Rowntree praises Munster fight as he laments injury crisis 

Ulster inflicted a fifth defeat on the new head coach's watch but Rowntree prefers to focus on the positives from his much-changed side 

THINKING TIME: Munster head coach Graham Rowntree and Munster forwards coach Andy Kyriacou

Graham Rowntree praised his young forwards’ resilience but had to absorb another defeat as Munster came up short on home soil against Ulster on Saturday evening.

The head coach had seen his injury-hit side concede two early tries to lineout drives and then a third off a scrum inside the home 22 to trail 15-3 at half-time in this BKT United Rugby Championship interprovincial derby but though Munster fought back to 15-14 with 10 minutes and kept the visitors scoreless after the interval, they could not prevent Ulster from claiming a first win at Thomond Park since 2014.