Another bad weekend for Munster but Van Graan promises a rebuild
Plenty to ponder for Van Graan as Toulouse expose more of Munster’s shortcomings
ABOUT an hour after the final whistle in Thomond Park, we were greeted by the sight of the Munster squad taking up residence on the halfway line. It was a glorious afternoon in Limerick and, with their season pretty much finished, about 20 of the players arrived back out onto the pitch with deck chairs. They formed a circle, stuck a crate of beer in the centre and kicked back for an hour or so.
It was reminiscent of the famous rooftop scene in the Shawshank Redemption when Andy Dufresne and his fellow convicts enjoy a few beers in the sun after they’ve tarred the plate factory roof. A rare moment of contentment in grim times.
‘Hope is a dangerous thing. Hope can drive a man insane,’ is a famous line from that film. Hope is all Munster have at the moment.
Sitting back and taking stock was all those players could do, given the circumstances.
In the space of a week, their entire campaign came crashing down. They will feel they gave a far better account
‘All too often this team reverts to stone-age tactics in the big games’
of themselves against Toulouse after their callow display against Leinster. Still, conceding 40 points at home is never a good look, even against a team as potent as the visitors.
The problem with Munster is you’re never quite sure what you’re going to get. It’s quite an indictment for a head coach who has been in the gig for four years. One week, they shut up shop and rain box kicks down on the opposition. Fast forward seven days and they’re going toe-to-toe with Toulouse in an eight-try thriller.
Speaking after Saturday’s 40-33 loss in Limerick, Keith Wood said he felt the province’s issues were ‘philosophical’ and it’s hard to disagree with the former Garryowen and Munster hooker.
If they want to play a more fluid, all-court game, then they must embrace it. By all means, keep some of the old-school pragmatism but too often this team reverts to stone-age tactics in big games.
Their other big issue is squad depth. Johann van Graan has been quick to remind people that he has used 53 players in this campaign. It’s not far off Leinster’s total of 57. It’s an impressive stat on paper but the key difference is Leo Cullen and Stuart Lancaster are trusting their young players in big games.
A host of Munster’s young guns were rolled out in a dead rubber against Treviso in Thomond Park a few weeks ago, including Thomas Ahern, Diarmuid Barron and Jake Flannery. It’s been a similar story with players like Jack Crowley and Cian Hurley. Apart from Craig Casey and Gavin Coombes, Van Graan feels the next generation are not quite up to it yet. It’s a conservative mindset and it has come back to haunt him in recent weeks. Toulouse’s giant bench of reserve forwards made a telling impact in the second half. Munster’s replacements failed to make anywhere near the same impact. Kevin O’Byrne, James Cronin, John Ryan, Billy Holland and Chris Cloete could not match their counterparts in white jerseys. Casey and Fineen Wycherley did not appear until the final quarter when much of the damage had been done. Imagine if Van Graan had sent Barron, a promising young hooker, Keynan Knox, the Wycherley brothers and Jack O’Sullivan into the fray to deal with Toulouse’s bully boys off the bench? Crowley, Ben Healy and Shane Daly were nowhere to be seen either. There is clearly an issue with succession planning. Consider for a moment that Crowley (21) has played just 33 minutes of senior rugby for Munster this season. Meanwhile, Harry Byrne, who will turn 22 later this month, has clocked up 700 minutes at Leinster in the same period. Both have been hailed as generational talents in the No10 shirt. They are walking very different paths. Comparing Munster and Leinster has become a tiresome exercise, but you just know if Cullen had the same personnel, they would be long tuned up for these big battles by now.
Unless Van Graan starts to trust his younger players then he is facing the prospect of a fifth season without a trophy or tangible signs of progress.
And the forthcoming Rainbow Cup is a perfect chance to begin the rebuilding process. Holland, CJ Stander and JJ Hanrahan have had their farewells. Now, it’s time to invest some time in youth.
The tight five needs plenty of work. Munster desperately need either Knox or Roman Salanoa to emerge as a frontline tighthead.
Both have been recruited from outside the system to solve a problem in this position. It’s not an easy fix in the short term. Aged 21 and 23 respectively, they have the makings of a combination which could transform Munster’s forward unit.
Knox is clearly the stronger scrummager, while Salanoa has offered glimpses of his freakish power around the park in brief cameos for Leinster and Munster in recent years.
As Stephen Archer (33) and Ryan (32) approach the final bend in their careers, it’s time to accelerate the development of these two fledgling tighthead props.
Likewise, Josh Wycherley, who has the makings of a top-class loosehead. The 21-year-old came of age in the epic fightback against Clermont. He is the future and should dovetail with Dave Kilcoyne in the coming years.
Hooker is not such an easy fix. Niall Scannell – who has 20 Ireland caps – and O’Byrne have been both committed and honest operators, but Munster need a more explosive and dynamic option. The performances of Ronan Kelleher and Julien Marchand in recent weeks have shone a light on the gulf in class.
Meanwhile, Rhys Marshall is set to leave in the summer. The promotion of Barron, the 22-yearold hooker from Cashel, to a senior deal recently is a sign that we will see more of him in the coming months.
You would hope that proves to be the case with the rest of the rookies as well.
IN THE wake of yet another unsuccessful European campaign, Munster head coach Johann van Graan struck a defiant tone, insisting the ‘best is yet to come’ from his squad. For the second season in a row, Munster have failed to make the quarter-finals of the European Champions Cup after they fell to a 40-33 defeat by Toulouse. Next season will be Van Graan’s fifth in charge since he succeeded Rassie Erasmus in late 2017 and the province’s fanbase is growing impatient after 10 years without a trophy. Munster have repeatedly failed at the business end of the Pro14 and Europe – losing five semi-finals and a final under Van Graan’s watch – but the South African insisted that this operation is heading in the right direction. ‘The frustrating thing is we’re so close every single time,’ he said following Saturday’s defeat. ‘We gave it our best shot and we came up short. That happens, it’s certainly no excuse from my side. We’ve got to improve again. If you look at the quality of that game, we’ve improved an immense amount over the course of the season. I’m incredibly proud of the 23 boys that played. ‘Unfortunately you pick up certain injuries along the way. You never play with your best team but that’s the same for all teams. ‘From an organisation point of view, from a coaching group, from a players’ point of view, we’re all aligned and we believe that the best is yet to come.’ Meanwhile, Leinster will today issue an injury update ahead of next weekend’s Champions Cup quarter-final meeting with Exeter. James Ryan and Garry Ringrose could be back in contention for the trip to Sandy Park.