O’Gara bemoans dog day afternoon

RONAN O’GARA acknowledged Leinster’s superiority on a seismic evening in Croke Park but insisted Munster’s belief “will not waver” after a catastrophic result that saw the champions’ quest for back-to-back Heineken Cup titles falter badly at the penultimate hurdle.

O’Gara was magnanimous in defeat but in his search to get to the root of a below-par Munster performance, he described it as an off-day, referencing Manchester United who’ve have endured these dog-days occasionally.

He said the team were prepared meticulously by Tony McGahan, that every one was “stimulated” by the rugby they were playing, but recognised that they just didn’t deliver on an evening when they were out-played, out-thought and out-fought by a hungrier, more clinical Leinster team.