The day Thomond Park became rugby theatre of dreams

TODAY, 40 years ago, a rugby field overlooked by a grey council housing estate was transformed into a glowing red theatre of sporting dreams.

Munster’s historic 12-0 triumph over the All Blacks, at Thomond Park, marked what many believe was the greatest moment in Irish rugby.

The 1978 Halloween clash in Limerick lit a firecracker in the heart of the All-Blacks side and smashed their “unbeatable” reputation.

It was the mighty Kiwis’ first defeat to an Irish rugby side.

Brendan Foley, whose late and great son Anthony famously captained Munster to their first Heineken European Cup in 2006, was a member of the Munster hit squad that broke the New Zealanders’ spirit.

All of Limerick had swarmed into the 12,000-capacity stadium, creating a hornets’ nest of support and the Munster players had “no fear” entering the game, Foley remembered. “It was an all-ticket game but when the tickets were gone, they just piled (the fans) in.

“The atmosphere was incredible. There wasn’t great health and safety in those days,” Foley told the Irish Independent.

The Shannon lock played an instrumental role in the only try of the game, scored by Christy Cantillon. When the Cork Con flanker got over the line, the swell threatened to spill on to the pitch. Tony Ward duly converted the conversion and scored two drop goals.

“There was no Ronaldo celebrations,” joked Foley, who had worked as a sales rep on the morning of the match.

“I remember the supporters’ coats and hats being thrown into the air. It took a while to get off the pitch...”

Munster’s heroes will be honoured at a ceremony at Thomond Park in late December.

Day to remember: Brendan Foley at the ‘new’ Thomond Park (above) and (right) in his heyday playing for Ireland; (top, right) his late son Anthony, who followed in his father’s footsteps