Munster strike against the head
No other side, not even tournament giants Toulouse, Leicester Tigers or Wasps come anywhere close to matching that achievement, secured in nerve-wracking circumstances with a 12-9 Pool One win over Northampton at Thomond Park last night.
For the second year in a row, Munster have the added bonus of home advantage in the last eight, but will have to wait until the completion of the two contests in Pool Five tomorrow afternoon before discovering who they will face.
This was a crazy game in so many respects. That the turning point should come from Munster defending a five-metre scrum midway through the second half, with Munster holding a tentative 9-6 lead, says everything.
Wing Doug Howlett was packing down in the back row, while Paul O’Connell cooled his heels in the sin bin, and the skipper’s fellow second row Donncha O’Callaghan had been substituted.
This was the night when Munster’s frailty in the scrum looked like coming home to roost. They were in serious trouble.
Incredibly, not only did they hold the Northampton drive, but miraculously managed to take the ball against the head, a rarity in this day and age. The crowd went ballistic. Munster were in dire straits, yet somehow managed to pull off the impossible. From that moment onwards, you felt they were destined to win. But boy, did they make life difficult for themselves.
This was a game where both sides were afraid to play. Munster were a pale shadow of the team that performed heroics in the remarkable 37-14 away win Perpignan a few short weeks ago, and tactically were caught between two stools. When they kicked, they kicked badly, and their approach lacked structure and direction.
Perhaps the fact that a one-point win would suffice, and that they did not have to chase tries, forced them into a strait-jacket. They will not play as badly again. The set-piece was in all kinds of trouble, and as a result, Tomás O’Leary and Ronan O’Gara were never able to dictate the pattern of the game.
When O’Connell was sin-binned just prior to that never-to-be-forgotten scrum, you felt Munster’s number was up. That was when their true character came to the fore. In times of real pressure, somebody always stands up.
On this occasion, perhaps inspired by his contribution in the scrum, Howlett came alive. The former All Black blocked down one clearance kick – having chased half the length of the field – and then put in a huge hit which yielded a vital penalty from O’Gara.
Credit too to Donnacha Ryan, who injected a bit of madness into the Munster pack at a time when it was badly needed.
Munster were made to sweat for far longer that they would have liked, and allowed themselves to be frustrated by the interpretation of French referee Romain Poite, who once again had too much of an influence at the breakdown.
That, however, should not have come as a surprise and was flagged in advance. At times, I think Poite operates under a different set of laws to everyone else. The players, however, need to react to that, and for once Munster – despite all their experience – lost their composure.
Of more importance is the fact they can now sit back and observe how events unfold over the rest of the weekend, safe in the knowledge that they will hardly play as badly again and that they are still very much alive in a competition that has become part of their DNA.
Munster’s win last night also means that Leinster are guaranteed one of the two best runners-up slots, even before Michael Cheika’s side take on London Irish later today. Should Leinster lose in Twickenham, there is even the possibility that the two Irish giants could face each other in Thomond Park next April. Now that would be something.
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