Porter primed for derby day ‘rumble in the jungle’
Reds out to make mark on home turf
LEINSTER are braced for another ‘rumble in the jungle’ ahead of tonight’s eagerlyanticipated Pro14 derby clash with Munster in Thomond Park. The visitors are targeting a recordequalling fifth consecutive victory over their arch rivals, their last loss to Munster occurring in December 2018 — a tempestuous festive encounter during which James Lowe was sent off while fellow Leinster stars Cian Healy and Tadhg Furlong both spent time in the sin-bin in the midst of a fiery first-half at the famous Limerick venue. And Andrew Porter — one of 21 internationals in Leinster’s matchday squad — is ready for another explosive meeting with a fullyloaded Munster side, which will also serve as a final Ireland trial as head coach Andy Farrell prepares to name his squad for the Six Nations on Monday. ‘Two years ago when we played down there it was a rumble in the jungle,’ said the Leinster prop. ‘It’s a huge game for both teams, the Six Nations is coming up around the corner so everyone on both sides will be looking to put their best foot forward for selection. ‘It’s a huge rivalry, it’s great to be able to be a part of that. ‘It’s incredible to still be able to play now given the circumstances.’
EARLIER this week, Damian de Allende was asked if there was a South African equivalent of the Munster v Leinster rivalry back in his homeland.
‘I would say the Stormers against the Bulls,’ came the reply from the Munster midfielder.
The Bulls are the gnarly, hardnosed operators from Pretoria, who have produced teak-tough forwards like Bakkies Botha, Victor Matfield and Pierre Spies as well as canny half-backs like Fourie du Preez and Morne Steyn.
The Stormers – de Allende’s old club – are the sleek outfit on the Western Cape who have produced attacking phenomenons such as Bryan Habana, Cheslin Kolbe and Jaque Fourie. Sound familiar? For a long time, that was the template for Ireland. Munster would supply the forwards and tactical generals while Leinster added the vim and verve with their talented array of backs.
The Grand Slam-winning class of 2009 was the perfect case in point. The Irish team in Cardiff contained seven Munstermen in the pack (Ulster’s Stephen Ferris the sole outsider), Tomás O’Leary and Ronan O’Gara pulling the strings, with Leinster providing the stardust out wide in the form of Gordon D’Arcy, Brian O’Driscoll, Luke Fitzgerald and Rob Kearney. Tommy Bowe — another lone Ulsterman in a sea of blue and red — will be around tonight, albeit in a different role: fronting the TV coverage.
The make-up of that Ireland squad was a sign of the times. Munster were the dominant province with two Heineken Cups to their name. They had the leaders, culture and coaching nous to stay one step ahead of their rivals.
But three months after their heroics for Ireland in the Millennium Stadium, the stars of Munster and Leinster would meet in a fateful Heineken Cup semi-final at Croke Park. Things would never be the same after Leinster’s triumph — the power balance tipped in their favour and it has remained so ever since.
Save for their Celtic League title over their arch rivals in 2011, Munster have watched on as Leinster stockpiled domestic and European trophies.
Not only that, but Leinster have since become bulk suppliers to the national team and have been producing so much talent that fringe players have been spilling into the other provinces.
We could very well have an allLeinster pack by the time Ireland land in France for the 2023 World Cup, with a front eight comprising Porter, Kelleher, Furlong; Baird, Ryan; Doris, Leavy, Conan.
CJ Stander, Tadhg Beirne and Dave Kilcoyne would have something to say about that, but few would argue with Andy Farrell if he leaned on the Leinster lads.
The stats across the last 10 years don’t lie. Leinster have dominated this fixture, winning 20 of the last 27 encounters. There have been acts of defiance, such as Munster’s victory at Thomond Park in a fiery festive meeting in 2018; a solitary win in eight recent clashes. Johann van Graan’s side felt they weren’t far away in two losses last season, but, crucially, Leinster had the killer instinct in both games, when it mattered.
A lot has changed in five months, however. Munster’s coaching team has finally settled down after years or upheaval. Stephen Larkham and Graham Rowntree are leaving their imprints on the squad with notable improvements in the set piece, breakdown and attack. Even van Graan — unfailingly polite and cautious in his media dealings — seemed bullish earlier this week. He has rolled out all the big guns for Munster while the visitors have reciprocated. Seeing two fully-loaded matchday 23s has been a rarity in these inter-pros, but there is lots at stake. Whatever about provincial bragging rights, a victory for Munster here would put a severe dent in Leinster’s Pro14 title hopes. They may have games in hand but Ulster’s five-point lead could get tricky to eat into, given that the Conference leaders are out of Europe and are fully focused on the league. Crucially, Ulster will have the likes of Marcell Coetzee, Alby Mathewson and Ian Madigan keeping the show going with the Test frontliners away. They aren’t going to drop a lot of points.
There are also Ireland places up for grabs tomorrow evening — the game will serve as a last audition before Farrell names his Six Nations squad on Monday.
The backrow battle, in particular, will be fascinating. Although Stander, Peter O’Mahony and Caelan Doris finished the Autumn Nations Cup as the preferred Ireland combination, it is a far from set in stone. Rhys Ruddock is hunting an international recall as is Will Connors, who fought his way into contention last year. There’s also Jack Conan and Josh van der Flier on the bench.
Gavin Coombes is pushing hard for a maiden Ireland call-up after his breakout season on the blindside flank for Munster.
Both sides look evenly matched across the park. The grim forecast could make this into another battle of attrition and both teams have tooled up accordingly. If that proves to be the case than Munster can edge it.
That would be quite the statement in the first derby of this new decade. Will it be another 10 years of Blue dominance or a Red redemption? The first chapter begins this evening.