PUSH WELL AND truly came to shove in the final quarter of Munster’s crucial pool clash with Northampton at Thomond Park on Saturday.
Graham Rowntree’s men led 24-0 at the break but they had been reduced to 14 men after just 21 minutes, Jack O’Donoghue marched after a careless challenge which saw his shoulder make direct contact with the head of Saints lock David Ribbans.
Northampton made the requisite tactical adjustments at half-time to simultaneously tire Munster and exploit the numerical discrepancy between the sides: Sam Vesty’s attack found more grass with the boot as the hosts’ back three compensated for the O’Donoghue-shaped void in their defence, and they turned the set-piece battle on its head which allowed Fin Smith to incrementally chip away at the hosts’ lead on top of tries by wings Tommy Freeman and James Ramm.
Billy Stickland / INPHO
Billy Stickland / INPHO / INPHO
Approaching the hour mark, Northampton had more than found their groove. Munster’s lead had been reduced to 24-17 and, down a man for almost a full half’s worth of rugby at this point, their discipline was beginning to creak under the weight of Saints pressure.
“It will always be a challenge”, Rowntree says. “Particularly in the first block of seven games: most of the tries we conceded came from a maul, or playing off a maul which resulted in a penalty in the middle of the field. It’s something that we’ve just got to keep looking at, particularly next week when we go back to Toulouse.
“When you’re down to 14 men, you’ve got a winger (Shane Daly) on the side of the scrum and then you’re conceding scrum penalties. We’ve got to look at how we do better there, even with seven forwards and a back coming in, because that’s where they got access from around that scrum.
“We spoke at half-time about leaving the breakdown but there were still a couple of key penalties in that second half where we didn’t leave the breakdown and we were a bit loose. I think of Alex Kendellen getting up in front of their nine…
“Those things, that’s up to us. We’ve got to be better at doing that because that just gives them cheap access.”
Munster boss Graham Rowntree. Dan Sheridan / INPHO
Dan Sheridan / INPHO / INPHO
Approaching the final 20 minutes, Northampton were making gains to the extent that a total turnaround was beginning to feel almost inevitable.
Rowntree had already made two changes in the front row earlier in the second half and, in what felt like a ‘hinge’ period in the game on either side of the hour mark, he made four more changes.
He firstly withdrew Joey Carbery for Rory Scannell, with Jack Crowley moving inside from 12 to out-half. He then brought on Alex Kendellen for Jean Kleyn, with Gavin Coombes again asked to fill in at lock. Finally, he simultaneously took off his captain, Peter O’Mahony, for John Hodnett in the back row, and scrum-half Craig Casey for Paddy Patterson.
On the withdrawals of Carbery and O’Mahony in particular, Rowntree confirmed that both calls were purely “tactical”, adding that there was “nothing injury-wise concerning me around those two.”
O'Mahony helps Carbery to his feet after a heavy first-half blow which saw Saints' Mike Haywood sin-binned. Dan Sheridan / INPHO
Dan Sheridan / INPHO / INPHO
So, with almost a full quarter remaining, he entrusted with helping to see out the game a new half-back pairing with an average age of 23 and just eight European appearances between them, and a two-man back row with an average age of 22.5 and just 17 combined appearances at the same level.
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It worked.
“Yeah, there’s a balance, there, around substitutions, doing it at the right time,” Rowntree says.
“You have to pull the trigger at the right time to make a a difference but while understanding that there could be multiple injuries thereafter. You almost take that risk.
“I think we just about got it right,” he smiles.
Alex Kendellen celebrates a Munster turnover. Billy Stickland / INPHO
Billy Stickland / INPHO / INPHO
It was Rowntree’s decision not to select a couple of more battle-hardened Munster legends which dominated most conversations among southern-province fandom prior to kick-off.
Patterson’s effective effervescence dictated that Conor Murray, who made his European debut on Northampton’s last visit to Limerick in 2011, was left of a Munster 23 on form for the first time in the 11 years and three months since.
Keith Earls also missed out on Saturday’s matchday squad with Liam Coombes rewarded with a spot on the bench for his late heroics against the Lions at Musgrave Park eight days earlier.
“It’s important, the way we’re going, that selection reflects form, not experience”, Rowntree insists, “and those guys who we left out today — there are some big names there… Their attitude has been exceptional.
“That’s what we picked for this week. Next week’s another matter. But now, it’s important that selection reflects form.”
Conor Murray and Keith Earls. Dan Sheridan / INPHO
Dan Sheridan / INPHO / INPHO
On that note, it’s fair to suggest Gavin Coombes might get the nod at the Stade Ernest-Wallon this Sunday.
Zoom out and you’ll see that the Skibb man averages a try every two games and, with 29 to his name already at 25 years of age, he looks well positioned to one day overtake Simon Zebo (69 tries) atop Munster’s records list.
