GRAHAM ROWNTREE PUT himself out there and then he had to wait. And wait.
With Johann van Graan having triggered a release clause in his contract in order to join Bath, Munster were suddenly and unexpectedly looking for a new head coach. Rowntree put his name in the ring.
Though it hadn’t been publicly announced, van Graan had initially signed a fresh two-year contract extension with Munster and the IRFU up until the summer of 2024. It included the same six-month release clause that had allowed Rassie Erasmus to go back to South Africa. This time, van Graan invoked it to join Bath.
And so, Munster called for interested parties. Rowntree, an assistant coach to van Graan, had never had the top job in any of his previous gigs with Leicester, England, the Lions, Harlequins, or Georgia. But now he felt the time was right.
“A wise man knows where he is in his career,” is how Rowntree himself put it. He understood that he had the support of Munster’s players, he believed he had built enough experience to take on the head coach role, and he sensed that he could give Munster the refresh they needed to kick on.
Most importantly, he was fully at home in Limerick. His family settled in happily after first arriving in 2019 and Rowntree felt like Munster folk were his kindred spirits. Now he’s one of them. Indeed, rumour has it that ‘Wig’ has even got a Munster tattoo on his arm.
Rowntree interviewed for the role and laid out his vision for Munster. By all accounts he did an excellent job but then came the waiting. It seems Munster and the IRFU were keen to see who else would apply for the role and indeed, it got to the point where Rowntree became frustrated at not getting definitive word. Long weeks ticked by.
In the end, no other genuine contenders were interviewed for the job and in April of last year, Munster finally announced that Rowntree would succeed van Graan at the end of the 2021/22 season.
Rowntree has been determined not to change too much about his approach despite stepping up into a position where he picks and drops players, as well as having a huge say in their futures. He’s always been an affable, funny, popular character in any team he’s been with and Rowntree was keen not to completely cut that side of his personality out.
His relaxed approach as head coach has been good for a Munster set-up that had become rather serious in recent years. They’re more balanced these days, still intense at the right times but capable of enjoying themselves. Rowntree’s calmness has been pivotal at times, especially as Munster struggled for results early in the season.
Having been an excellent assistant coach himself for so long, Rowntree understood the importance of surrounding himself with strong staff. A major part of his plan in this regard was to lure Mike Prendergast home as attack coach.
Given that Rowntree’s specialty is scrum and forwards play, the attack coach appointment was always going to be vital. Prendergast is a passionate Munster man, had gained great experience in France, and enjoyed a reputation as an innovative, modern coach.
The problem was that he still had a year on his contract with Racing 92. It took a fair bit of work from Munster and the IRFU to get him home but it has paid off in spades given the clear progress of Munster’s attack. Prendergast has been a game-changer. The stats back up the impression of Munster being more dangerous with ball in hand, with their numbers for linebreaks, offloads, and passes all up in the URC this season, while they’ve kicked less.
Rowntree targeted another native Munster man for the defence coach role, bringing Denis Leamy home from Leinster where he had learned as an academy coach and then contact skills specialist. This is his first full season as a senior assistant coach but again, Leamy has settled in superbly. There have been notable defensive blips this season but by and large, Munster have been combative and tough without the ball.
Rowntree also promoted forwards coach Andi Kyriacou from the academy and has been able to work in tandem with him around the scrum, ruck, lineout, and maul.
There has been a further strengthening of the link between Munster’s senior squad and academy, with young players fully integrated in training with Rowntree’s side. Academy manager Ian Costello is heavily involved in coaching the sessions, while head performance analyst George Murray has also been given responsibility on the training pitch.
Costello will move into a new role as head of rugby operations from next season, a position involving player development, succession planning, and recruitment. It’s a hole that Munster have needed to fill for a long time. Gearóid Prendergast, Mike’s brother, will come in as academy boss.
All of the additions last summer were exciting but then came the difficult process of changing how Munster trained. Rowntree and his assistants wanted to make their team fitter and more skillful under pressure. That would allow them to be more proactive in attack and defence on game day.
