Munster rise to the occasion on emotional return

Rassie Erasmus admitted late on Saturday that it was, more than anything, a relief to get a “tough week” over and done with but he could never have imagined it ending so comfortably.

Munster have been coping with Anthony Foley’s death since their last trip to Paris, in October, but this latest visit was always going to bring with it greater external focus and pressure to pay fitting tribute on the field of play.

They certainly did that.

The occasion was framed poignantly despite the grim state of the Colombes venue thanks to a minute’s pre-match applause for Foley among other small but equally touching gestures from the hosts.

Though a capable collection on paper, the French side never shone on the day and it was an injustice when a few lucky bounces allowed Matthieu Voisin steal a consolation try in the final quarter.

That was the one time that they came within a sniff of Munster’s line and yet criticism of the hosts must be balanced by considerable applause for the visitors who were ruthless in claiming the winning bonus point.

“Yes, it was tough at times but the team is pretty emotionally intelligent and mature,” said Erasmus of the build-up.

“If you look at their ages they are really young but this whole episode, if I can put it that way, as a team they have done really well.”

Erasmus had said before that he had sat down with Foley and the rest of his coaching staff in the week between their defeat to Leinster in Dublin and the original trip to Paris and decided on tweaks to take them forward. This was further proof of how right those instincts were.

With Racing already eliminated from contention for the quarter-finals, Munster knew it was their priority to set the agenda from the off and they did just that with top-class individual performances and a harmonised collective effort.

It’s not every week you lead 25-0 at half-time on the continent and against the French champions and, poor though Racing were, it bears pointing out that it was Munster who made more tackles on the day while dominating territory.

Every line had its heroes. Niall Scannell and Donnacha Ryan drove a ferocious tight five and the entire back row was sublime.

Conor Murray led by example and the rest of the backline was almost completely in sync, even if it was the grunts who turned the screw with a near faultless succession of scrums, lineouts and mauls.

It was the kind of classic on-the-road, grind-it-out result that was Munster’s hallmark for so long and one rewarded with tries before the break for Simon Zebo, CJ Stander, Andrew Conway and Niall Scannell.

All four scores told snippets of the story as to why Munster are again a force to be reckoned with but Stander’s block down and charge over for the second was symbolic of the hunger and zeal which has helped transform them.

It may not be a result claimed without cost.

Tommy O’Donnell was magnificent for 48 minutes before being called ashore after a week spent minding a dodgy ankle but not before he spent a portion of the first-half trying to run off a dead leg after shipping a late tackle.

Four or five others — Conor Murray, Donnacha Ryan and Andrew Conway among them — were giving Erasmus cause for some concern on Saturday evening but it will be today at the earliest before any initial diagnoses will be revealed.

That aside, Munster are in a healthy space.

Saturday’s success has left them three points better off than Glasgow Warriors ahead of next weekend’s meeting between the pair at Scotstoun.

Win that and Munster will have the pool in their pocket by the time Racing visit Limerick in round six. That won’t be straightforward.

Glasgow will be smarting from their Thomond Park trimming last October and, with qualification still in their grasp, they will possess all the motivation that Racing lacked when the game kicks off on Saturday.

The synthetic pitch will be another variant on the theme from this facile win on a heavy French field and that’s before making note of the fact the Scottish side doesn’t lean on beef and muscle to the same extent as the Parisians.

“Glasgow is a totally different kettle of fish,” Erasmus pointed out.

“Not that they’re better than Racing or anything. They just play all-out attack, with a mobile forward pack. They contest well at lineout and breakdown so it is definitely a different challenge. You might want to get involved in an arm-wrestle with them. It is a different challenge.”

Munster are well set to meet it.

Qualification and a home quarter-final are well within their reach.

RACING 92:

J Imhoff; J Rokocoko, C Laulala, A Tuitavake, T Thomas; B Dambielle, X Chauveau; K Vartanov, C Chat, L Ducalcon; G Grobler, F van der Merwe; C Masoe, M Voisin, A Claassen.

Replacements:

D Carter for Dambielle (12-18) and for Thomas (58); V Lacombe for Chat, J Brugnaut for Vartanov and C Gomes Sa for Ducalcon (all 50); S Fa’aso’o for Masoe and H Chavancy for Laulala (both 58); A Williams for van der Merwe (64).

MUNSTER:

S Zebo; A Conway, J Taute, R Scannell, R O’Mahony; T Blyendaal, C Murray; J Cronin, N Scannell, J Ryan; D Ryan, B Holland; P O’Mahony, T O’Donnell, CJ Stander.

Replacements:

J O’Donoghue for O’Donnell (48); F Saili for Taute, K Earls for O’Mahony and D Kilcoyne for Cronin (all 57); R Marshall for Scannell (62); S Archer for J Ryan and as Williams for Murray (both 66); D Foley for D Ryan (74).

Referee:

M Carley (RFU).