Munster edge Lions but now head to Pretoria to face Bulls in URC play offs
BIG WIN: Munster's Sean O'Brien celebrates with Brian Gleeson. Pic: ©INPHO/Dan Clohessy
Munster rescued their season at the last opportunity as they secured a crucial victory over the Lions on Saturday night which puts the province into the URC quarter-finals at the end of the month and guarantees Champions Cup rugby for 2026-27.
On a night in which Thomond Park saluted veteran front-rowers Niall Scannell and John Ryan, both double centurions in terms of Munster caps, on their final home appearances, Munster’s nervy win against their play-off rivals form Johannesburg was enough to extend their goodbyes for at least another two weeks, though their climb from ninth place before kick-off to fifth place means a last-eight trip to South Africa to play the fourth-placed Bulls at altitude at Pretoria’s Loftus Versfeld on the weekend of May 29-31.
Tries from Evan O’Connell, Craig Casey and Tom Ahern saw Clayton McMillan’s home with three conversions and a penalty from JJ Hanrahan, a late replacement for Jack Crowley, withdrawn just before kick-off, ensuring Munster leapfrogged Ulster, the Lions, Connacht and Cardiff in the final standings before the knockout rounds.
The win knocked Ulster out of the top eight with Richie Murphy’s province now needing a victory in next Friday’s Challenge Cup final against Montpellier in Bilbao to qualify for Europe’s top-tier next season, a victory which would keep out eighth-placed Connacht from the Champions Cup and remove them from the URC quarter-final draw.
The loss for the Lions sees them needing to return to Ireland to play defending champions and league runners-up Leinster in Dublin the weekend after next.
Munster had kicked off having dropped outside the qualifying spots to ninth following wins for play-off rivals Cardiff and Connacht while Ulster’s losing bonus point at home to Stormers was enough to keep them in eighth. Yet the mission for McMillan’s men stayed the same, a win was all that mattered.
Given their erratic form across the season, not least in their last three games, however, there was little possibility to gauge the performance levels Munster were capable of reaching. Back-to-back bonus-point victories at Benetton and home to Ulster had brought buoyancy to the regular season run-in, only for the air to be released in the penultimate round at Connacht last weekend as the injuries sustained seven days earlier brought a heavy cost.
Having lost seven players to injury against Ulster, Munster also lost Edwin Edogbo to a shoulder injury against Connacht and there was worse news for supporters to digest ahead of this 18th and final round clash with midfield linchpin Alex Nankivell and starting lock Fineen Wycherley withdrawn before kick-off due to knocks.
With four locks injured, Tom Ahern was joined by O’Connell in the second row for just his second start of the season, with his place on the bench taken by back-rower, Ruadhan Quinn and Gavin Coombes covering the second row. Nankivell’s absence required a backline reshuffle with Sean O’Brien moved from the left wing to inside centre as Dan Kelly moved from 12 to 13, with a fit-again Daly drafted into the number 11 jersey.
There was still time for another blow to Munster’s hopes when Crowley failed to take the pitch before kick-off, the Ireland fly-half withdrawn after the pre-game warm-up and replaced by JJ Hanrahan for the third week in a row, with uncapped 21-year-old academy centre Gordon Wood filling the fresh vacancy on the bench.
And yet, despite everything, Munster grabbed an early lead, sparked by a gigantic 50-22 from Mike Haley, the full-back collecting turnover ball to launch from inside his 22. From the attacking lineout on the left, Daly made inroads with a smart carry, Scannell recycling from the tackle to put in O’Connell for the opening try on six minutes, the lock scoring from close range with Hanrahan converting from close to the posts.
Munster’s 7-0 lead lasted eight minutes as the Lions full-back Quan Horn intercepted a pass to the left wing from Dan Kelly to Andrew Smith, racing from behind his 10-metre line to score under the posts, Chris Smith’s conversion levelling the scores.
Hanrahan pushed the home side 10-7 in front with a 22nd minute penalty, only for Munster to lose two players to the sin bin in quick succession, both for deliberate knock-ons. Andrew Smith was the first to see yellow on 27 minutes after a Lions pass was arrowed into his chest but if his card was unfortunate, Sean O’Brien’s looked like a moment of madness, an outstretched arm deflecting a pass inside the Munster 22 which reduced McMillan’s team to 13 men on the half hour for seven minutes.
The loss of two men cost them initially with wing Kelly Mkepu exploiting gaps in defence for a try on 35 minutes, Chris Smith’s conversion making it 14-10, but remarkably, Munster finished the opening period with a 17-14 lead.
Smith had returned to the field to restore his team to 14 men in the 39th minute but he was a spectator as Hanrahan kicked to the corner from a penalty and the pack rumbled into action from the five-metre lineout. It was captain Casey that was the beneficiary after a number of one-out carries, diving over from inches out from the back of a ruck. Hanrahan’s conversion was a simple one and Munster had their lead with O’Brien set to return from his yellow card at the start of the second half.
O’Brien thought he had extended Munster’s lead six minutes after his return, as he sprinted over the line after collecting a skilfully juggled ball from No.8 Gleeson as he fielded a bouncing ball. Yet the TMO saw Daly get a finger to the initial kick ahead and Andrea Piardi ruled out a second Munster try of the game, having ruled Gleeson had been held up over the line by lock Darrien Landsberg.
Munster did get a reward for their ambition on 54 minutes when Tom Ahern touched down, again from close range, with Hanrahan’s conversion opening up a 10-point lead at 24-14, though a Chris Smith penalty six minutes later cut the Lions’ deficit to seven points entering the final quarter.
Play was delayed in the 63rd minute when Munster’s replacement hooker Diarmuid Barron reported to Piardi he had received a spit in the face. Barron had replaced Scannell in the 46th minute as the starter left the Thomond Park field to a standing ovation for the final time at the end of his 211th appearance.
The number 16 had been cleared to play after his red card at Connacht was rescinded by an Independent Disciplinary Hearing but there was no clear evidence from this TMO review and the matter was referred to the match Citing Commissioner as play continued, now under a downpour.
A further injury, to Daly, brought Gordon Wood his debut as the Munster backline was rejigged another time, O’Brien moving from midfield to the wing to make way for the debutant. The Lions were having injury issues of their own, forced to replace centre Henco van Wyk with a back-rower Ruan Delport with 10 minutes to go and it was a nervy period for both sides.
Alex Kendellen earned his corn off the bench to deny a Lions try over the line and there were heroics from O’Brien as he made up ground to cover a kick into the in-goal area aimed for the pacey Angelo Davids.
The Lions were closing strongly but Munster got the job done and live to fight another day.
M Haley; A Smith, D Kelly, S O’Brien, S Daly (G Wood, 66); JJ Hanrahan, C Casey - captain; J Loughman (J Wycherley, 63), N Scannell (D Barron, 46), M Ala’alatoa (J Ryan, 60); T Ahern (G Coombes, 56), E O’Connell; J O’Donoghue, J Hodnett (A Kendellen, 51), B Gleeson (R Quinn, 74).
A Smith 27-37, S O’Brien 30-40 Replacement not used: B O’Donovan.
Q Horn; K Mpeku, H van Wyk (R Delport, 69), R Kriel (R Jonker, h-t), A Davids; C Smith, M van den Berg (H Pead, h-t); SJ Kotze (E Davids, 56), PJ Botha (M Brandon, 56), S Lombard; R Nothnagel (S Qoma, 69), D Landsberg; S Mahashe, B Hlekani, F Horn -captain (JC Pretorius, 39).
RF Schoeman.
Andrea Piardi (Italy)
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