That is why nobody wants to leave Leinster, because Munster don’t have the mentality to match them

Neil Francis

Johann van Graan has failed to develop the talent he clearly has at his disposal

Jack Conan of Leinster catches the ball ahead of Conor Murray of Munster during the Guinness PRO14 final at the RDS Arena in Dublin. Photo by David Fitzgerald/Sportsfile

March 27 2021 10:28 PM

In the movie Trainspotting, the crew always seemed to retire to one of their kind who was both a heroin user and a dealer. His nickname was ‘Mother Superior’ because he had the longest habit.

If you say winning is a habit, then Leinster, certainly over the last dozen years, have got into it. Knowing how to win is more important than recognising how not to lose. This Leinster side were never going to lose yesterday. I have a feeling this match was won well before kick-off.

This was probably the most demoralising loss for Munster in the way that they had a heightened sense of hope. This was the best team they had been able to field in a long time.

But there is nobody — not even RG Snyman — who you could say would have made an appreciable difference yesterday. I think 29 missed tackles tells you that Munster, if they are brutally honest, never really believed they were going to win.

A margin of 10 points tells you nothing. It was an unbridgeable difference between the sides. Leinster butchered four try-scoring opportunities in the first half.

They were held up over the line three times as well during the first 40 and a similar number in the second half. It could easily have been a 20-point difference at half time.

The one positive thing you can say is that Munster coaxed an 80-minute performance out of Leinster. The side in blue never let up and that is the only compliment you can pay to the men in red, who were a million miles away from winning this game.

The question must be asked: Where are Munster going and how much longer can their head coach stay in his job?

Johann van Graan has put a handbrake on this Munster side in terms of being able to truly express themselves.

There is a stultifying lack of creativity in the side and the skill levels haven’t improved to where they need to be to get past semi-finals. Being in contention is all fine and dandy but Munster have never looked like winning any of the big matches they have taken part in.

There is no question there is talent, but they have not been given licence to express themselves.

There were loads of cameos and there were quite a number of important head to heads, all of which were emphatically won by the men in blue.

The one that gives us the greatest idea of where the two teams are was the clash between Joey Carbery and Ross Byrne. Yes, it is true that it may take Carbery until next season to get back to what we expect from him.

That said, Tadhg Furlong was out for a year and it took one match to show his quality. Leinster targeted Carbery and they used Robbie Henshaw to exploit this to the cruellest degree.

On form, Henshaw is probably the best centre playing rugby currently and the angles and the cutbacks that Leinster used to have him running at Carbery’s inside shoulder always paid dividends.

Carbery did a number of things well during the game but he got swallowed up in that unforgiving press and mechanical line speed that Leinster deploy. There simply was no space to try and control the game.

Ross Byrne, on the flip side, played the match on one leg and thrived because those inside him had done such damage to Munster in the tight exchanges.

That is why nobody wants to leave Leinster, because Munster don’t have the mentality, the energy or the game plan to match Leinster.

Former Leinster players now playing for Munster recognise this and somebody like Tadhg Beirne, who was a sensation during the Six Nations, gave a limp performance borne out of frustration which was based on the fact that the men in blue have a vastly superior game plan and a far better notion of how to win.

Long before the game was over Beirne, who never gave up, could see what was happening and could only admire the emotional detachment of Leinster as they went about disarming Munster.

All across the park Leinster won the individual battles. Gavin Coombes had a big day and was Munster’s best player, yet he could hardly hold a light to Rhys Ruddock, who had one of those games where you wonder why he hasn’t got 70 or 80 caps. Although CJ Stander made 20 tackles in a big defensive effort, Jack Conan has so many more gifts than just carrying the ball into contact.

Conan’s athleticism and ball-carrying in loose situations were, as ever, exemplary. Injury has not been his friend and Stander might acknowledge that too — one of the South African’s prime qualities being durability.

Once again, Devin Toner produced a big performance. It was a criminal selection to pick Jean Kleyn over Toner for the 2019 World Cup. It is true that the South African made a number of big hits during the first half but what else can he do?

The game can be summed up by the last five minutes.

Munster had a scrum five metres back from their own 10-metre line and the ball made its way out to Andrew Conway on the right wing. Conway got to the halfway line before Munster’s skills under pressure deserted them yet again. JJ Hanrahan misfielded Craig Casey’s pass and as they slung their own ball further behind the gain line, Henshaw came up and stopped Chris Farrell just short of Munster’s 22. Munster gave up and kicked the ball away, but Casey put it out on the full.

Munster have regressed under Van Graan and if it is a dry day in Thomond Park next week Toulouse have the personnel and the capacity to cause them serious damage.

Stephen Larkham is also in the crosshairs as Munster labour — they still can’t pass under pressure. A win next week against Toulouse is not out of the question but if it happens it will only prolong the agony.

Munster should be an awful lot better than this.