The intensity of training went up several notches as Munster introduced ‘chaos games‘ that involved huge amounts of ball-in-play time. Initially, the players struggled with the relentless demands, both physically and in terms of their skill levels.
In fact, it took a few months and when the season kicked off, results were deeply concerning from the outside. Munster lost five of their opening seven URC games to leave them already chasing the play-off spots and Champions Cup qualification. The Emerging Ireland tour didn’t help towards the end of this run, with 10 Munster players named in the squad.
There were issues across Munster’s early-season performances, most notably at the attacking breakdown where they repeatedly coughed up possession. There were also basic handling errors as the players attempted to pass more, while defensive lapses and set-pieces issues also popped up.
It was all quite the mess, in truth, but privately Munster remained composed. Rowntree stressed to his players that things would click. The players had faith in him and his assistants. Then came the turning point on a memorable evening at Páirc Uí Chaoimh.
On a historic occasion last November, the South Africa XV brought some big names and experienced heads to Cork. Munster sent them packing in style in front of a sold-out crowd of 41,400. It was one of ‘those’ Munster nights.
Invigorated, Rowntree’s men won nine of their next 12 games, playing some classy rugby along the way. They only narrowly lost to Leinster and twice to Toulouse. They earned a Champions Cup knock-out tie and battled back into URC contention.
One aspect of Rowntree’s approach that has impressed is his willingness to make big selection calls. Conor Murray and Keith Earls have been among the previous incumbents not to be selected for important games. More recently, Joey Carbery has been completely out of the mix because Jack Crowley and Ben Healy having been playing better.
Whatever sense of hierarchy there was before, whatever comfort some senior players felt in their status as guaranteed starters, is all gone. The likes of Calvin Nash and Shane Daly have looked like different players having been backed to really show their full skillsets. Across the board, the skill levels have improved. Few players can argue they haven’t been given a chance. Several who appeared to have hit their ceiling have kicked on.
Munster had a notable dip at the end of March and start of April, with a dire home defeat to Glasgow leaving them in danger of missing out on the league play-offs, while they were dismantled by the Sharks in the searing heat of Durban in the Champions Cup round-of-16.
It was backs-to-the-wall time and again, Rowntree set the right tone ahead of what should have been a daunting trip to South Africa in the final two games of the URC regular season. He challenged his players to embrace a unique challenge.
Back when he first got the gig, Rowntree was asked what traits he wanted to be obvious when people watched his Munster team.
“Tough to beat, passion, and aggression,” he said. And while other qualities have stood out this season, Munster were belligerent and resilient on that tour to South Africa last month. They emerged with a stirring win over the Stormers and a draw against the Sharks that was nearly another victory.
They’ve been on the road since, beating Glasgow in the quarter-finals and then ending their miserable run against Leinster in style at the Aviva Stadium two weekends ago. In Dublin, they were hard to beat, ambitious in attack, oppressive in defence, and clearly much fitter than in previous seasons.
This Saturday, they get a shot at ending the 12-year trophy drought as they face the Stormers in Cape Town again. A recent victory at DHL Stadium helps, as does a fit, competitive squad. The South Africans are favourites but Munster must be confident.
This season has already been a success for Rowntree. His team’s positive style of play has delighted supporters and re-engaged those who had become weary of Munster’s previous approach. There’s no doubt that the buzz is back in the southern province.
Few people expected them to be in trophy contention so early in the Rowntree era, but here they are on the brink.
Back when he was announced as the new boss, Rowntree pointed to the Munster fans as a big part of what excited him about the job. They have taken to him in an unmistakable manner and with more than 5,000 of them expected in Cape Town for the final this weekend, Rowntree will be lauded regardless of the result.
His first season as a head coach has been revitalising for Munster.
Get instant updates on your province on The 42 app. With Laya Healthcare, official health and wellbeing partner to Leinster, Munster and Connacht Rugby.
