Beirne refuses to accept notion Munster failed amid pressure of being top seeds

Beirne described a devastated home dressing room after the match and head coach Graham Rowntree’s tribute to a string of departing players, for whom Saturday’s loss marked the end of their careers as Munster players.

Mon, 17 Jun, 2024 - 07:09

Simon Lewis

Tadhg Beirne refused to accept that the end of Munster’s reign as URC champions had come as a result of the pressure of being top seeds coming into this season’s play-offs.

Munster had swept to the 2022-23 title as fifth-seeded outsiders, lifting the trophy with a Grand Final victory at the Stormers in Cape Town having played the last five games of the URC campaign, including the three play-off rounds, away from Thomond Park.

This season saw Munster march to the top of the regular-season standings in impressive fashion, with eight bonus-point league victories, two of them at altitude in South Africa against the Bulls and Lions, in a nine-game winning run.

That earned them home advantage for the knockout rounds but having overcome Ospreys in the previous weekend’s quarter-finals, the champions were ousted 17-10 by Glasgow Warriors in a feisty semi-final in Limerick on Saturday night.

"Look, yeah, we were underdogs for the whole way through last season, which we relished for sure,” match captain Beirne said.

"This season, there was massive belief within the squad to go the whole way, I think. At no point did anyone doubt that we weren't capable of it.

"We have been taking it one game at a time and not looking any further than our opposition in front of us, so I don't think that comes into question at any point.

"We have been very focused and very much looking forward to getting to play in front of a Munster crowd here. We are bitterly disappointed for everyone out there, all the fans that we weren't able to deliver a home final next week."

Bordeaux-bound fly-half Joey Carbery missed the play-offs due to a thumb injury on June 1 against Ulster, Munster record try scorer Simon Zebo is retiring, while French-born centre Antoine Frisch is joining Toulon and double World Cup-winning South Africa lock RG Snyman is moving to Leinster for next season.

Beirne also revealed former academy back-row star Jack O’Sullivan was also calling an end to his Munster journey.

"You first go into the dressing room and it's dead silence until Wig brought us together and he finished it out with some words, and called out everyone who would be leaving and thanked them, apologised as well for not finishing the way we wanted to finish.

"It's bitterly disappointing, Joey is in there, Zeebs, Snyman JOS, Frischy, that's a big, big part of our squad.

"Not just on the field but big lads in the dressing room as well, and not just themselves but their partners as well have a big role to play within the group.

"They are going to leave a big hole in our group next year. We will certainly miss them all."