Munster need that rare thing in professional sport - time

Results over the weekend ended Munster’s slim chances of qualifying before a turnstile opened in Thomond Park on Sunday, writes Tom Savage.

Results over the weekend ended Munster’s slim chances of qualifying before a turnstile opened in Thomond Park on Sunday.

It felt fitting enough. Sneaking into the quarter-finals off the back of a Rube Goldberg-style series of results in Sale, Lyon and Barnet just isn’t where Munster ever aspire to be. They’d have taken it, sure, but it would have felt like winning a race just because everyone ahead of you just started upper-cutting themselves ahead of the finish line.