Thomond roar silenced by flat, fitful Munster
Harlequins were in town for Munster's first Heineken Cup outing of the season and the London club, traditionally regarded as a haven for well-heeled graduates of the public school system, were supposed to be overwhelmed by 'de Tomond experience' and roll over in the face of Munster's onslaught.
It never happened.
The Thomond roar never got going, perhaps it was the weather, perhaps the fitful nature of Munster's performance but this was not the atmosphere we have come to expect in Limerick.
Indeed, given all the ticket hassles of the past few seasons, it was surprising to see the plentiful supply of spares on offer outside the ground and the amount of empty seats within.
Whether this was the rain driving people towards their living rooms or the fact that the more casual supporters do not become interested until the knock-out stages is hard to tell. Those inside were uncharacteristically quiet, with only intermittent bursts of aggression, such as when Jim Williams took exception to the clothes-line tackle on Anthony Horgan by Quins' substitute Ace Tiatia.
Maybe the crowd needed to hear Tommy Creamer urging them into action but the veteran PA announcer hung up his microphone last Spring and his replacement favoured a more laid-back Enda Kenny oratorical style.
He was not helped by his mid-Atlantic, South Dublin accent which seems to be obligatory if you wish to pursue a career in broadcasting. One of his duties was to alert us to half-time presentations made to Clive Woodward and Jason Leonard, presumably for services to rugby.
Both men received a generous round of applause although it was noticeable that Leonard's was somewhat warmer than that afforded the ex-England coach.
Woodward was here with Sky Sports but also in his role as Lions coach and chief selector and he will have gleaned little from this tense but dour encounter.
Quins were a real surprise and could actually have snuck it at the end. On a truly filthy evening, they rolled up their sleeves and gave it their all for 80-odd minutes with their doggedness typified by the display of captain Andre Vos.
The South African is not a flash backrower in the Bobby Skinstad mould but he relished the close quarter stuff on Saturday and was a constant thorn in the side of Munster ambition.
That ambition was not helped by the Munster backs' insistence on taking the ball flat. They scored a superb early try through Anthony Horgan but thereafter, despite a decent supply of ball, did a lot of huffing, puffing and lateral jinking as they stood far too close to the opposition and often received the ball standing still.
One yearned to see Christian Cullen tearing onto the ball from deep, with time and space to outfox defenders, or Paul O'Connell taking pop balls with a head of steam built up. Of course, there were mitigating factors, but it is still possible to stand deep and give yourself some momentum before receiving the type of short pass made necessary by wind and rain.
Anthony Foley was Munster's most effective strike runner, chiefly because his ploy of taking quick tap penalties meant he was in fourth gear by the time he made contact with the Quins' defence.
The Munster captain put in an industrious day's work and may just have caused Woodward to make a note in his little black book as quality number eights in the four home unions are thin on the ground.
Alongside him, Denis Leamy showed why he is keeping Alan Quinlan and David Wallace on the bench.
He is still coming to terms with the intricacies of the openside position and gave away a couple of silly penalties but showed great awareness to take a scoring pass from Williams in the first-half and played with wonderful, bristling aggression throughout. Leamy has good reason to expect to be named in Eddie O'Sullivan's Ireland squad tomorrow.
Trevor Hogan, the other Heineken Cup rookie, struggled a bit against a combative Harlequins lineout and was responsible for one bad turnover but he also looks to have the right stuff in him and threw himself about with commendable enthusiasm.
Munster will take a 'job done move on' approach to this win but will know they can play a lot better than this.
Quins will not fear them after this and will relish the chance to take them on at The Stoop in the return leg. Next up for Munster are the Neath-Swansea Ospreys who, although well-beaten away to Castres, will be a formidable proposition at home. Flat might have been good enough last Saturday but Munster will have to be flat-out in St Helens next weekend.
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