Zoom in, and you could be persuaded that he’ll get there as soon as the backend of his 20s: Coombes has scored eight tries in 10 starts already this season, including a brace in his man-of-the-match display against Northampton on Saturday.
As well as his own tries, he put one on a plate for Jack O’Donoghue with a lovely piece of attacking subtlety in the first half. He also topped Munster’s charts in carries (15) and tackles (20) and made three turnovers: two at the breakdown and one lineout steal.
“Overrated,” Rowntree laughs, as Coombes’ name is initially raised.
“Yeah, he’s fitter than he’s been for a long time. His game involvements… His ‘back-in-the-games’ or ‘BIGS’ as we would call them: we’re a bit thin on the deck around the second-row area. We put him in the second row towards the end of the game and his work-rate doesn’t drop off, his carrying doesn’t drop off with all that additional work around the maul-stop and around scrummaging.
“I can’t speak highly enough about him. He’s so important to us as a club, what he does for us.
His footballing intelligence has come on massively in the last year. He’s worked on that aspect of his game. He knows he can’t be a one-trick pony, just carrying the ball — which he’s very good at. He carries the ball for us more than anyone.
“But no, he’s worked on that side of his game. I’m delighted for him.”
Notable is the fact that Coombes has raised his all-round game and hit a career-best stride since he was left out by Ireland in November.
He was one of several who didn’t manage to make many inroads during the ‘A’ match with New Zealand at the RDS on the eve of the South Africa test and, consequently, didn’t feature for Andy Farrell’s side against either Fiji or Australia.
Rowntree, incidentally, believes Farrell was correct in his valuation at the time. He also reckons his Munster side are beginning to enjoy the benefits of Coombes’ November exclusion.
“He was disappointed… But I think it was the right thing at the time, and so does he. The right thing…
But he came back, rolled his sleeves up and played well for us in that famous game against South Africa in Páirc Uí Chaoimh and his game has developed since then. But I think it gave him a kick up the backside. He’d recognise that.
The picture will be clearer by the time they kick off at quarter-past three on Sunday but Munster may need a couple of bonus points in Toulouse to ensure their progression to the Champions Cup last 16.
Certainly, a second pool defeat to Toulouse would dictate that, at best, the southern province would face a tough away appointment with one of the competition’s more fancied outfits.
Munster and Toulouse will lock horns again on Sunday. Dan Sheridan / INPHO
Dan Sheridan / INPHO / INPHO
Rowntree, though, isn’t yet paying heed to any permutations and will instead get to work this week on a plan to upset the five-time champions on their own patch.
“Regardless of what the qualification looks like, we need to go there and win again.
“That’s what you do for the next game — and what a challenge… One of the toughest places to go in the world and win a game of rugby, and I think we can.
“The last time we played them we showed elements of our game really improving. I think we’re better now than we were then, so we’ll go there for the win regardless of what the qualification ramifications are.”
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Rowntree: Ireland exclusion in November gave Coombes 'kick up the backside'
PUSH WELL AND truly came to shove in the final quarter of Munster’s crucial pool clash with Northampton at Thomond Park on Saturday.
Graham Rowntree’s men led 24-0 at the break but they had been reduced to 14 men after just 21 minutes, Jack O’Donoghue marched after a careless challenge which saw his shoulder make direct contact with the head of Saints lock David Ribbans.
Northampton made the requisite tactical adjustments at half-time to simultaneously tire Munster and exploit the numerical discrepancy between the sides: Sam Vesty’s attack found more grass with the boot as the hosts’ back three compensated for the O’Donoghue-shaped void in their defence, and they turned the set-piece battle on its head which allowed Fin Smith to incrementally chip away at the hosts’ lead on top of tries by wings Tommy Freeman and James Ramm.
Approaching the hour mark, Northampton had more than found their groove. Munster’s lead had been reduced to 24-17 and, down a man for almost a full half’s worth of rugby at this point, their discipline was beginning to creak under the weight of Saints pressure.
“It will always be a challenge”, Rowntree says. “Particularly in the first block of seven games: most of the tries we conceded came from a maul, or playing off a maul which resulted in a penalty in the middle of the field. It’s something that we’ve just got to keep looking at, particularly next week when we go back to Toulouse.
“When you’re down to 14 men, you’ve got a winger (Shane Daly) on the side of the scrum and then you’re conceding scrum penalties. We’ve got to look at how we do better there, even with seven forwards and a back coming in, because that’s where they got access from around that scrum.
“We spoke at half-time about leaving the breakdown but there were still a couple of key penalties in that second half where we didn’t leave the breakdown and we were a bit loose. I think of Alex Kendellen getting up in front of their nine…
“Those things, that’s up to us. We’ve got to be better at doing that because that just gives them cheap access.”
Approaching the final 20 minutes, Northampton were making gains to the extent that a total turnaround was beginning to feel almost inevitable.
