AFTER RG SNYMAN bashed through his old teammates Craig Casey and Stephen Archer to score Leinster’s fourth try at Croke Park yesterday, the big South African lock picked himself off the turf with a wide smile across his face.
If felt inevitable Snyman would strike against his former employers on a day when he was always set up to be the pantomime villain.
When Snyman’s name was read out during the pre-match build-up, a sizeable section of the Munster support responded by booing their former player. The volume increased when Snyman departed on the 50-minute mark, having played a central role in putting Leinster 26-5 up by half-time.
Any Munster frustrations were understandable. Snyman was a statement signing for Munster in 2020 but injuries limited him to just 20 appearances across his four seasons with the province. When one door closed at Munster last season, Leinster moved quickly to snap him up and the double-World Cup winner is quickly settling into his new surroundings.
Snyman looked powerful on debut against Benetton last weekend and raised his game for a blockbuster home debut against Munster. Starting in the second row alongside James Ryan, Snyman had some excellent moments as Leinster raced into a strong first-half lead.
His try just before half time was a textbook Snyman effort, keeping his arms free and as he used that 6’8″ frame to power between two defenders and place the ball beyond the tryline.
Before that score, Snyman had been heavily involved in an impressive Leinster display.
He was dominant in the air, plucking lineout ball with one hand and delivering it cleanly to Jamison Gibson-Park
As Leinster took control in the early stages, Snyman was their go-to option at the lineout. He was the target again at the lineout which led to James Lowe’s opening try in the fifth minute.
Snyman was also the target for a Leinster lineout just before the half hour mark, but this time Jack O’Donoghue got a hand in to bat the ball free.
In open play, Snyman brought a physical edge in contact. An early aggressive carry resulted in Jeremy Loughman being forced off with a blood injury under his eye.
He was powerful at the ruck, this massive clean out on Munster centre Tom Farrell ensuring Andrew Porter could present the ball to Gibson-Park as Leinster rumbled forward again.
As Snyman took charge around the Leinster lineout, his second-row partner Ryan proved a disrupter on Munster ball – with the Springbok’s insights on Munster’s lineout system no doubt proving helpful.
The Ireland international got in ahead of Tadhg Beirne in the air to steal Diarmuid Barron’s first throw of the game after he had been sent in as a HIA replacement for Niall Scannell.
Snyman departed the action 10 minutes into the second half to a mix of cheers and more boos, following an influential display on home debut for his new team.
“He’s not a bad player,” was Graham Rowntree’s simple summation. The Munster boss will no doubt be happy to see the back of a week where Snyman’s name was a constant question.
Leo Cullen went a little further, without offering too much extra detail.
“RG has been fantastic. 50 minutes last week, 50 minutes again today, gets in for a try.
“A mixed response coming off [from the crowd], but yeah, he’s been great since he’s come into the group and hopefully he can kick on now. We’re really pleased.”
Snyman was brought to Leinster to help the province get over the line following three trophyless seasons, and while it’s early days yet, their new recruit is looking the part in his new club colours.
