Munster 45

Zebre 29

MUNSTER RAN IN seven tries on a gusty night at Virgin Media Park to earn a 45-29 victory over a gallant Zebre.

A try in either half by 20-year-old back row Ruadhán Quinn, along with further scores by Mike Haley, RG Snyman, Seán O’Brien, Antoine Frisch and Shane Daly, kept Munster out of sight throughout — but the visitors finished an entertaining encounter strongly to muster a four-try bonus point of their own.

Indeed, with benches emptied early, the Italians out-scored Munster 19-12 in the second half which will sour the evening slightly for Graham Rowntree and his charges.

Munster’s attack was often exhilarating as they won back-to-back games in the URC for the first time this season but there were equally moments of looseness which amounted to 17 points from Zebre’s final tally, the Italians proving potent as they pounced on turnovers and countered from deep.

Munster, though, secured a bonus point and effectively killed the game as a contest all in a first half in which internationals like Craig Casey and RG Snyman, and fullback Mike Haley, were imperious.

The hosts’ opening touchdown on five minutes was a thing of beauty. Haley’s hard line was complemented by a burst and dummy offload by Snyman. The opportunity seemed lost when the big ‘Bok opted to hold onto the ball as he was decked, but he popped the ball upwards to his support runner, Ruadhán Quinn, who crashed over in the left-hand corner for his first competitive Munster try.

Tony Butler’s conversion fell foul of the wind but Munster had set the tone for the breathless evening which followed.

Rowntree’s side doubled their lead — and then some — just moments later. Shane Daly ran the ball back at Zebre in transition and kept it alive in contact, popping it back to Craig Casey. The scrum-half fed Haley on another direct line, with the fullback blasting through some soft Zebre defence to cross the paint from 40-odd yards out.

Butler, with a slightly more central kick, split the posts for 12-0.

A first moment of Munster carelessness then lent the panting visitors a helping hand.

Haley, smashed in contact on the Italians’ 22′, spilled forward and Zebre inside centre Damiano Mazza drove a low kick downfield. Alex Nankivell was caught dawdling as he retreated towards the ball and when Mazza regathered another fly-hack forward, Zebre were suddenly knocking on the door.

After multiple phases of forward carries and initially solid Munster defence, tighthead Muhamed Hasa burrowed over just left of the sticks. Fullback Geronimo Prisciantelli made it 12-7 off the tee.

The Argentinian reduced Zebre’s arrears to just two points shortly afterwards when Ruadhán Quinn was sin-binned for halting an eerily similar passage of play to that which had led to the visitors’ opening try.

After a costly 10 minutes, Munster ripped back the reins of the game. Some eye-catching team attack almost yielded a try for Alex Nankivell before Snyman — who was very obviously enjoying himself — spun over the line from close range.

Butler converted, this time from the right, to make it 19-10 to Munster on 26 minutes.

The home side were still down to 14 when they sealed the bonus point. This was a try started by Butler and finished by Seán O’Brien with multiple tasty attacking phases in between.

Ennis RFC product Butler changed the point of Munster’s attack in Zebre’s 22, cutting in-field and setting Shane Daly loose. Daly flicked a back-handed offload to Casey, who danced and ducked his way through a succession of Zebre defenders before eventually losing his footing. Munster’s forwards took it to within inches before Casey went wide again, feeding Nankivell who arrowed a wonderful pass left for O’Brien to waltz over the broken Zebre line.

Butler added the afters for 26-10.

Munster’s fifth score was all about Casey: he went quickly off a penalty after Zebre were pinged offside on their own box kick, zigzagging his way into the Italians’ 22′. The scrum-half used the support run of Nankivell as a decoy before feeding Antoine Frisch, who had taken an even better line to finish under the posts.

Butler chipped over for 33-10 with the final act of the first half.

The third quarter was a revolving door of personnel and became suitable messy.

Shane Daly had a try chalked off when he was adjudged to have knocked the ball on after tapping it over Zebre fullback Prisciantelli’s head and regathering it, this after a wonderful Casey box-chip into Italian grass.

Munster then spurned a gilt-edged chance as the otherwise impressive O’Brien botched a simple pass to Ahern in the left-hand corner — only for Zebre to gift them those five points back from the resulting lineout.

In windy conditions on their own five-metre line, the Italians made the inexplicable decision to throw over the top of their own lineout. Luca Bigli’s ball was picked cleanly by the onrushing Ruadhán Quinn, who couldn’t believe his luck as he dove over for a second. Butler made it 40-10.

Zebre, though, responded with a second try of their own shortly afterwards: Prisciantelli sprayed a pass wide left to Simone Gesi — it looked forward, but was never checked — and the exciting young wing burst down the edge before feeding replacement scrum-half Thomas Dominguez for the walk-in.

Prisciantelli’s conversion drifted wide right, but he was soon afterwards celebrating a try of his own. It was again Munster sloppiness which was punished by Fabio Roselli’s side. A disconnect between Stephen Archer and Butler on a pull-around pass was seized upon by Prisciantelli, who fly-hacked into the Munster 22′ — and again over the try-line — before diving for the score.

He converted for 40-22, and did so again when Dylan de Leeuw bundled his way over from close range after more strong work down the left wing by Gesi.

Leading by 11 in the dying seconds, Munster had the final say on proceedings as Shane Daly crossed in the left-hand corner for a deserved try after a couple of earlier nearly-moments.

Butler’s kick hung up in the wind but Munster had managed to give the scoreline a glossier feel after a second half which became unnecessarily end-to-end.

Scorers for Munster:

Tries: Ruadhán Quinn (2), Mike Haley, RG Snyman, Seán O’Brien, Antoine Frisch, Shane Daly

Cons: Tony Butler (5/7)

Pens:

Scorers for Zebre:

Tries: Muhamed Hasa, Thomas Dominguez, Geronimo Prisciantelli, Dylan de Leeuw

Cons: Geronimo Prisciantelli (3/4)

Pens: Geronimo Prisciantelli (1/1)

MUNSTER: Mike Haley, Seán O’Brien, Antoine Frisch, Alex Nankivell, Shane Daly, Tony Butler, Craig Casey; Josh Wycherley, Niall Scannell, John Ryan, Tom Ahern, RG Snyman, Ruadhán Quinn, Alex Kendellen (Captain), Gavin Coombes.

Replacements: Eoghan Clarke, Jeremy Loughman, Stephen Archer, Fineen Wycherley, Jack O’Sullivan, Ethan Coughlan, Rory Scannell, Ben O’Connor.

ZEBRE PARMA: Geronimo Prisciantelli, Scott Gregory, Luca Morisi, Damiano Mazza, Simone Gesi, Tiff Eden, Alessandro Fusco; Luca Rizzoli, Luca Bigi, Muhamed Hasa, David Sisi, Leonard Krumov, Giacomo Ferrari, Bautista Stavile, Giovanni Licata (Captain).

Replacements: Giampietro Ribaldi, Samuele Taddei, Riccardo Genovese, Dylan de Leeuw, Davide Ruggeri, Thomas Dominguez, Jacopo Trulla, Josh Kaifa.