Munster should hand captaincy to O’Mahony

After 15 minutes of Saturday’s gripping Heineken Cup semi-final, I feared for Munster.

Despite a great start that ticked all the boxes in terms of laying down a marker and getting points on the board, the response from Clermont was both instantaneous and spectacular. You will travel a long way to see a better try than that delivered by Napolioni Nalaga.

However, it was what Munster achieved from that point forward that offers me hope for the future. Clermont have real star quality all over the field yet Munster not only coped with everything thrown at them but outscored Clermont 7-3 in the second half. You just cannot buy the type of experience clocked up by Dave Kilcoyne, Mike Sherry, Tommy O’Donnell and Peter O’Mahony last Saturday. Kilcoyne went 80 minutes against the combined scrummaging might of David Zirakashvili and Clement Ric without yielding an inch. The only pity was that Stephen Archer wasn’t there to bag even ten minutes of that experience off the bench.

O’Donnell emerged from the shadows of some of his illustrious predecessors at the Stoop and if anything was even more impressive against superior opposition than Harlequins. O’Mahony was decidedly unlucky not to make the cut with the Lions yesterday but, such has been his impact in recent months, he was name-checked by Warren Gatland as one of those who were unlucky not to make it. He is Munster’s leader in waiting and I would go so far as to say Rob Penney should appoint him captain from the outset of next season even if Paul O’Connell, Doug Howlett and Ronan O’Gara are all still on board.

The next generation are ready to take ownership of the side from here on in and the lessons absorbed in the quarter and semi-finals of Europe will stand to them. One hopes that CJ Stander will also be given the chance next season to show what he has to offer. The fact that he wasn’t registered for Heineken Cup action this season due to an unfortunate sequence of injuries elsewhere has stifled his impact. The jury is still out as to whether he can make the step up but I think he has something to offer.

Ideally Munster could do with an injection of two new quality signings, one in the back row and one in midfield but that is unlikely for a variety of reasons. It is a pity O’Mahony and Simon Zebo aren’t joining Conor Murray in Australia this summer — for the time being at least — as the collective experience they would accumulate on such an adventure would set them, and by extension Munster, up in the years ahead.

Murray now has the chance to complete a Masters in rugby studies over seven weeks Down Under, just as O’Gara did as a promising young out-half 12 years ago. The 2001 Lions tour opened his eyes to what was required to become a top-class half-back and he brought much of what he learned back to the Munster set-up with him. Murray must now do likewise and become an equally influential part of the Munster squad over the next decade just as O’Gara did.

Leaving the Stade de la Mosson last Saturday evening, there wasn’t a hint of despondency or despair from any of the large Munster following. Not only were they proud of the performance of their side against the best team in Europe but there was also a feeling that the good times might not be as far away as they appeared after that humiliating 51-24 defeat at the hands of Glasgow only a few short weeks ago.