What a difference two weeks make

WHAT odds Munster and Leinster topping their respective Heineken Cup pools of pain only two weeks ago when both were experiencing difficulties with form and injuries.

Munster were guilty of committing hari kari on successive weekends with Lifeimi Mafi and Sam Tuitupou adding to an already exhaustive injury list by recklessly getting themselves suspended. The midfield jinx surfaced again in Waterford last Friday when promising young centre Danny Barnes dislocated his elbow in the British& Irish Cup game and will be out of action for the foreseeable future.

Down to the bare bones and suffering a creative drought, Munster defied all logic and produced some scintillating rugby last Saturday at Thomond Park with six tries against the meanest defence in the French championship, Toulon. Go figure.

For some reason there never seems to be a shortage of pundits with pencils sharpened, ready to proclaim the fall of Munster. Only one team can win the Heineken Cup on an annual basis and failure to deliver that cherished piece of silverware hardly constitutes disaster.

We all know this team cannot go on forever and there has been subtle changes made in recent times. Munster rugby has solid foundations and will always be competitive, especially in Thomond Park. Now, despite all the portents of doom, they find themselves on top of Pool 3 in the Heineken Cup to complement their similarly lofty perch in the Magners league ahead of its resumption on Friday.

The catalyst for change on Saturday can be traced directly to the quality of Munster’s set piece. The lineout proved the key area but that is not to neglect the marked improvement in Munster’s scrum this season. Finally after years of showing brief glimpses of what he is capable of, Tony Buckley has begun to realise that he has what it takes to deliver consistently at this level. With so little top class rugby played over the last few years, he must now target a regular international place and the possibility of featuring in the next two World Cups.

Living in the shadow of the legendary John Hayes for so long, it was too easy for Buckley to vegetate in a comfort zone and satisfy himself with a bit part in the Munster scheme of things. Such has been his recent development under the watchful eye of scrum coach Paul McCarthy that the penny has finally dropped that he can compete against the best. The big test for him now comes next month as he will surely be handed a starting role at tight head against South Africa.

Ironically, if things were right with the Springbok selection policy Buckley, should be facing is his Munster colleague Wian du Preez in that game. For me, he is infinitely better than either of the loose heads selected in the Springbok training squad, former Leinster prop CJ Van Der Linde and the overrated Lion tamer Tendai Mtawarira. Gurthro Steenkamp admittedly had a very good Tri Nations series at loose head but is out with a broken arm. The Springbok management have also changed their recent stance and will not consider any overseas based payers for the November tour. Hence, du Preez loses out.

Munster’s scrum was attacked by all and sundry last season and finally came a cropper in the semi-final against Biarritz. Since then much work has been done on the training paddock with a renewed emphasis on live scrummaging as opposed to using a scrummage machine while there was also an invitation to the highly respected All Black scrum doctor Mike Cron to run the rule over Munster’s chief practitioners last month.

The net result is that Munster now have more competition for front row slots than at any time in their professional existence — and remember Canterbury’s Peter Borlase is yet to arrive. Witness the ability to introduce an entire replacement trio with the experience and knowhow of Marcus Horan, the unfortunate Jerry Flannery and Hayes against Toulon last weekend. Horan and Hayes are extremely proud individuals who have no intention of warming the bench for too long.

Leinster may yet have reason to thank a fortunate fixture list which offered them the opportunity to kick start their season with the first ever clash of the provincial giants when Munster arrived at the Aviva stadium a few weeks ago. Up to that point Joe Schmidt’s charges were struggling and the fear of being thumped at home by their greatest rivals helped to concentrate the mind and focus their determination. Since that significant victory they have looked a different side, re-discovering their defensive intensity while at the same time revealing a renewed potency with ball in hand.

Central to this has been the return from injury of Jonathan Sexton. Currently in possession of the No 10 Irish jersey, he looks set to continue in that role against the Springboks.

Last weekend both he and Ronan O’Gara gave a master class in place kicking, the Cork stalwart converting 7 from 8 placed balls with Sexton delivering a 100% return of 7/7. Those are incredible stats when one thinks that at one stage last season neither could buy a kick. With four internationals on successive weekends there is every possibility that both will start two tests each but with a competitive streak as active as theirs each will crave that pivotal No 10 shirt against South Africa and New Zealand.

Declan Kidney’s squad announcement yesterday generated no surprises as all the usual suspects were included. The manner with which he will mix and match those resources during the course of the forthcoming four test series will be far more revealing. This is the last opportunity to engage southern hemisphere opposition before next year’s World Cup and will offer a transparent barometer of just where Irish rugby stands on the international stage after the relative disappointments of last season.

Final thoughts this week go to Philippe Saint-Andre who is surely sick to the teeth of Thomond Park and the pain he has endured at the hands of Munster over the years. While Toulon could well focus their attention on the French championship from here on in and let Munster fight out European qualification with the Ospreys and London Irish, he has made it clear that he feels he owes Tony McGahan’s men something when they visit the electric atmosphere of the Stade Felix-Mayol in January. Dating back to the 1940s the crowd perform a Haka type chant called ‘Pilou pilou’ before the kick off when a cheerleader chants and asks the fans to answer and repeat the words — a truly unique experience.

Saint-Andre’s parting words on Saturday? “I hope Munster will feel then how we felt here in Limerick.”