BY THE TIME this interpro derby came to a conclusion the edge that has marked so many recent Munster-Connacht battles had long seeped out of the contest.
The result was beyond doubt but as Munster’s flurry of late tries saw them push 47-12 clear, the fight appeared to have deserted some Connacht players.
This was a damaging day at Thomond Park for Connacht and leaves them facing an uphill battle in their bid to reach the URC playoffs – and book a place in next season’s Champions Cup.
The province were sixth in the table before this round of fixtures kicked-off but end the weekend ninth after 24 hours where nothing went their way.
First, Edinburgh powered to victory over Zebre while the Stormers won at the Dragons last night, before today’s action saw Ulster recover from a poor first-half to beat Scarlets with a bonus-point and Benetton strike late to topple the Sharks in South Africa.
It all leaves Connacht four points off the final playoff position on 44 points. Benetton and Edinburgh both have 48 points, with Ulster sixth on 49 and the Stormers fifth on 50.
Connacht host the Stormers next weekend before playing Leinster at the RDS in their final regular-season game on 31 May – the week after Leo Cullen’s side contest the Champions Cup final.
With such a testing end to the season ahead of them Connacht needed to take something from today’s game in Limerick but now find themselves under huge pressure to finish in the top eight.
Pete Wilkins will be deeply frustrated with some of his side’s errors at Thomond Park.
His team were in the game at half-time, Byron Ralston going over in the corner after RG Snyman and Calvin Nash had crossed across a dominant opening half-hour for the hosts, who spent much of the early exchanges camped in the Connacht half – the visitors also losing in-form scrum-half Matthew Devine to injury with just over 20 minutes played.
Yet after the break Connacht unravelled, a crucial swing arriving shortly after the restart.
Tom Farrell’s brilliant surge forward left Connacht primed to strike but Jack Carty was turned over short of the Munster tryline. Bundee Aki then lost possession further out the pitch and moments after Connacht were searching for a game-levelling score, Munster were running in their third try.
Connacht did summon a response through another Ralston try after Conor Murray had added Munster’s bonus-point score but from there their challenge faded horribly, Munster adding three more tries across a dominant final quarter.
Six of the previous eight meetings between these teams had ended as one-score games but this was Munster’s biggest win over Connacht since a 49-12 hammering during the pandemic days in 2020.
Graham Rowntree was understandably thrilled with the performance and his Munster team are now really hitting their stride heading into the business end of the season.
The defending champions have bagged 34 points from a possible 35 since the New Year and this was their seventh URC win on the bounce.
The drier weather suits Munster’s style of play and some of their rugby in a sun-drenched Limerick was sublime – their seven tries coming through seven different try-scorers.
Simon Zebo and Antoine Frisch both added their usual nice attacking touches while Nash always looked a threat on the wing and Jack Crowley enjoyed another strong performance at out-half.
Snyman was arguably the pick of the bunch on his first start at Thomond Park while player of the match Alex Nankivell sprinkled moments of class throughout the evening. The summer signing from the Chiefs ran in Munster’s third try and was excellent with ball in hand, providing a beautiful inside pass for Zebo in the build-up to Murray’s bonus-point score.
The win saw Munster close to within two points of league leaders Glasgow – who lost at the Bulls – and remain firmly on track for a home quarter-final.
The province won this league the hard way last year, digging out wins in South Africa before beating Glasgow, Leinster and the Stormers away from home in the knockout rounds.
Munster’s home form has been patchy this season but this was a statement win and if they can secure home advantage in the playoffs, they’ll be a match for anyone.
On a day where Connacht’s playoffs hopes suffered a hammering, Munster delivered in impressive fashion to keep a top-two finish on the cards.
