Horan faces greatest challenge

THEY produced a new video this week, ‘The Miracle Match’ – the full, graphic story of Munster’s amazing Heineken Cup win over Gloucester at Thomond Park in January.

All the obvious heroes are there: Rog, John Kelly, Mossie, Micko and the rest. And then there are the unsung heroes, the grafters who put in so much hard work in order that one of rugby's most famous results could be achieved.

They were all central to the outcome. In the very first scrum, Marcus Horan and his front-row colleagues, Hayes and Sheahan twisted their Gloucester counterparts so severely that they conceded a morale-shattering penalty. Horan's direct opponent was the England and Lions tight head, the Gloucester captain, Phil Vickery. It was the first of several occasions on which Vickery, regarded by many as the finest tight head prop in the business, buckled.