they are out of the competition, and McMillan made it clear that making it to the knockout stages of the Challenge Cup wasn’t much of a consolation.
Munster did, at least, manage a home win this season in the Champions Cup, but that 31-3 win over Gloucester in Páirc Uí Chaoimh is scant consolation to a side who built their European platform on Thomond Park being a fortress, going unbeaten a dozen years in the competition before losing there to Leicester Tigers in 2007 and since then rarely being thwarted.
Thomond Park, with over 5,000 empty places in the stands and terraces on Saturday evening, clearly is not the citadel of the glory years and Castres, beaten in all eight previous visits to Limerick, came fully loaded knowing they had more than a fighting chance.
Munster have made it into the knockout stages of the Challenge Cup by the skin of their teeth, but are in a side of the draw which contains four previous Champions Cup winners.
“There’s nobody in this building that’s happy about receiving the consolation prize of being able to go and play in the Challenge Cup,” said McMillan who fronted the usual Monday press conference himself instead of skills and assistant attack coach Mossy Lawler, who was originally was rostered for duty.
“We also understand that though we have a rich history in the Champions Cup, that that history doesn’t give us a rite of passage there,” added McMillan.
McMillan, who now needs to get the side ready to host Dragons in Cork on Friday night, said that the disappointment in the changing room after Saturday’s 31-29 loss to Castres was as bad as he has seen.
“There was as much disappointment as I’ve seen in the changing room no matter what environment I’ve been in, so that shows how much it sort of hurt the players,” added the New Zealander.
“To their credit, they’ve turned up today in a good frame of mind. We did a deep dive this morning, our reviews in the morning, amongst other things, and if you take about an hour, a good couple of hours this morning.
“I think it’s one of the big challenges as a coaching group, really, not just myself, but as a coaching group to navigate over the season and find different ways of previewing and reviewing.
“You know, you find yourself on this merry-go-round where you are going extremely hard at players; other weeks where you give them a big pat on the back around some stuff; other days when you find a bit of a balance of both; some days when you get them to reflect on their performances and feedback.
“You’re constantly looking at different ways of reviewing. There’s always a danger that, you know, when you are just erring on the negative side all the time, that you feel like you never can get anything right, so it is a little bit of a balancing act.
“Today was one of those days where we actually needed to do a deep dive. We needed some honesty, a bit of vulnerability, and we got there,” he added.
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Clayton McMillan Munster over and out Rugby