“United Rugby Championship: Ospreys 0, Munster 23
With challenging weather conditions acting as an opportune backdrop in Cork, Craig Casey stated that Munster took the chance to return to their roots, digging deep and delivering the much-needed performance and bonus-point victory following a surprising defeat in Parma the previous weekend.
Casey, who played excellently as a halfback alongside Jack Crowley, noted that Munster gained control of the match by crafting a strategy for dealing with the predicted poor weather.
“We adjusted our approach knowing the weather conditions. It was a tough week. Reflecting on ourselves paid off as we translated our discussions into actions on the pitch. The weather almost urged us to show some physicality,” he shared.
The triumph, however, came at a cost with injuries to Peter O’Mahony, the captain of Ireland, tighthead Oli Jager, and fullback Mike Haley adding to Munster’s existing series of injuries. Nevertheless, the injuries didn’t hinder them from achieving their tenth consecutive victory at Virgin Media Park, cheered on by a brave crowd of 8293 spectators who endured the extreme weather.
The weather conditions immediately made a difference as Owen Watkin from the Ospreys fumbled Crowley’s excellent start, allowing academy winger Shay McCarthy to seize the opportunity and score within the first 10 seconds. This feat matched Dougie Fife’s score for Edinburgh against Connacht in 2018.
Crowley quickly followed up with a 30-metre penalty, taking the score to 8-0 by the ninth minute. They soon lost Jager due to an injury which resulted in Stephen Archer, aged 36, entering the game earlier than expected and putting on a splendid performance.
Things further deteriorated after 23 minutes when O’Mahony was forced to withdraw due to a possible hamstring injury, opening up an opportunity for Gavin Coombes.
The situation for Ospreys, who were already grappling with the loss of tighthead Tom Botha, worsened as Munster cleverly took a penalty to the right corner after 26 minutes. New entrant from Connacht, Tom Farrell, displayed fantastic skill in the centre, joining the forwards and scoring his first try for Munster.
Could these event mark a shift in the future of rugby?”
The IRFU instituted a trial law last year which lowered the acceptable tackle height in amateur rugby with the aim of improving player safety. The allowed tackle range was reduced from the shoulder down to the sternum. A year has since passed, posing the question of whether the game has become safer, if players have adapted, and if it is now more enjoyable for spectators. Caithriona Yeomans of the IRFU and Sean Skehan from Terenure College RFC elaborate on the impact of these new regulations on local rugby levels. The narrative was put together by John Casey.
During the game, Dewi Lake, the Ospreys hooker, was admonished for sealing off, which allowed Crowley to successfully score a penalty to the left. Despite Ospreys initially strong defence, they failed to resist the constant attack and gifted a penalty. This advantage was used by Casey to skillfully long pass the ball to Calvin Nash scoring his 21st try in 74 matches and putting Munster ahead by 18-0.
An exceptional penalty kick to the left by Dan Edwards created an opportunity for Ospreys. However, their ensuing lineout was obstructed by Munster’s impenetrable defence, orchestrated by the veteran Archer, who won a penalty that was instrumental in clearing their lines.
Again, Munster resisted Ospreys’ advance in the same corner post an Edwards’ penalty. The home side, who had given up 11 tries in the first two games, was evidently resolute to maintain a clean sheet.
At 64 minutes, Munster retaliated and secured the bonus point with a marvellous try when Coombes and McCarthy passed the ball to each other, before Coombes assisted Jack O’Donoghue through the gap, scoring all five points.
Towards the end of the game, Munster suffered a blow when their fullback Haley suffered a leg injury. John Hodnett had to replace him on the wing when Jack Daly came in for Nash in the last few minutes.
In the closing stages, Ospreys applied incredible pressure, forcing and tapping three penalties to the left corner. After Archer was sent off for being offside, Munster was reduced to 14 players in their final round. However, the home defence succeeded in stopping substitute hooker Sam Parry and managed to clear their lines, ending the game at 23-0 in Munster’s favour.
Score chart: McCarthy hit a try at 1 min marking a 5-0 lead; Crowley’s pen at 9 min expanded the lead to 8-0; Farrell’s loaded a try at 26 min stretching it to 13-0; Nash’s try at 40 min took it to 18-0. The score remained the same till half-time. O’Donoghue pitched a try at 64 min, taking the score to 23-0.
Munster squad contained: M Haley, C Nash, T Farrell, B Fitzgerald and S McCarthy along with J Crowley and C Casey, as well as J Loughman, N Scannell, and O Jager. The team was captained by T Beirne and included J Kleyn, P O’Mahony, J Hodnett and J O’Donoghue. The substitutes comprised of S Archer for Jager (14th min), G Coombes for O’Mahony (23rd min), C Murray for Casey (56th min), D Barron for Scannell (56th min), J Ryan for Loughman (64th min), F Wycherley for Kleyn (64th min), T Butler for Haley (71st min), and J Daly for Nash (72nd min). Archer received a yellow card (76 min).
Ospreys’ line-up included: M Nagy, I Hopkins, O Watkin, P Cokanasiga and R Conbeer, alongside D Edwards and R Morgan-Williams. Additionally, S Thomas, D Lake, B Warren, H Sutton, A Beard, J Ratti, J Morgan (as the captain) and M Morris were part of the team. The substitutes were S Parry for Lake (58th min), G Phillips for Thomas (58th min), H Deaves for Morris (58th min), M Iorworth-Scott for Warren (66th min), L Jones for Beard (66th min), K Williams for Hopkins (66th min), L Davies for Morgan-Williams (66th min).
The match was officiated by referee Mike Adamson from Scotland.