Munster boss Graham Rowntree 'surprised' by RG Snyman’s decision to join Leinster

SURPRISED: Head Coach Graham Rowntree surprised by RG Snyman's decision to join Leinster. Pic: Laszlo Geczo

Munster boss Graham Rowntree has admitted he was surprised by RG Snyman’s decision to join Leinster when his contract expires next summer.

The double World Cup-winning South Africa lock will depart Munster after four years with the province after being told by Rowntree there would not be a contract for him next season now that his fellow second row Jean Kleyn had become a Springbok international having previously qualified as an Irish-qualified player.

Munster are unable to keep both non-Irish qualified players (NIQ) and Leinster, with former South Africa head coach Jacques Nienaber now on the coaching ticket, wasted little time in persuading Snyman, 29 next month, that he could remain in Irish rugby.

Leinster made the announcement they were signing Snyman on Tuesday and Rowntree admitted on Wednesday he had been taken aback by the revelation but did not blame the player for joining Munster’s oldest and fiercest rivals.

“Yeah, I'm not going to lie, a huge surprise,” Rowntree said as he faced the media ahead of next Tuesday’s St Stephen’s night derby clash with Leinster.

“Obviously I wasn't fully aware of where he was going, I knew there was chat of him going to Bath to see my old mate and his former coach Johann (van Graan). There was chat of him going back to South Africa, but I was surprised, yeah.

“It's a business, this, isn't it? I sat down with him in the first week of November, and said there wasn't a contract for him, unfortunately. Within a couple of weeks this news is upon us that he's gone to Leinster. There we go, we deal with it, we row on.

“I have no doubt in his commitment to us to the end of the season. I've already seen that in the last couple of days in particular, I've no doubt about that commitment. It is what it is.”

Asked if he had been left frustrated that having been forced to release Snyman under IRFU guidelines around NIQ quotas and yet the 6ft 9ins lock had been allowed to sign for another province, with the governing body providing the green light for the move, Rowntree replied: “I'm not frustrated, no. We can't determine where he goes.

“I'm the bloke sitting in front of him saying there wasn't anything for him. We can’t determine where he goes. It's not like we've been outbid by Leinster. We had nothing for him. That's business.

“I'm quite able to move on, I have more things consuming my mind at the moment that this. There we go.”

Munster began preparations for next week’s Thomond Park showdown following two disappointing weeks in Champions Cup pool action, drawing at home to tournament newcomers Bayonne and then surrendering a 24-13 lead at Exeter Chiefs last Sunday on the way to a 32-24 defeat that leaves the URC champions fifth in their six-team Pool 3 with two games remaining at Toulon on January 13 and then home to Northampton Saints a week later.

Rowntree is also waiting for talismanic back-rower and former captain Peter O’Mahony to recover properly from the shoulder injury he sustained on his first game back for his province following Ireland’s World Cup campaign on November 18.

Munster had been expecting the Test centurion back for last weekend’s trip to Exeter but the head coach said O’Mahony was now a doubt for next Tuesday’s interprovincial clash.

“It's not quite ready, it's quite simple. There's no conspiracy theory here. He's had a sore shoulder, we tried to bring him in last week, he wasn't quite ready. We tried this week, and it's looking like it's not going to be ready for this week either.

"That's the nature of injuries. He's a warrior, is Peter He can take pain, he's played with pain for us before, but the very functional limb, his shoulder, we can't mess around with it. I'm not going to lie to you, it's unlikely we'll see him on next Tuesday, the St Stephen's Day game.”