Munster don’t exactly ease their big names back.
Ian Keatley received a richly deserved man-of-the-match award at the end of Munster’s 39-16 victory over Cardiff and revealed that he and his teammates had been roasted by the coaches at half-time.
Whatever Rassie Erasmus, Jacques Nienaber & Co. hollered (or threatened) had the desired effect as Munster scored three second half tries to seal a bonus point win.
As Keatley chatted away to Sky Sports, Conor Murray stood alongside and let the outhalf do most of the talking. He gave Keatley a nudge when the broadcaster tried to award him the nickname ‘General’. “That’s Tyler’s nickname,” Keatley blushed.
Tyler Bleyendaal missed out on the fun today and Keatley did exactly what was required to give his coaches a tough decision ahead of the Leinster game next week. As for Murray, he’ll be wearing No.9.
Munster rinsed 73 and 74 minutes out of Murray and Peter O’Mahony respectively. CJ Stander was on the pitch for all 80, and then some. They know all three will be required to get over the line against Leinster so they had to test their legs and lungs.
Murray had a superb game and Munster look so much more threatening when he is about. Duncan Williams had a decent start to the season but Murray in the 9 jersey makes them a different beast.
Keatley can sling a rapid pass too so with himself and Murray getting space as the game ticked on, the Munster backline came into their own. When the hard yards were required, Murray was there with the sleeves rolled (even higher) up. His try off the base of the posts was as canny as it was crucial.
Jaco Taute is likely to miss the Leinster game but Munster fans will hope that is the end of it. The South African is a vital cog in the Munster machine and his worried expression as he was carted off the Thomond Park pitched caused many a flutter.
The impact of JJ Hanrahan, Chris Farrell and Robin Copeland off the bench was much more settling, and pleasing. Hanrahan should great pace and awareness to nab two tries and, when Farrell made the initial burst, Darren Sweetnam found Murray in support and he almost got over for another score.
Some players would have tried a double movement or squirm as the tryline was a mere metre away but Murray did not panic. He presented cleanly and trusted his teammates. Sure enough, Copeland was there to mop up, dot down and get Munster the bonus.
In his 73 minutes on the pitch, Murray passed on 68 of his 75 possessions. There were only two kicks as Munster tested Cardiff with ball-in-hand and his five carries gained 19 metres, and directly resulted in two tries. Three tackles and none missed on an afternoon that sets the tone for the challenges ahead.
Munster have a problem, though, and it is not one that will be fully mended over the coming days at University of Limerick. Several of Munster’s backline were guilty of defensive mistakes and Leinster will have hungrily noted them.
Alex Wootton is a menace going forward but he was powerless to stop Tom James in the lead-up to Cardiff’s first try. He attempted four more and stuck three of them. Farrell, as he did against Ospreys, shot out of the line to make a hit and left a big gap inside.
Munster had a 90% tackle success rate, which is pretty damn good. However, their backline were guilty for all nine tackles that were missed and their collective tackle success rate was 78% [31 from 40 attempted].
With Leinster lining up with a potential backline including Johnny Sexton, Isa Nacewa, Rory O’Loughlin and Robbie Henshaw – and with Taute set to miss out – Munster have some homework to do.
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