Derby ideal farewell for Penney

Rob Penney will say his goodbyes to Thomond Park tonight and one does not need to read between the lines to suggest a derby dust-up would be the Munster head coach’s preferred curtain call.

With only away fixtures looming in the RaboDirect Pro12 play-offs, this evening’s final regular season encounter against Ulster will mark ~Penney’s last home game before departing to Japan

“It will be sad but there is still some rugby to be played,” Penney said, the New Zealander instead relishing what promises to be another interprovincial ding-dong, even if both sides are already in the semi-finals.

“The derby matches are fantastic and you could sell it without a lot riding on it. But there are a lot of individual battles and the pride and the bragging rights, parochialism, so no matter what group they send down here they will wear the jersey with pride and whatever team we put out there will do the same. It will be another ripper.”

Penney’s appreciation for any contest between Irish provinces perhaps stems from his feeling the passion for such derbies appears to be on the wane in his homeland.

“I was rapt to see the passion and the parochialism still there [in Ireland]. It’s beyond anything in New Zealand and they’ve all been such fantastic occasions, whether they’ve been home or away, to be a part of. The people are passionate about them and the parochialism and the bias and the chanting is just what you want at an event. The event isn’t necessarily just about the game of rugby, it’s about turning up and being proud of your people and supporting your people and enjoying yourself in the grandstand.

“New Zealand’s lost a bit of that and it’s just fantastic to be a part of it up here. The beauty is that it exists and it’s alive and well and it makes a great event for everybody.

“It puts the pressure on the opposition, it puts pressure on the staff to ensure that everyone’s in a good frame of mind to deliver the best that they can because you know whenever you play the derby matches you’re going to be in for a real battle.”