LET’S START WITH the injuries, as win or lose, they will shape the narrative around Munster’s performance against Exeter in their Heineken Champions Cup round of 16 first leg meeting at Sandy Park this evening [KO 5.30pm, BT Sport 3].
Johann van Graan’s side already knew they would be making the trip to Devon without the services of Ireland internationals Tadhg Beirne, Andrew Conway, Gavin Coombes – who is set to be out until May – and Dave Kilcoyne. Then came yesterday’s team announcement, and the news that captain Peter O’Mahony and Joey Carbery had been added to the list of absentees.
Both players could return in time for next weekend’s return leg, although that’s little consolation for Munster at the moment. They first need to keep the tie alive for that Thomond Park showdown.
The Munster side that will take to the field today may read more United Rugby Championship than Champions Cup, but even without those heavy hitters, there’s plenty of talent there to trouble Exeter, as Van Graan makes eight changes to the team that eventually went down so meekly to Leinster. Look past the injuries, and you’re left with an exciting side full of potential.
At out-half, there’s a huge opportunity for Ben Healy, who wins just his third Champions Cup start. He impressed off the bench against Leinster and has added new layers to his attacking game this season. Healy was scintillating in the round four win over Wasps back in January – a reminder that this team are well capable of taking up an invitation to play – and if he is allowed bring the same sense of freedom and invention to his approach today, the 22-year-old can provide the spark to ignite a strong, experienced backline.
The concern would be that too often this season, Munster’s backs haven’t played to their potential as a unit. The Leinster defeat offers the most recent, and perhaps most stark example of such, Munster looking as if they were playing to a script that hadn’t yet been finished, appearing lost and disorganised once they worked their way through the first couple of phases.
They have shown some flashes of promise with their attack this year, but it’s been far too inconsistent and the mood among many supporters currently is one of frustration and uncertainty, much of which can be traced back four months to the announcement that Van Graan would be leaving at the end of the season.
Since that point, there has been an increasing feeling that this could peter out into another disappointing campaign for a province who as we all know, haven’t won a trophy since 2011.
Much was made of the fact Thomond Park didn’t sell out for the Leinster fixture last weekend. There’s no shortage of tickets available for Exeter’s visit to Limerick next Saturday. Are the Munster faithful losing faith? If so, they could do worse than look at the talent currently coming through the ranks, for which Van Graan must take some of the credit.
The growing injury list sees Alex Kendellen come in to earn his first start in Europe, and the 21-year-old is fully capable of making the step up thanks to the exposure he’s already enjoyed this season – playing over seven hours of senior rugby, with his recent displays in South Africa and against Leinster particularly impressive.
Exeter will also look to go after John Hodnett, who wins his 10th start, but the Clonakilty man has plenty of fight and will relish the challenge.
They will need help from their support cast too, of course, and the Munster pack – four of which started against Leinster – need to bring more bite and aggression if they are to stay in the contest, as Exeter do pack more power across the tight five.
Van Graan’s decision to opt for six forwards on the bench is an indication he anticipates another tight, edgy encounter in the south-west of England. Back in the 2018/19 season, the sides drew 10-10 at Sandy Park before Munster edged the Chiefs 9-7 back in Limerick. In games like that, small moments can be decisive.
The Devon outfit were Premiership and Champions Cup double-winners as recently as 2020, and having risen from the lower ranks of English rugby, the club are determined to ensure that milestone year doesn’t prove to be their peak.
Yet there has been no escaping the fact that this season, they just haven’t looked the force of old. They sit fourth in the Premiership table, losing nine games from 21 in the league, including five at home. Consistency has been a big issue, with Exeter guilty of in-game ‘wobbles’, as Baxter puts it.
They have their own injury issues to contend with, with England internationals Luke Cowan-Dickie, Ollie Devoto, Jonny Hill and Jack Nowell all unavailable. Big losses, but the return of Henry Slade at centre and the tournament’s top try-scorer (8 tries) Sam Simmonds at number eight beefs up a strong Exeter side, while Stuart Hogg will hope to fare better than the last time he faced Irish opposition.
Once the standard-bearers when it comes to the power game, they come into the contest with some decent momentum behind them. While Munster were crumbling at home to Leinster, Exeter were overturning a 22-7 deficit to beat Bath 42-22.
Director of Rugby Rob Baxter has been calling the shots at the club for over a decade, but as the team’s form has dipped across the season, it’s been interesting to watch him engage in chatter about his future beyond Sandy Park, with his name one of the most prominent in talks surrounding Eddie Jones’ successor as England boss.
Has Baxter taken Exeter as far as they can go? This understrength Munster team have an opportunity to reinforce that suggestion.
It’s a massive ask for Munster to win in Devon today, but they don’t need to. Taking a manageable scoreline back to Limerick would represent a job well done. Sure, the odds are stacked against them, but this is what they do. Deal with the setbacks. Punch above their weight. Achieve the improbable.
They did it in style as recently as December – a makeshift Munster side comfortably dispatching of Wasps in their own backyard on the opening weekend of the competition. O’Mahony was asked about that experience earlier this week. “Absolutely we can get there again,” he replied.
If his teammates truly share that belief, they just might.
EXETER CHIEFS: Stuart Hogg; Olly Woodburn, Henry Slade, Ian Whitten, Tom O’Flaherty; Joe Simmonds, Sam Maunder; Alec Hepburn, Jack Yeandle (captain), Harry Williams; Jonny Gray, Sam Skinner; Dave Ewers, Jacques Vermeulen, Sam Simmonds.
Replacements: Jack Innard, Ben Moon, Patrick Schickerling, Jannes Kirsten, Richard Capstick, Jack Maunder, Harvey Skinner, Josh Hodge.
MUNSTER: Mike Haley; Keith Earls, Chris Farrell, Damian de Allende, Simon Zebo; Ben Healy, Conor Murray; Jeremy Loughman, Niall Scannell, Stephen Archer; Jean Kleyn, Fineen Wycherley; Jack O’Donoghue (C), John Hodnett, Alex Kendellen.
Replacements: Diarmuid Barron, Josh Wycherley, John Ryan, Jason Jenkins, Thomas Ahern, Craig Casey, Rory Scannell, Jack O’Sullivan.
Referee: Pierre Brousset (Fra)
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