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Jonny Wilkinson kicked 21 of Toulon's 24 points. Billy Stickland/INPHO
Heartbreak

Munster come up just short after momentous effort against Toulon

The Top 14 outfit advance to the Heineken Cup final after Jonny Wilkinson kicked them to success in Marseille.

Toulon 24

Munster 16

THE OVERRIDING NARRATIVE will tell of another heroic Munster effort, but Rob Penney’s men will rue their own errors after a 24-16 defeat to Toulon in the semi-final of the Heineken Cup at Stade Velodrome.

There can be little doubt over Munster’s inspirational desire, physical commitment and sheer determination as they proudly fought back from a nine-point deficit at half time in a thrillingly edgy game in Marseille.

An excellent try from Simon Zebo gave the province genuine hope of overhauling Toulon in the second period, but the Top 14 outfit battled to score two further penalties through the boot of Jonny Wilkinson.

That proved enough for Bernard Laporte’s men to clinch the win after an encounter in which they never trailed.

A lack of discipline and several basic errors by Munster inside their own half half allowed Toulon to build a 18-9 lead at the interval without ever showing their most powerful attacking form.

Knock-ons from James Coughlan and then CJ Stander after Toulon restarts nullified two Munster penalties from the boot of Keatley, while sloppy breakdown work allowed further kicking chances for Jonny Wilkinson.

Munster fans Munster enjoyed excellent support in Marseille. Dan Sheridan / INPHO Dan Sheridan / INPHO / INPHO

The former England out-half slotted four penalties in the opening 40 minutes, although he did miss one straightforward effort. Delon Armitage’s huge 55-metre penalty was the final kick of the first 40 minutes, clearing the crossbar with impressive comfort.

Munster’s first-half scoring all came from the boot of Ian Keatley, who held his nerve to kick three penalties.

A breathtaking Bryan Habana-led counter-attack from Toulon early in the second period almost led to the opening try of the game, but Simon Zebo’s wonderful tackle in the right-hand corner did enough to force Steffon Armitage into touch.

Just moments earlier, a James Downey tap tackle had halted Habana in acres of space, as Munster clung on against the increasing Toulon pace and power. But Munster rode the wave of momentum and then made a ballsy call to kick to the corner after winning a penalty inside the French side’s half.

That call was justly rewarded after the initial drive at the maul was repelled by Toulon. Scrum-half Conor Murray spun away down the short blindside before finding Simon Zebo to his left. The Ireland international bounded through the tackle of Drew Mitchell to score, with Keatley confidently converting from wide on the left.

Simon Zebo scores a try despite Drew Mitchell Simon Zebo scores in the second half through the tackle of Mitchell. Billy Stickland / INPHO Billy Stickland / INPHO / INPHO

Suddenly, Musnter looked the more dangerous side, with Stander excelling in the tight and replacement flanker Tommy O’Donnell making an immediate impact. No further scores followed though, as Toulon took their turn to defend ferociously.

With 65 minutes gone, Bernard Laporte’s side countered again, and this time Munster had to resort to foul play to halt them. Keith Earls held back Toulon replacement David Smith as the wing chased a kick in behind Munster, and Barnes had no option but to bin the Irishman.

Wilkinson was on target with the subsequent penalty, before Munster’s attack surged back again. The choke tackle featured prominently, as Coughlan began to get a stranglehold on the Toulon forwards.

But Munster’s phase play ultimately couldn’t cut through the Toulon defence, despite the brilliant performance from Keatley at out-half. A 79th-minute penalty from Wilkinson sealed the game for Toulon, finshing off the fierce Munster resistance.

Toulon scorers:

Penalties: J Wilkinson [6], D Armitage

Drop goals: J Wilkinson

Munster scorers:

Tries: S Zebo

Conversions: I Keatley

Penalties: I Keatley [3]

TOULON: Delon Armitage; Drew Mitchell, Mathieu Bastareaud, Matt Giteau, Bryan Habana (David Smith); Jonny Wilkinson (capt.), Sebastien Tillous-Borde (Michael Claassens); Xavier Chiocci (Alexandre Menini), Craig Burden (Jean-Charles Orioli), Carl Hayman (Martin Castrogiovanni); Danie Rossouw (Konstantine Mikautadze), Jocelino Suta (Virgile Bruni); Juan Smith, Juan Fernandez Lobbe, Steffon Armitage.

Replacement not used: Maxime Mermoz.

MUNSTER: Felix Jones (Denis Hurley); Keith Earls, Casey Laulala, James Downey, Simon Zebo; Ian Keatley (JJ Hanrahan), Conor Murray; Dave Kilcoyne ( James Cronin), Damien Varley (capt.) (Duncan Casey), BJ Botha; Dave Foley (Donncha O’Callaghan), Paul O’Connell; CJ Stander, Sean Dougall (Tommy O’Donnell), James Coughlan.

Replacements not used: John Ryan, Duncan Williams.

Referee: Wayne Barnes [RFU].

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