STOP THE ROT Munster boss has questions to answer after Cardiff humiliation
“Van Graan has
to light a fire under his side” “Carbery must show as much focus as flash”
JOHANN Van Graan has been in the Munster job for 10 months. Parachuted in, midseason, after fellow South African Rassie Erasmus bolted for the homeland, Van Graan made a favourable first impression by ‘not reinventing the wheel’ and steering the province to the last four in both the Champions Cup and Pro 14.
Expectations were then heightened going into the new campaign on the back of notable additions to the squad in Joey Carbery, Tadhg Beirne, Arno Botha and Mike Haley, and a declared intent to embrace a more expansive style.
However, Munster’s dismissals in Glasgow and, most unsettlingly, in Cardiff last weekend have awakened doubts about the Van Graan plan ahead of a season-defining series of matches. It is still early days, but there are already questions that need answering. Urgently.
What has happened to Munster’s fabled intensity?
A touchy subject, as Reggie Corrigan discovered when he quizzed Munster captain Peter O’Mahony about intensity following their loss to Leinster in Lansdowne Road last October. Corrigan was off-beam on that occasion, Munster had not been lacking commitment in their 23-17 defeat, they were simply outplayed by a better team. But there would definitely have been a case to answer based on the first half in Scotstoun or for large periods of their 37-13 humiliation in the Arms Park — and Munster must know it themselves. Having lost their first three matches by an aggregate of five points, the home side were worked up into a frenzy last Friday and Munster could not live with them.
Indeed, Cardiff’s ferocity was reminiscent of Munster’s feral desire when they ripped into a heavily favoured Glasgow side the day after Anthony Foley’s funeral two years ago.
Although Munster do not have a monopoly on intensity, it has been an inherent driving force for the province dating back to the amateur era — a declaration that no matter how good the opposition think they are, they will be met head on.
Defence is the area of most concern, Munster have been conceding ‘soft’ tries this season, even in their heavy home wins over understrength Cheetahs and Ospreys outfits.
Under Van Graan, JP Ferreira has come in to replace highly regarded Jacques Nienaber as defensive overseer and he has a lot to prove based on the evidence thus far.
It is safe to expect a marked improvement against Ulster in Limerick this weekend but, with trips to Leinster and Exeter coming up, Van Graan has to up the intensity levels away from home also if Munster hope to succeed.
Is there an identity issue?
Possibly. Munster have 20 players in their squad who hail from outside the province (21, if you include short-term Kiwi signing Alby Mathewson) and it is easily the most diverse group to have represented the province.
When you factor in that forwards coach Jerry Flannery is the only homegrown member of the senior coaching team, that is a lot of outside voices for a side that has always placed a premium on pride in their roots.
Like soccer, club rugby has moved towards gathering talent from a wide array of sources (witness the Top14) but Leinster’s ongoing excellence with a group produced almost entirely from within gives them a clear identity to draw strength from. The ‘power of the parish’ is something Munster have historically leaned on.
Can Joey Carbery properly control a game?
We still do not know for sure. There is no questioning the outhalf’s talent and he has shown flashes of that genius in all his outings thus far. However, his tendency to run back on his pass rather than fix defenders first is putting pressure on those outside him while his kicking, out of hand and from the tee, has not been accurate enough to properly boss matches the way Munster, and Ireland, need him to.
There is mitigation in that Carbery is still only finding his feet in terms of regular starts at 10 — and he was definitely not helped by Munster’s forwards being beaten up in Cardiff — but from here on in, he needs to show as much focus as flash.
So it’s looking grim, then?
Not necessarily. There is considerable talent in the squad, with Conor Murray and Chris Farrell still to return from injury, and undeniably more depth than before. The key is Van Graan discovering how to mould that talent into a cohesive, tactical force while lighting the fire that went out in Cardiff.
Munster simply have to beat Ulster in Thomond Park on Saturday, follow it up with a big performance against Leinster in Dublin and then come away with something from Exeter in their opening Champions Cup game.
A big ask, but the Cardiff humiliation could turn out to be the kick-start Munster’s season needed — as long as Carbery, and Van Graan, start showing who’s boss.