Paint the town Red!

VERY few causes have brought the people of the six counties of Munster together like the province’s rugby team.

Munster supporters, who on a different day in different arenas, would sacrifice life and limb — usually just metaphorically — to outdo each other have found a common bond in an almost unprecedented way, a way that shows the very positive side of sport and the power of community.

This evening that community will concentrate at the Aviva Stadium for the Pro12 final against the Welsh team Scarlets. As ever with Munster, and as ever at this stage of the rugby season, emotions will run high and a grand spectacle is all but guaranteed.

This has been an extraordinary year for Munster. A year to forget and a year to remember was how one player described it. How wonderful it would be if at around eight o’clock this evening the Red Tribe — the Irish one in blue today — were celebrating a victory that just a few months ago seemed so unlikely. And what a very fine way it would be to remember all of those who made this unexpected achievement possible.