Munster learned lessons from Sharks setback and used them to upset Stormers

Munster needed to do some serious introspection with their play-off place in the URC still under threat. That’s what they did and they responded in the most positive way

LESSONS LEARNED: Munster learned lessons from Sharks and used them to upset Stormers. Pic: Carl Fourie/Sportsfile

Graham Rowntree was a hugely satisfied man after Munster’s courageous 26-24 win over the Stormers at the DHL Stadium on Saturday.

Two weeks ago, Munster were taken apart by the Sharks in Durban in a Champions Cup clash. The Durban-based side piled on 50 points and only a late flurry gave Munster some respectability on the scoreboard.

But there was no finessing that display for a club as proud and storied as Munster. They were poor and they needed to do some serious introspection with their play-off place in the United Rugby Championship (URC) still under threat. That’s what they did and they responded in the most positive way.

“It’s a huge, huge boost for us. The woes of our last two games in particular, have been well documented,” Rowntree said after the match.

“But we came home from the Sharks game and we had a good week looking at our game and had some very frank conversations. We've worked hard on our game technically and tactically.

“We travelled well this week. We didn’t do a huge amount of training, but what we did was pretty sharp because we had to be better in every facet of the game.

“The Sharks taught us a lesson at the breakdown and in the set-piece, so we put a lot of attention into that. It was important that we could show when we're at our best that we can beat teams like this.” 

Munster dominated the breakdown with Peter O’Mahony in the vanguard while their scrum was solid against the all Bok front row of the Stormers. The line-outs were outstanding, both on their own ball and in terms of disrupting the Stormers while the rolling maul caused the home team severe problems.

Munster are now in with an outside chance of finishing in the top four, thanks to the win over the Stormers. But that would be miraculous and require Glasgow to lose by a big margin against Connacht with Munster dishing out a hiding to the Sharks next week at King’s Park. Neither scenario is likely.

So, it’s all about protecting fifth place where Connacht have a chance of sliding in, if they beat Glasgow. That is significant because the team finishing sixth is likely to meet the Stormers in Cape Town. Munster don’t want to make the journey south again in a fortnight.

But if they do, they will have good memories after a job well done on Saturday.

Against the Sharks previously, Munster lost the game in the 10 minutes after halftime. The Stormers, who had clawed their way back to 12-12 in the final 10 minutes of the first half after two Diarmuid Barron tries from Munster rolling mauls, threatened to do the same.

It was a constant barrage on the Munster line in those opening exchanges of the second stanza, and the red wall held firm.

“When we were last down here in Durban two weeks ago, ten minutes after halftime, killed us,” Rowntree said after the match.

“I left the changing room and said the next ten minutes will define what happens in this game. There was a barrage, wasn't there? We were under attack. I'm immensely proud of our composure and our fight. Not just in that period, for the whole game.” 

The Stormers agreed that that was the period where the match was won and lost.

“I thought those last ten minutes before halftime and the 10 minutes after the break were crucial,” Stormers coach John Dobson said.

“I know we eventually got to try, but we had them on the ropes and we just kept letting them off. We lost two line-outs towards the end of that first half.

“Look, eventually we got to try, but I thought if we got that penalty just after halftime, to have got ten points in the space of three playing minutes or two playing minutes would have been brilliant.

“And then we go and get two five-metre line-outs and end up not converting. That period killed us.” 

Another key to the Munster mindset was that they entered the match with confidence, but with respect. The Stormers are the defending URC champions and they hadn’t lost in Cape Town since December 2021, a sequence of 21 games.

Two of those games were played in Stellenbosch, but still, 19 wins at the fabulous DHL Stadium, a stone’s throw from the Atlantic Ocean in the heart of the Mother City, was an impressive record.

“The game lived up to everything. You had the current champions playing at home, littered with Springbok players,” Rowntree said.

“We were very wary of them coming home licking their wounds after the Exeter defeat last week. We knew that wasn't a true reflection of what they've been doing.

“We know that this place is a bit of a fortress for the Stormers. We've been very respectful of the Stormers, the way they can play the game, but in particular their power. Overall, I was pretty pleased with how we dealt with that today.” 

Rowntree has been coming to South Africa for 30 years – it’s his most visited rugby country outside of Europe. He has seen it all and believes that the South African sides are not just about brute power anymore.

“I love the place. I've got huge respect. I think the club game and their involvement in the URC has demonstrated how their game is evolving and they've got many threats. It's not just power. It's pace. It's pace. You can't play loosely against them.

“You can't kick loosely to their back. You can't give willy-nilly loose passes and offloads against them. I've got nothing but respect for these teams.”