Rowntree had already made two changes in the front row earlier in the second half and, in what felt like a ‘hinge’ period in the game on either side of the hour mark, he made four more changes.
He firstly withdrew Joey Carbery for Rory Scannell, with Jack Crowley moving inside from 12 to out-half. He then brought on Alex Kendellen for Jean Kleyn, with Gavin Coombes again asked to fill in at lock. Finally, he simultaneously took off his captain, Peter O’Mahony, for John Hodnett in the back row, and scrum-half Craig Casey for Paddy Patterson.
On the withdrawals of Carbery and O’Mahony in particular, Rowntree confirmed that both calls were purely “tactical”, adding that there was “nothing injury-wise concerning me around those two.”
So, with almost a full quarter remaining, he entrusted with helping to see out the game a new half-back pairing with an average age of 23 and just eight European appearances between them, and a two-man back row with an average age of 22.5 and just 17 combined appearances at the same level.
It worked.
“Yeah, there’s a balance, there, around substitutions, doing it at the right time,” Rowntree says.
“You have to pull the trigger at the right time to make a a difference but while understanding that there could be multiple injuries thereafter. You almost take that risk.
“I think we just about got it right,” he smiles.
It was Rowntree’s decision not to select a couple of more battle-hardened Munster legends which dominated most conversations among southern-province fandom prior to kick-off.
Patterson’s effective effervescence dictated that Conor Murray, who made his European debut on Northampton’s last visit to Limerick in 2011, was left of a Munster 23 on form for the first time in the 11 years and three months since.
Keith Earls also missed out on Saturday’s matchday squad with Liam Coombes rewarded with a spot on the bench for his late heroics against the Lions at Musgrave Park eight days earlier.
“It’s important, the way we’re going, that selection reflects form, not experience”, Rowntree insists, “and those guys who we left out today — there are some big names there… Their attitude has been exceptional.
“That’s what we picked for this week. Next week’s another matter. But now, it’s important that selection reflects form.”
On that note, it’s fair to suggest Gavin Coombes might get the nod at the Stade Ernest-Wallon this Sunday.
Zoom out and you’ll see that the Skibb man averages a try every two games and, with 29 to his name already at 25 years of age, he looks well positioned to one day overtake Simon Zebo (69 tries) atop Munster’s records list.
Zoom in, and you could be persuaded that he’ll get there as soon as the backend of his 20s: Coombes has scored eight tries in 10 starts already this season, including a brace in his man-of-the-match display against Northampton on Saturday.
As well as his own tries, he put one on a plate for Jack O’Donoghue with a lovely piece of attacking subtlety in the first half. He also topped Munster’s charts in carries (15) and tackles (20) and made three turnovers: two at the breakdown and one lineout steal.
“Overrated,” Rowntree laughs, as Coombes’ name is initially raised.
“Yeah, he’s fitter than he’s been for a long time. His game involvements… His ‘back-in-the-games’ or ‘BIGS’ as we would call them: we’re a bit thin on the deck around the second-row area. We put him in the second row towards the end of the game and his work-rate doesn’t drop off, his carrying doesn’t drop off with all that additional work around the maul-stop and around scrummaging.
“I can’t speak highly enough about him. He’s so important to us as a club, what he does for us.
“But no, he’s worked on that side of his game. I’m delighted for him.”
Notable is the fact that Coombes has raised his all-round game and hit a career-best stride since he was left out by Ireland in November.
He was one of several who didn’t manage to make many inroads during the ‘A’ match with New Zealand at the RDS on the eve of the South Africa test and, consequently, didn’t feature for Andy Farrell’s side against either Fiji or Australia.
Rowntree, incidentally, believes Farrell was correct in his valuation at the time. He also reckons his Munster side are beginning to enjoy the benefits of Coombes’ November exclusion.
“He was disappointed… But I think it was the right thing at the time, and so does he. The right thing…
The picture will be clearer by the time they kick off at quarter-past three on Sunday but Munster may need a couple of bonus points in Toulouse to ensure their progression to the Champions Cup last 16.
Certainly, a second pool defeat to Toulouse would dictate that, at best, the southern province would face a tough away appointment with one of the competition’s more fancied outfits.
Rowntree, though, isn’t yet paying heed to any permutations and will instead get to work this week on a plan to upset the five-time champions on their own patch.
“Regardless of what the qualification looks like, we need to go there and win again.
“That’s what you do for the next game — and what a challenge… One of the toughest places to go in the world and win a game of rugby, and I think we can.
“The last time we played them we showed elements of our game really improving. I think we’re better now than we were then, so we’ll go there for the win regardless of what the qualification ramifications are.”
Get instant updates on your province on The42 app. With Laya Healthcare, official health and wellbeing partner to Leinster, Munster and Connacht Rugby.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Big Gav Heineken Champions Cup man possessed Munster