Coombes looking to make own Munster history in Champions Cup

"We want to build our own legacy, be the lads (with their pictures) on the wall."

Fri, 05 Apr, 2024 - 01:00

Simon Lewis

Not for the first time in his experience as Munster’s most capped player has the burden of responsibility fallen on the shoulders of Stephen Archer ahead of Sunday’s Champions Cup Round of 16 showdown at Northampton Saints.

An already testing challenge, travelling to the sold-out home of the English Premiership leaders for a European knockout tie, was yesterday increased by yet another degree of difficulty following the three-match suspension handed down to tighthead prop John Ryan.

Ryan, 35 but seven months younger than fellow 200-plus cap Corkman Archer, had been cited following last Saturday’s 20-15 URC victory over Cardiff at Thomond Park during which he was yellow carded for foul play after a tip tackle on Cardiff captain and hooker Liam Belcher.

His punishment did not end there, however, with the match citing commissioner sending the incident into an additional independent disciplinary process, which found the incident of foul play merited a red card which met World Rugby’s low-range threshold of a six-game suspension.

The disciplinary panel overseeing the process, chaired by Scotland’s Robert Milligan, disagreed with Ryan’s assertion that the incident had not warranted a red card but reduced the suspension to three games, due to the player’s good disciplinary record, apology and exemplary conduct in the hearing.

Either way, Ryan will not be available at Franklin’s Gardens on Sunday afternoon, or for any potential Champions Cup quarter-final the following week should Munster defy the odds and prevail in Northampton.

With recent signing and newly-minted Ireland international Oli Jager recovering from the knee surgery he underwent last week, and Roman Salanoa a longer-term knee injury absentee, that leaves Archer as the last senior tighthead standing following Keynan Knox’s release in February.

Jeremy Loughman is a recognised loosehead who has experience on the other corner of the front row, twice replacing Archer off the bench at tighthead in October 2019 against the Southern Kings and Ospreys as well as crossing over for short periods on other occasions.

With uncapped academy prop Darragh McSweeney, 21, the only other fit and available tighthead and first-year academy entrant Ronan Foxe currently injured, it may well be that Ireland international loosehead Loughman performs that role once more on Sunday.

It was after the home Champions Cup pool defeat to Northampton Saints in January that Graham Rowntree, not for the first time in his two-season tenure as head coach, conceded Munster do not do things the easy way.

That sentiment has now been brought back into sharp focus, though resilience has long been in the Munster DNA, as they showed on their last visit to Franklin’s Gardens in December 22, surviving a second-half Saints onslaught and three yellow cards to win 17-6.

" I think that's in the team, it's built into us,” No.8 Gavin Coombes said on Tuesday. “Last weekend, Cardiff had the ball for about five minutes and they were on our line and we turn it over and that's probably the winning of the game there.

"You know, there's probably many more occasions you can look back on, real references points for us, but that Northampton game away is probably a big one where we dug in...

“So when you're numbers down away from home and you put in a performance like that, it's a real reference point. It's something for us for look back on but we can't rest on that, we have to show up on Sunday and put our best foot forward.

"You show up on Sunday or you're watching on the couch the following week. There's huge excitement for us, we're buzzing to get out there.”

There is plenty on the line for Munster this weekend, not least the desire to make some history for themselves 16 years on from the last European success.

"For me, it's hugely inspiring,” Coombes said.

"We want to build our own legacy, be the lads (with their pictures) on the wall.

"Last year was a good building block, but the crown jewel is Europe. If you can win Europe in this club, you'll be remembered for the rest of your life."