Failure to land a blow will sting uninspired Munster more than defeat

Munster’s Fineen Wycherley dejected after defeat to Connacht in the URC. Picture: INPHO/James Crombie

Beauty isn’t so much in the eye of the beholder so much as the winner.

Connacht could leave the Sportsground late on Saturday evening buoyed by a game that was scrappy, at times spiteful and littered with a penalty count that strained towards 30. Munster had little to provide solace, a losing bonus point aside.

This was always going to be an ask for the visitors. That much became even more evident on Friday when the teamsheets landed and Connacht had named a distinctly challenging XV while Munster opted to hold back a string of their top dogs.

Losing would have been no shame in Galway but the failure of the away team to fire anything approximating to a decent shot will sting far more than the concession of the match points or the sight of Connacht leapfrogging them on the URC table.

The eight points they managed to mine through the evening all came courtesy of mistakes from their hosts, with Ultan Dillane committing a needless obstruction for Ben Healy’s penalty and Mack Hansen jogging through quicksand in the run-up to Andrew Conway’s try.

The one time Munster had the chance to create something of their own accord — on the back of poor relieving kicks by Jack Carty and John Porch — was the five-minute stretch before half-time when they camped on the Connacht line.

Here again we were treated to the sight of Munster players picking and jamming time and again, like a cassette tape stuck on a loop. True, there was one pass flung wide to Conway but it was mostly turgid, unimaginative stuff and it got the reward it deserved.

Nothing.

Munster could make a persuasive argument about the nature of Connacht’s defence as the penalties against the eventual winners piled high and referee Chris Busby saw fit only to send Oisin Dowling to the bin. Still. It was depressing fare.

Connacht were far from their entertaining selves but not for the want of trying. Munster offered nothing in attack and that’s all the more worrying on the back of their fitful struggles in the win against Castres two weeks ago.

“It’s something that we are striving to do but tonight wasn’t one of those nights,” said Johann van Graan when asked about the nature of their play with ball in hand. “It was an arm wrestle between two sides that just wanted to win.

“The score wasn’t 32-30, it was 10-8, and that shows that this was a big battle between two Irish sides, a typical Irish derby. It was really tight and unfortunately we came out the wrong end of it.”

Stats can disguise as much as they can enlighten but they make for uncomfortable reading for Munster in this case: 37% possession, 33% territory, one offload to Connacht’s 10, 17 penalties against a dozen for their hosts.

Munster have played some scintillating rugby against Scarlets and Wasps with supposedly weakened teams this season but the type of regression seen two days ago has become all too familiar and it doesn’t bode well.

There are mitigating circumstances in that this was only the province’s third game since October 23 and some of their players on duty here were playing for the first time in over two months. It is to van Graan’s credit that he wasn’t biting on any such morsels.

“The last three months was a helter-skelter period and that is the same for all teams.

“If you just look at Leinster, Ulster, and Connacht they are all going through the same things, so it is nothing new. We have become used to it the last few weeks.

“You just have to get guys onto the pitch and do as best you can as a group to play the game. We were just grateful to have a game to play here and we will just take it on the chin now, take the bonus point and move on.”

Covid may yet disrupt plans further given the nature of the Omicron wave but, as things stand, van Graan has little option but to press on and prep for the run of games scheduled between now and the rest of January.

Ulster come to Thomond Park this weekend, Castres and Wasps follow as the Heineken Champions Cup (hopefully) returns centre stage, and a trip to Zebre awaits on the far end. All that before February comes calling.

Van Graan and senior coach Stephen Larkham will depart this summer but the latter spoke last week of the need for everyone to stay on course for the next six months.

The last thing the club needs now is for a sense of drift to take hold but the main man was in no mood to brook that kind of talk.

“It was pretty clear out there that our lives and souls were out there as a coaching staff and as players,” said van Graan. “We lost a game by one score.”