Munster forced to scrap for win
If Declan Kidney’s final-whistle reaction at Musgrave Park on Saturday night was a reliable barometer, this was up there with some of the more satisfying Munster victories this season.
Kidney’s charges held out to secure four Celtic League points that keeps them in pole position ahead of Leinster. Pity poor Dragons though - their only consolation for a huge effort was a bonus point, their luck clearly out when referee Malcolm Changleng declined to award them what appeared to be a legitimate second half try.
But Munster, in recognising they were fortunate to survive, can also reflect on a job well done by a XV virtually unrecognisable from the Heineken Cup side. Eleven changes, a couple of rookies and a first-time half back partnership didn’t make for rampant optimism, but they brought home the bacon.
Indeed, before a crowd of 5,500, Munster produced a strong first-half performance and were unfortunate to be just five points to the good at the break before the Dragons launched a second half offensive.
Munster’s rearguard action was as convincing as it was brave and it left captain Anthony Foley to reflect: “I’m chuffed to bits for the lads who don’t normally get the games. A lot of those guys put in the same work as the rest of us, on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays and end up out of the 22. They got their reward out there.”
The most pleasing aspect of the win, said Foley, was the side’s refusal to buckle in the closing stages.
“With a young side like that, the tendency might have been to drop the concentration, but everyone stuck to their guns and didn’t take one backward step from the challenge.”
Kidney was equally enthusiastic. “We had a lot of new combinations and the guys grafted hard to make it work. In a competition like this, you’re always going to have to work your way through games like this. I see the result as giving us a very valuable four points, and I’m particularly pleased for the younger, less experienced guys.”
Up against a more experienced pack, Munster held their own in the set pieces, though the Dragons did occasionally appear to have a more powerful and effective rolling maul.
Still, Munster had standout individuals in Foley, Federico Pucciariello and particularly Mick O’Driscoll, whose form continues to pose positive selection problems for Kidney. O’Driscoll is a player on top of his form, a ball winner, ball handler, support player and a dogged defender. He was worthy of his man of the match award.
The half back partnership of Tomás O’Leary and Mossy Lawlor creaked a bit in the second half, but in the circumstances, neither can be criticised. Both had big roles in Munster’s early try.
Defensively, Munster were magnificent and their ability to cover ground when Ian Dowling was in the sin-bin for a technical offence was crucial to the outcome.
Munster took the lead after four minutes when O’Leary disrupted the Dragons defence, linked with Lawlor and Gary Connolly before Foley was sent in for the try. Lawlor converted.
Adam Black brought the visitors closer with a 10th-minute try, but Lawlor kicked a 27th-minute penalty. And Munster could have had more, with O’Driscoll knocked into touch at the corner and Foley tackled at the last second as he galloped towards the posts.
Subsequently, they had to survive on their well orchestrated and determined defence. Craig Warlow kicked a 64th-minute penalty, but the Dragons, for all the promise, had to settle for the bonus point.
Munster, like Leinster, continue the campaign without the big names in the coming weeks. But Foley isn’t one to panic and declared: “I think we have a very strong squad, it’s way up there in terms of the talent we have available. We have had to deal with injuries in the early part of the season and we will have to deal with unavailability of players too. The important thing is that we’re top of the league, we have managed to keep on winning and that in itself will help the younger lads deal with the challenges ahead.
“Everyone has bought into the Celtic League, teams fighting for results. It’s going to be a very hard league to win, to keep going from September to May, and you need 35 to 40 players to cope with the demands. I think we proved we have the guys capable of stepping in when the need arises.”
: S. Payne, A. Horgan, B. Murphy, G. Connolly, I. Dowling, M. Lawlor, T. O’Leary, F. Roche, D. Fogarty, F. Pucciariello, T. Hogan, M. O’Driscoll, S. Keogh, A. Foley (captain), J. O’Connor.
: T. Buckley for Roche 65), A. Kavanagh for O’Connor (71).
: T. Aled, R. Fussell, S. Tuipolotu, C. Sweeney, B. Breeze, C. Warlow, G. Cooper, A. Black, S. Jones, R. Thomas, B. Griffith, P. Sidoli, J. Ringer, R. Oakley, J. Forster (captain).
: D. Maddocks for Black (32), A. Hall for Griffith, S. Van Rensburg for Oakley (both 62).
: M. Changleng (Scotland).
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