Lam regrets lack of discipline after ref allowed ‘niggle’ to fester

Connacht head coach Pat Lam was left to rue poor discipline and the lack of a firm refereeing hand after suffering defeat last night.

Lam saw two players — scrum-half Frank Murphy and prop Nathan White — sin-binned during a bad-tempered game which also produced a yellow card from referee Dudley Phillips for Munster’s James Cronin. Yet while the Connacht boss was disappointed by his team’s sloppy play, wasting early dominance over their hosts at both scrum and lineout, he was also frustrated by what he perceived as the official’s failure to crack down early on “niggle” from both sides.

“We turned over too much ball, our kicking put us under pressure,” Lam said. “You can’t give Munster turnover ball and we did. Our discipline let us down, and a kick led to their try, but I’m proud of the way we came back, took it to them direct and were efficient at the breakdown.”