Munster accused of undermining clubs

A TOP coach has accused Munster of seriously undermining the future of domestic rugby in the province and damaging the standing of several clubs by unreasonably stripping them of younger contracted players.

Garryowen’s Paul Cunningham reacted angrily yesterday to Munster’s demands on Academy and Development players not to participate in today’s vital Ulster Bank League Division 1A clash with St Mary’s College at Dooradoyle because the provincial A side play Bristol in a British and Irish Cup tie next Tuesday.

Cunningham insists it’s not only a Garryowen problem, but also a significant issue for the likes of Cork Constitution, Shannon and UL Bohemian, all of whom have games today and who will be affected by the dictat.

Frustration was also expressed at an application made to the IRFU for AIL postponements this weekend.

The crux stems from the re-fixing of Munster’s British and Irish Cup tie against Bristol on Tuesday.

That, and the involvement of the senior team in the Magners League last night, put an acute demand on the province to have virtually all hands on deck, including those on Development and Academy contracts.

Munster, it is alleged, knew some weeks ago that the game had been re-fixed for Tuesday but it took until the middle of this week for the clubs to be informed.

Garryowen claim many clubs have been left in limbo when common sense suggested that AIL postponements were in order, with a number of free dates in March.

Some players have now been released back to their clubs, but there was still confusion last night as to who would and who would not be available.

Cunningham said: “With respect to all other clubs who have played their own role in the development of Irish rugby, Garryowen, Shannon and Cork Constitution have dominated the All-Ireland League over two decades and provided more players than anyone to the success of Munster in that period. It just shows how far the club game has been allowed to fall.

“This is unacceptable. It further illustrates that the club game now appears to have fallen into a fourth tier of importance in the Irish game.”

Is club rugby relevant in Ireland any more?

“That’s a question that needs to be asked of the IRFU and Munster, but it appears it’s not,” said Cunningham.