Mid-term report: Injuries and off-field issues mar faltering Munster season

Following the pattern of the opening half of the season will not be good enough for the province.

Munster out-half Jack Crowley gets through his work on a cold training day. Pic: James Crombie/Inpho

An interim head coach, two temporary coaching consultants, a lengthy injury list and a campaign on the brink as the Champions Cup pool stage reaches its climax over the next two weekends. As half-seasons go, Munster have already crammed enough drama into the opening segment of 2024-25 than most sporting organisations would care to experience in three seasons.

Even by Munster’s uncanny ability to grab the national rugby conversation by the horns, the first four months of this season have been extraordinary with Graham Rowntree departing as head coach by mutual consent just six weeks in, the senior squad decimated by injury and performance levels fluctuating wildly.