Bourgoin 17 Munster 18: With sweet victories there is an element of many things, some of them not sweet: drama to the wire; overwhelming relief at the whistle, writes Johnny Watterson in Bourgoin.
Also a team that knows its way when it comes to scraping ugly in front of 9,000 raucous hostiles and one that can dig itself out of trouble in adverse conditions. Munster can do these things and showed it in their first match of this Heineken European Cup competition.
But struggling to hit the sort of form which has cast them as possible winners and now a Webb Ellis ball with an elusive "sweet spot" and a flight pattern that takes 10 metres off Ronan O'Gara's kicking distance and coach Alan Gaffney realises he has at least reached a decent starting point with the team. But to travel to somewhere like Kingsholm in Gloucester and expect similar rewards, Munster need 30 per cent more. At least that's how Gaffney sees it.
"If I'd to say a percentage, I'd say we're at 70. We are a long way off," he said.
Too early yet for self-recrimination though. Gaffney and his side pulled it off. Rusty, wayward, not that creative in the back line but exceptional up front and in the lineouts, where Paul O'Connell and Donncha O'Callaghan dominated. The coach's broad smile was because Munster had toughed it out, relentlessly ground them down and won the match deservedly. Distinctly impressive but no, not easy on the eye.
"It wasn't the prettiest of wins but it's only their (Munster's) second game back," said Gaffney. "We were confident at half-time. We thought we were the better side and created the more opportunities." That was probably true despite the fact that it was Bourgoin hands in the freezing fog of Stade Pierre Rajon that scored the only try of the match, their impressive French international back-row Sebastien Chabal bulldozing his way in off third-phase ball after 56 minutes.
From before and after that it was left to the kickers, O'Gara landing six penalties despite a decidedly shaky start that saw even his drop-off at the beginning of the match pulled back as it failed to go the required 10 metres. The new Webb Ellis ball should continue to be a talking point - condemned as having a sweet spot smaller than the familiar Gilbert brand. Much of the kicking went astray apart from O'Gara's set pieces and some wonderful opportunism from Bourgoin full back Alexandre Peclier, which earned him two drop goals in a three-minute spell just before half-time.
"Jeremy Staunton in the first half couldn't kick the ball more than 20 metres," said the coach. "Obviously a lot of sides have been complaining about this ball but we won't (complain) too much as Rog (O'Gara) kicked six out of seven. But with the ball we had last year, he would have attempted goals from the halfway line but he won't even think about it now. I don't know what we can do. I have no doubt that every team will complain about the ball.
"We'd a situation where we'd two balls to train with, which we had been given some time ago. But obviously if you've a squad of 40 players, it is hard to play with two balls if you are involved in another competition (Celtic League) with something entirely different."
The game, though lacking continuity, ultimately conjured up a thrilling end as Bourgoin led 17-12 going into the final quarter, the first time in the match there had been more than one kick between the teams. But with O'Gara landing his fifth penalty for 17-15 and Rob Henderson coming off the bench to earn another kick for his outhalf 10 metres inside Bourgoin territory, it was there the match fell the Irish way.
It was Henderson's first competitive charge for Munster since he injured his bicep just two days before the World Cup squad was announced and as well as giving O'Gara a chance to put Munster ahead, the Lions player's return to the Munster centre was a positive element in itself.
So it was with Munster leading 18-17 in the final minutes that their disciplined aggression truly showed. Repelling phase after phase with Bourgoin declining to kick for position in case referee Nigel Whitehouse might blow for full time, Munster held, once again firing their reputation as a team that knows how to and is willing to battle when it's needed.
Scoring sequence: 4 mins A Peclier pen 3-0; 5 mins R O'Gara pen 3-3; 35 mins O'Gara pen 3-6; 37 mins Peclier drop gl. 6-6; 40 mins Peclier drop gl. 9-6; 41 mins O'Gara pen 9-9; Half-time 9-9. 47 mins O'Gara pen 9-12; 56 mins S Chabal try 14-12; 60 mins Peclier pen 17-12; 62 mins O'Gara pen 17-15; 69 mins O'Gara pen 17-18.
BOURGOIN: A Peclier; G Esterhuizen, D Glenn, F Fritz, JF Coux; B Boyet, C Laussucq; W Bonet, JP Bonrepaux, P Peyron, J Pierre, P Pape, A Bias, S Chabal, P Raschi (capt). Replacements: A Forest for Esterhuizen half-time; J Bouic for Peyron 49 mins.
MUNSTER: J Staunton; J Kelly, M Mullins, J Holland, S Payne; R O'Gara, P Stringer; M Horan, F Sheahan, J Hayes, P O'Connell, D O'Callaghan, J Williams (capt), D Wallace, A Foley. Replacements: R Henderson for Holland 66 mins; M Lawlor for Staunton 70 mins.
Referee: N Whitehouse (England).
