Munster cough up lead to slump to Champions Cup loss at Exeter
Exeters Henry Slade scores a try during the Investec Champions Cup match at Sandy Park, Exeter. Picture: David Davies/PA Wire
A late Exeter Chiefs fightback denied Munster’s hopes of a first win in Pool 3 as they lost their second-round Champions Cup Pool 3 clash at Sandy Park on Sunday, a late Henry Slade try denying them a losing bonus point.
Munster earned a try bonus point with Shane Daly’s second-half score pushing Graham Rowntree’s men into 24-13 lead on 50 minutes but they lost their lead with two quick-fire tries around the hour mark before Slade’s disputed late strike sealed the Chiefs’ second win following an away victory at Toulon eight days earlier.
Munster have just three points from two matches, having been held to a draw at home by Bayonne in the opening round and have it all to do now with two matches remaining after Christmas, a trip to Toulon in January followed by the visit of Northampton Saints to Thomond Park a week later.
This was not how this European campaign was meant to unfold for the URC champions and top seeds and they scored some wonderful tries through Calvin Nash, Tom Ahern, and Antoine Frisch before half-time, only to wilt under Exeter’s heavyweight second-half pressure.
Munster had welcomed back Daly, Frisch and Diarmuid Barron from injury to their starting line-up, as well as new recruit, tighthead prop Oli Jager to the bench. The restoration of Frisch and Daly to the backline, at outside centre and full-back respectively with Alex Nankevill returning to inside centre, gave Munster the more balanced attacking shape they had sorely missed in the hard-fought draw with Bayonne at Thomond Park eight days earlier. It also returned Calvin Nash from number 15 to his more familiar perch on the right wing and Munster duly profited.
The opening try came on six minutes as Munster struck from a five-metre lineout on the left. An early Exeter jump had given them a second bite at the cherry and they made it count, Gavin Coombes and John Hodnett with strong carries to the line which sucked in home defenders before Craig Casey’s vision saw the scrum-half fling the ball wide wide to the waiting Nash on the right, the Ireland international darting over the line into the corner.
Crowley sent his conversion over from the touchline and that corner would be the focus of all Munster’s first-half try-scoring attentions though not before the Chiefs had equalised through hooker Dan Frost on 16 minutes, converted by Henry Slade to level the scores at 7-7.
Ahern’s try was a beauty, the 6ft 9ins lock turned blindside flanker showing the speed that had earmarked him as a budding full-back as a youngster. The Waterford man provided ample evidence why he is so often deployed out in the tramlines, collecting a Crowley kick-pass on the bounce, then accelerating past full back Tommy Wyatt down the right touchline from half-way as Chiefs backs were unable to keep pace. Crowley’s touchline conversion was missed but Munster were 12-7 up with 23 minutes gone, though not for long, Slade sending over a penalty three minutes later to close the gap to three points.
Yet Munster enjoyed a great final 10 minutes to the opening half, stretching their lead to 19-10 as Antoine Frisch struck in the right corner again, courtesy of some great hands inside from Ahern to Crowley to Sean O’Brien, the wing’s inside pop pass finding Daly who located his outside centre on the wing for a wonderfully crafted score. Crowley’s successful conversion from out wide was followed by a superb defensive stand at the other end as Exeter sought an instant reply. The Chiefs hammered the Munster line, earning a couple of penalties along the way only for visiting captain Tadhg Beirne to perform heroics over the ball, earning his side the ruck penalty that ended the half with his team holding a nine-point lead at 19-10.
Exter drew first blood in the second half through a Slade penalty on 45 minutes but the significant blow came from Munster, with Shane Daly claiming their bonus-point try five minutes later. Again it was manufactured brilliantly, Munster attacking down the left through O’Brien, the ball moved inside from where Frisch jinked past his man and offloaded to Barron, the hooker breaking from the Chiefs 22 to five metres out. Munster kept their momentum with some sharp and powerful breakdown work and made no mistake from there, Casey feeding Nankevill whose pass to the right wing found the full-back, Daly’s try opening Munster’s lead to 24-13 with half an hour remaining.
Exeter director of rugby Rob Baxter pulled the trigger at that point making five changes and another two straight after as the home side sought to rescue the situation, former Leinster players Jack Dunne and Rory O’Loughlin among the replacements.
There was a definite shift in impetus as a result and while Munster initially withstood the Chiefs assault on their tryline, the concerted pressure eventually told. Replacement back Ross Vintcent struck first on 62 minutes before a mix-up in the back field saw Dunne take advantage and claim his side’s third of the afternoon, Slade’s conversions pushing the home team into the lead at 27-24.
Munster needed to regain some momentum and they thought it had come from a high tasckle by Exeter fly-half Harvey Skinner on opposite number Crowley. Referee Mathieu Raynal deliberated long and hard with the TMO but eventually awarded just a penalty against Skinner.
A penalty just inside their own half for an Exeter offside gave Munster much-needed territory with six minutes to go. Crowley kicking to the 22 but the lineout from the right did not provide the necessary platform, a knock-on in midfield resulting in an Exeter scrum.
Time was running out and Exeter bought some more with the set-piece, earning a penalty from Raynal much to the delight of the home fans among the 13,634 crowd. And there was delirium in the stands when Slade intercepted Conor Murray’s pass and raced from halfway to score. The Munster coaches had immediately called for an offside and Raynal again went to his TMO for confirmation that the try could stand. The replays showed Slade was onside as the pass was made with two Chiefs players tracking back from offside positions. Despite Beirne’s lengthy discussions with the ref, the French official allowed the try to stand with Slade’s unsuccessful conversion bringing the game to a distinctly demoralising end for the Irish province with Exeter’s fourth try denying the visitors a losing bonus point.
Munster’s try BP leaves them in fifth place out of sixth in their pool, a point above Toulon and level with fourth-place Bayonne with two matches remaining in January. Exeter and Northampton top Pool 3 with Munster six points adrift of a home Round of 16 draw and with plenty of work to do at Toulon and then home to the Saints just to stay in the competition.
S Daly; C Nash, A Frisch, A Nankivell, S O’Brien (B O’Connor, 77); J Crowley, C Casey (C Murray, 57); J Loughman (J Wycherley, 68), D Barron, S Archer (O Jager, 60); G Coombes, T Beirne - captain; T Ahern, J Hodnett (A Kendellen, 71), J O’Donoghue (B Gleeson, 69).
E Clarke, R Scannell
T Wyatt; O Woodburn (R O’Loughlin, 52), H Slade, J Hawkins (O Devoto, 61), B Hammersley; H Skinner, T Cairns (S Townsend, 52); S Sio (N Abuladze, 52), D Frost (M Norey, 52-72 ), E Painter (M Street, 52); R Tuima (J Dunne, 55), D Jenkins - captain; L Pearson, J Vermeulen, G Fisilau (R Vintcent, 55).
Mathieu Raynal (France).
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