MUNSTER HAVE LOST two games all season, they top their Heineken Cup group and the Pro12, they have secured contract extensions with three of their most important players, the next generation are starting to come through, and yet there remains a lingering sense the province hasn’t progressed since last season.
Rob Penney himself has been as critical as many of the pundits, famously questioning the desire of the players after the Edinburgh game. His public reproach raised eyebrows at the time, but they haven’t lost a game since. Coaches are judged on performances, player satisfaction, player progression, media skills, and style, but mainly on results and trophies.
Judging by Conor Murray, Donnacha Ryan and Tommy O’Donnells’ new contracts, the players are happy. Performances have been patchy, and handling skills are still clearly an issue, but Zebo, Murray, Earls, James Cronin, Tommy O’Donnell, Cathal Sheridan and Peter O’Mahony have all arguably improved since the New Zealander took over in 2012. The team as a whole is in a better place too – lest we forget the insipid 45 -10 defeat to the Ospreys which ended Tony McGahan’s reign.
Having taken over at that low ebb, Penney is trying to make big and obvious changes. And he has the eyes of many former players on him, worrying he might destroy everything they built. He has come from a different culture and is trying to convince successful players to stick with his new plan. Now that he’s getting wins to back up what appeared to be a one-off against Harlequins last season, he should be starting to earn their trust.
Munster don’t have the players to dominate the best sides every week, and there is still a niggling sense that they lack bulk and ball carriers, but that goes for 95% of the teams in Europe. In all the analysis of the Tony McGahan and Rob Penney eras, the assumption was that the previous generations were flawless.
The truth is Munster were always masters at hiding any weaknesses, playing games on their terms, and somehow finding a way to win.
They have, for example, never had a fully satisfactory centre partnership for any great length of time. Trevor Halstead, John Kelly, Rua Tipoki, Lifemi Mafi, Mike Mullins, Sam Tuitupou, Barry Murphy, Jean de Villiers, Rob Henderson and others all briefly flourished, but rarely was there a truly settled combination, or a generation defining partnership. In the time all those players have come and gone, Leinster have effectively had just two men filling those positions, Gordon D’Arcy and Brian O’Driscoll.
This is the province, in the good times, that fielded Tomás O’Leary at outside centre for a Heineken Cup Quarter final (2006), and Denis Leamy at inside centre for a Pro12 match — Munster won both those games.
The 2000-2009 generation also had a habit of struggling in the easier ties, and then rolling out the magnificence when the bigger games came around. It happened so often that it almost looked deliberate, but they were forgiven because they had established names, and trophies.
The last minute win over Perpignan reminded everybody of the wins in France in the early 2000′s, and though there is no tangible connection between the two eras, history matters.
The colour of your jersey doesn’t improve your performance, but if your’e convinced of its significance, and if that sense of history makes players feel they represent something bigger than themselves, then you have a logical reason why JJ Hanrahan’s sidestep is in some way connected to John Kelly’s fourth try against Gloucester and O’Gara’s away to Toulouse, and all the other great moments.
They don’t yet look like a team that will win the Heineken Cup, but they do appear to be regaining that sense of entitlement, that ability to do something special when required, and this time round it was the younger men – JJ Hanrahan, and Tommy O’Donnell – providing the drama.
For all those in the province trying to build something new, that counts for a lot.
Skills and centres don’t come from Penny, schools n clubs have to emphasise them. The reason why Leinster have the same centre partnership for so long is they are not producing them either.
Great point.
Is the reason Leinster have had the same center partnership for years not because they were both Lions quality centers? I highly doubt BOD and D’arcy were selected week in, week out because Leinster weren’t producing centers.
Eoin, the number of times they were selected and continue to be selected against poor teams proves the lack of depth. Also the fact that Keith Earls and Tommy Bow have been suggested by many to become centres protrays the limited options for Ireland
I don’t doubt that. It’s very evident that Ireland, in general, struggle for centers. I just don’t agrre with what Dan’s saying about Leinster having the same center partnership for years is due to the fact they weren’t producing centers. I’d believe they were the center partnership for years because they were the best two for the job . Maybe I’m just reading it wrong!
It was the 2011-12 season that they lost to Ulster in the H Cup, last season they got as far as the semis.
I like this article because it hints at how special jj’s try was for a lot of people down south, for whom rugby matters deeply. to be fair, there really hasn’t been much hyperbole devoted to it, this far.
There is something special happening in Munster. The younger lads like O’Donnell, Murray, Coughlan and Killer have replaced the older lads. Wallace, Stringer, Quinlan and The Bull. Maybe not like for like but just as influential to today’s squad. We still have that big leader in O’Connell, the young guns like Earls and Zebo give us that bit of flare required to do special things. The future is well and truly red! When these young players realise that the jerseys they’re wearing had been donned by some of the games greatest players, it automatically requires them to give 110%. Anything less isn’t good enough for them personally. That’s what makes Munster. That’s what makes these players better. It matters even more when going into a game as underdogs. They’ll think of players gone before that played out of their skins in years gone by and they’ll want to emulate that. There’s been big shoes to fill and we’ve done a good job filling them so far.
We’ll see where they are in the knock out stages, think they’re a long way off still but hope I’m wrong.
For 15 years on the trot , Munster will make the playoffs – unlike other wannabes !!
Well said Conor.
Hi troll! Which wannabes are you referring to?
2010-11 season they failed to make playoffs .
Inaccurate report that is based on his own personal opinion don’t quit the day job buddy those toilets won’t clean themselves
You sir, sound like a right dick. It is an opinion piece. Get over it.
You my friend are just a duck with feet!!!
You my friend sound like a dick with feet!!!