The trappings of life as a professional rugby player meant that Christmas was what other people enjoyed while we were grinding away in the gym or on a pitch, eyes focused on an interprovincial that invariably fell on St Stephen’s Day, where a bumper gate could be guaranteed, spectators full of festive spirits, and cheer.
I’d drive down to my folks late on Christmas Eve after training and then back up on Christmas day after dinner. I courageously fought against an internal monologue while sitting at the table that warned against overindulgence. No one wanted to play like a pudding.
Munster host Leinster at Thomond Park next Tuesday and for the first time in years it is a contest that has piqued my interest, primarily based on the respective provinces’ legacy issues from the opening two rounds of the Champions Cup and the fact that the hosts are URC champions and much improved under Graham Rowntree’s watch.
Before that, on Friday night Ulster host Connacht in Belfast, and the two teams enter the contest on the back of contrasting fortunes. The men from the west left their defensive hats at home, conceding 55 points to Saracens. They did score freely but unless they discover how to be more resilient in defence, that imbalance will prevent them from winning elite European matches.
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There would appear to be no national squad restrictions on player availability other than how the four provincial coaches manage their resources over the festive period, which is to be welcomed. It provides an edge, another dimension and will help to fire up Irish selection debates. It’d be great to see Stuart McCloskey and Bundee Aki square up, so too Jacob Stockdale and Mack Hansen.
Leinster are in the process of recalibrating under Jacques Nienaber, trying to solve the riddle of getting a number of players more game time while struggling with injuries. The depth in the back division resources looks paper thin.
Arguably the most pressing concern is identifying their first-choice outhalf and getting him sufficient exposure in a match context to the new patterns. At the moment it is a bit of a merry-go-round at 10, with Harry and Ross Byrne chopping and changing because of injuries, Sam Prendergast getting a couple of minutes here and then there is the present incumbent Ciarán Frawley, who has also doubled up this season as a backup to fullback Hugo Keenan.
Leinster’s first choice, Ross Byrne, currently out with a bicep injury, gives Leinster consistency and stability, is a bedrock for those around him, but needs to be more of a threat playing closer to the gainline. Of more pressing concern in his absence is a big decision to be made about the starting outhalf for the Thomond Park game.
If Leo Cullen and his fellow coaches deem Frawley to be a genuine candidate to play outhalf then he must get time in the position to see if he can consistently deliver at this level. His performance at the weekend in the win over the Sale Sharks at the RDS was reflective of Leinster in general; doing some things well but making simple errors that made life difficult for the home team.
He kicked out on the full, compounded it with another loose kick and then dropped a high ball, all in a short space of time. Game management and his partnership with Jamison Gibson-Park will benefit from time in the match arena. Frawley demonstrated in the La Rochelle win that he possesses character to go with a skill set but he needs time in the hot seat – it is the only way to improve.
Contrast his performance with that of Jack Crowley, who for the previous couple of seasons was moved from pillar to post to accommodate other players. He is now the nailed-on starter at outhalf for Munster.
His tactical kicking against Exeter was top drawer and when the home side looked to take away his time with an aggressive line speed, he found a way to get the ball to space in the wider channels. That can’t be coached, you can be prepped for it, but ultimately it is the player that has to be able to make the right choices in real time.
Despite the fact that Munster’s momentum evaporated in the final quarter at Sandy Park, partially down to an underwhelming impact from the bench and individual errors, Crowley’s composure under pressure was exemplary.
Munster will view Tuesday’s game against Leinster as the perfect outlet to take out some of the frustration that has lingered following the drawn home game against Bayonne and the acute disappointment of that final quarter in Exeter. It won’t harm their chances that within that team context players will want to make a point to the watching Ireland head coach Andy Farrell.
Leinster’s selection is more pick’n’mix at this time of the year rather than travelling to Limerick with a full frontline complement. Players like Scott Penny, Max Deegan, Jack Conan and Ronan Kelleher that haven’t seen too much game time in the last three weeks are likely to come in, while there is an expectation that Joe McCarthy, Thomas Clarkson and Will Connors will also be part of the matchday 23.
Clarkson was a standout in the set piece for Leinster against Sale where he looked extremely comfortable at scrum time, winning a few penalties. He would benefit from backing it up in Limerick to see how he’d fare against Jeremy Loughman. The same point can be made in examining Oli Jager’s credentials, if he had to handle Cian Healy for example.
On as a replacement last weekend against Exeter, Jager appeared to find the going tough at scrum time, at least in the eyes of the referee who didn’t like the picture he “painted” and penalised him. The ferocity of these interprovincial tussles reveals so much about a player’s mental and physical acumen.
While Leinster have plenty of depth to pick from in the pack, they were looking very light in the centre and back three, a fact compounded by Charlie Ngatai’s calf injury against the Sale Sharks. As somebody that suffered continuous calf tears, I can empathise. It would be a real blow for an in-form player if he’s ruled out for any length of time.
Jamie Osborne’s absence (shoulder) is keenly felt while the recurring issue of a lack of new back three players breaking into the senior team is worrisome. Tuesday is a tough fixture for Leinster, who are in slightly unfamiliar territory with the number of injuries, coupled with the relative inexperience in a few key positions.
Munster, too, can point to a dearth of options in key positions like secondrow and also having a pretty full treatment room, but I have a suspicion that they will be a stronger approximation of their first team for this match. One thing that is certain among the uncertainty is that there will be an edge to the contest and that the game will be hard won whoever prevails.
