Munster 33 Aironi 17:MUNSTER COACH Tony McGahan was more than satisfied with his side's performance as they eventually ground down Italian newcomers Aironi Rugby on Saturday night.
Niall Ronan (2), Tony Buckley and Felix Jones were all among the tries sealing an opening day bonus point – a first for Munster in the Magners League.
It wasn’t always pretty and the home crowd were at times left frustrated by a lineout which failed to function efficiently in the first half and a catalogue of unforced errors which disrupted momentum.
All told, however, McGahan was delighted with the outcome against what was very much an unknown quantity.
He said: “We’d have taken any result at the beginning. It was their first game of the Magners League and we knew they would come fired up.
“They’re very indicative of Italian rugby. When they have their heads up and the ball in their hands, their body language is strong and they can play with the best of anyone.
“So we really needed to make sure we controlled field position and controlled the ball.
“We had some inaccurate kicking which took the momentum away in the first half but in the second we knuckled down to the task and showed some good pace to do what we were trying to do. Subsequently we were able to get a few tries.”
Captain Denis Leamy echoed his coach’s comments, explaining in more detail the difficulty posed by the Aironi forwards.
“Their front five is very good,” he said. “They have over 240 caps in international rugby, which says a lot for them.
“I think you could compare it to the Italian national team. They were very physical, tough men.
“We didn’t know a whole lot about them coming into it but those of us who have played against the national side know that they are always very strong up front – their scrum and lineout are always good. That’s what they were like tonight.”
Leamy acknowledged that Munster’s play was at times scrappy, but he was quick to highlight the positives also, and singled out prop forward Tony Buckley for yet another powerful display.
“That’s what we’re trying to get from Mushy, to get him on the ball. He’s an awesome ball carrier, so the more time we can get the football into his hands and get him crossing the gain line the better for us.
“He takes some stopping, and that’s what we want. He gets the crowd going, he gets us going, and he gets us on the front foot. I think his scrummaging has improved and he’s really looking a very good player these days.”
Meanwhile, Aironi backrower Nick Williams cut a slightly disconsolate figure after the game, frustrated it seemed by his new surroundings.
Having signed from Munster in the close season, he admitted that he was finding it difficult to curb his ambition. “It’s kind of hard,” said Williams. “You go from Munster which is a well-known team all around the world, to a new team in Aironi.
“They have said they want to finish mid-table and they’ll be happy with that. Coming from Munster, you never lack vision, and you always want to finish near the top or thereabouts.”
“It’s a big mental thing for the Italians. Our speech at half-time came from the coach and the captain and they were saying that we could actually win this.
“And I was thinking that if you’re actually thinking that in your head then you’re already half way towards losing. You should know that you’re going to win.
“Then we got a yellow card early on in the second half and Munster being Munster they just demolished us.”
MUNSTER: F Jones (S Deasy 78); D Howlett, J Murphy, S Tuitupou (D Barnes 76), I Dowling; P Warwick, P Stringer (D Williams 75); W du Preez (M Horan 55) , D Varley (D Fogarty 55) , T Buckley (J Hayes 55), M O'Driscoll (A Quinlan 64), B Holland; D Ryan, N Ronan (P O'Mahony 45-53, 75), D Leamy (capt).
AIRONI RUGBY: J Laharrague; G Rubini (G Pizarro 67), R Quartaroli, D Des Fountain, G Toniolatti; L Mercier, T Tebaldi (M Wilson 75); A De Marchi (A De Marchi 62), F Ongaro (R Santamaria 67), S Perugini; C Del Fava (M Bortolami 54), Q Geldenhuys; J Erasmus (L Milani 50-60), G Krause, N Williams.
Referee: Graham Knox (SRU).
