Josh Wycherley leads by example in Munster scrum test

LEADING THE WAY: Josh Wycherley was the oldest and most experienced member of the front row which faced an imposing Argentina XV pack at Thomond Park on Saturday night alongside hooker Lee Barron and academy tighthead Ronan Foxe, making his first senior start. Picture: ©INPHO/Andrew Conan

Josh Wycherley can speak with good authority on the choices facing a young prop after a nerve-jangling first scrum against a powerful front row.

Now 26 and with 80 appearances for Munster under his belt, the loosehead prop was the oldest and most experienced member of the front row which faced an imposing Argentina XV pack at Thomond Park on Saturday night alongside hooker Lee Barron and academy tighthead Ronan Foxe, making his first senior start.

It was quite the introduction for the 22-year-old as the Argentines used all their power and heft at the first engagement, sending Foxe off his feet as referee Angus Gardner blew for a penalty and recalling Wycherley’s maiden European start and scrum at Clermont Auvergne in December 2020. Going up against Rabah Slimani at Stade Marcel Michelin initially ended badly for the Bantry youngster as he was sent airborne by the French international tighthead, only to recover admirably as Munster came from 28-9 down to the French giants after 25 minutes to claim a famous bonus-point 39-31 pool victory.

There was a similar story arc for Foxe on Saturday after two torrid scrums against the tourists when on 32 minutes, the Munster front row exacted some revenge, each prop putting the squeeze on their bulkier opponents to claim a penalty of their own.

It exorcised those previous struggles and the senior partner recognised the character shown for Foxe to bounce back.

“You've been there in games where you can either shy away from that or you turn around and you get everyone behind you and go at them again, so I think that's going to be great growth for everybody in the group and something we can bring forward with us, so it's really good,” Wycherley said.

“We knew all week that they were a big pack. We spoke about just getting out the blocks. I thought Foxy went really well tonight, we had a bit of a shaky start but we regathered and it's great growth for him to go up against a bigger pack like that.

“I think we really turned them over in a few of those scrum battles tonight so it was exceptional.” 

So too was claiming an international scalp, particularly at the first time of asking for those less experienced players.

“It's an unbelievable event for the club, for a lot of the younger players to get an opportunity to play these games,” Wycherley added. “I've been lucky enough to play them but we spoke during the week that this luxury might not be here forever and we don't know when that next game will be against an international side like that.

“So I think to get a win at home in front of all those fans that have turned up with a lot of rugby on this weekend is an unbelievable achievement for a lot of the young players that came up and really showed up tonight.”