THERE’S PLENTY OF evidence that Munster are good on the road in their time of need.
You know the drill. Munster appear to be in trouble in the Champions Cup, then they pull off a rousing win away from home. They added the narrative last season when going on a remarkable run on the road to win the URC.
Now, they find themselves in need of an away victory yet again. A draw in last weekend’s Pool 3 opener against Bayonne at Thomond Park leaves them with a point to prove and points to accumulate against Exeter this Sunday. While losing wouldn’t end their Round of 16 hopes, it would leave them in a dire position in terms of home knock-out ties.
So it helps that they know they can travel away from Ireland and win big.
“I think you draw on that,” says defence coach Denis Leamy. “You can’t deny that we have gone to places. What was it, five results on the road away from home on the [URC] run-in last year?
“That’s something you draw on. You definitely do. It’s there. We can’t deny it. We have done it. It’s the truth, it’s a fact, and it’s there.
“I think the boys will draw from results like that, definitely, and it gives us confidence that we can go and deliver a big performance.
“Look, I trust the boys 100% that they can go out there and get it 100% right.”
It’s not just the URC in which Munster have enjoyed landmark wins away from home. The magic of the Champions Cup didn’t inspire their best performance last weekend against Bayonne, but Leamy believes we will see better this time around.
“I think the competition always brings that nervousness and that expectation,” says Leamy. “Munster in Europe is a big thing. It means a lot.
“Again, it’s pressure and we’ve got a few things that there is uncertainty around – selection and injuries and stuff like that. That throws up stuff. But again, it really comes back to how we get our structure right day-to-day in terms of the week.
“You just feel that this team does deliver on the road. You just feel that there are performances in them.”
Hopes for a big performance this weekend are perhaps helped by the fact that Munster were off it last weekend as Bayonne earned a 17-17 draw in Thomond Park. They expect a response.
The review earlier this week underlined that the performance wasn’t of the standard Munster hold themselves to.
“Look, I wouldn’t say there has been anyone absolutely slaughtered in meetings or anything like that but we’ve had a hard review,” says Leamy.
“There have been issues that we weren’t quite happy with, but that’s probably the case every week, whether we win or lose. Sometimes when we win, the reviews are harder than when we lose.”
That said, he’s keen to underline that Bayonne made Munster’s lives more difficult. He reckons Exeter will do the same again with their ability to go through high numbers of phases, kick well, and put pressure on with their aggressive defence.
While much of the outside focus on Munster tends to be on their attack, Leamy’s work with the defence has been crucial since his arrival in 2022.
Now in his second year as the province’s defence coach, he’s looking to build on the strong foundation they put in last season.
“It’s constantly evolving, isn’t it? You have to try and stay almost ahead of the game in some ways, and just always be open-minded in terms of what you’re seeing, what are teams doing, was there a reason why.
“[For example,] Leinster ran something last week in phase, I’m not sure if it happened by accident or by design, but you’re always wondering what are they seeing here that they have put these players in this position?
“So, you’re constantly looking at what you’re doing, but also what the opposition teams are doing against you, and just trying to imagine in their shoes what they’re seeing, and why they would possibly run different types of plays or run different types of shapes or attack you around the ruck or attack you around the edges, and stuff like that.”
Munster have been looking to put on more pressure at the defensive breakdown this season under Leamy, having been focused on filling the pitch with defenders on their feet in his first campaign.
He knows that players will always love attacking.
“Most people find the attack sexy, I get that!” says Leamy.
“You coach anyone at any age and they want the ball. I get that. I liked the ball when I was playing myself. I liked defending too, but I get the attack side of things.”
Still, he believes his players take great pride in their defensive work at Munster.
“Certain players love defending, they really do. They get energised by it and they love defending more than they like attacking.
“But, I suppose across the board, it’s trying to energise them and I think in many ways you’ll see the steeliness of a team through their defence. It’s not that it’s hard to measure it in attack but I think you definitely how steely in terms of mindset and fitness and in terms of how battle-hardened teams are, through their D.
“You get a sense of what they are, their DNA, in terms of their defensive sets. That’s the way I’d view it a little bit.”
