Return of Snyman can’t come quick enough for Reds

Munster head coach Johann van Graan with injured Munster player Peter O'Mahony before Saturday's Heineken Champions Cup Round of 16 loss to Toulouse at Thomond Park. Photo: Brendan Moran/Sportsfile

Cian Tracey Twitter Email

April 05 2021 02:30 AM

If ever there was a week in which Munster needed a full deck on board, it was for the last two games, as their lack of power, particularly in the front-five came back to haunt him.

As was the case against Leinster, Munster struggled to cope with Toulouse’s strength up front and when the reinforcements were called upon from the bench, the glaring difference between the best sides in Europe was once again laid bare.

RG Snyman may only have played a few minutes in a red jersey since arriving in Limerick, but his loss should not be under-estimated, particularly against two heavyweight packs like Leinster and Toulouse.

Munster have the ability to bully most teams in the PRO14, yet the step up in quality over the last two defeats has proved that the top end of the Champions Cup is a different ball game altogether.

Snyman’s return from his ACL injury cannot come soon enough, but while the South African lock will undoubtedly beef up the Munster pack, he will not solve the deficiencies in the front-row.

Munster have a group of props and hookers who are as honest as the day is long, but the team is crying out for more of a punch and a dynamic threat.

Last week at the RDS, the Leinster front-row along with their substitutes gave an exhibition of how the role has evolved.

On Saturday at Thomond Park, Cyril Baille, Julian Marchand and Charlie Faumuina offered another reminder of the importance of a front-row being able to perform their basic role, while also having that X-factor.

Munster won’t come up against too many better sides than Leinster and Toulouse, but ultimately this is the level they must aspire to reach.

That’s what made the signing of Jason Jenkins all then more perplexing because if Munster were going to cash in another non-Irish qualified (NIQ) chip, then they would have been better off looking to use it in the front-row instead.

There is no doubt that Jenkins, once capped by South Africa in 2018, will add plenty of ballast to the second-row or back-row, yet Munster are not exactly short on options in either position, even with the impending retirements of CJ Stander and Billy Holland.

Of course, Johann van Graan wants to cover all bases, but with the likes of Rhys Marshall and James Cronin potentially leaving at the end of the season, Munster are running the risk of being caught short at the same stage of next season, unless they address their issues in the front-row. Keynan Knox (21) and Roman Salanoa (23), are two exciting young tighthead prospects, but it’s worth remembering that van Graan has not deemed either prop good enough to start a game of note.

The Rainbow Cup must be used as an opportunity to further blood the likes of Knox and Salanoa.

“We will think about it; it has not been on our radar at all but what I would say is that we are going to keep using our squad,” said Van Graan when asked if he would use the Rainbow Cup to improve the strength in depth of his group.

“We have used 53 players this season. We had two massive games in two weeks, going back to the Benetton game, we played a totally different team.

“We will definitely rotate our squad in the Rainbow Cup, we will look forward to that now,” added the Munster head coach.

Losing Tadhg Beirne to a first-half injury would be a blow to any team, particularly for Munster, who could ill-afford to be without any of their key front-five players.

Hence, why Snyman’s continued absence is all the more costly, but thankfully from a Munster perspective, he is nearing a return to fitness.

“I think it’s a good word ‘might’,” van Graan said with regard to Snyman featuring in the Rainbow Cup over the coming couple of months.

“We will take him week on week. It will be great to have him back on the pitch, but I don’t want to speculate on a return date.”

Despite also missing Peter O’Mahony through injury, Munster were able to cope without their captain as Jack O’Donoghue filled the void well.

It’s unclear how long O’Mahony is facing out, with van Graan providing the following update on the fitness of his skipper, who was forced off in the Guinness PRO14 final defeat to Leinster with what was described as a “deep laceration”.

“He struggled,” van Graan added. “We gave him all the time that we could. Pete is one of the toughest players that I have ever coached. He really wanted to play in this game, but he wasn’t close to playing this game. Look, it is a pretty deep cut that he picked up last week, so again I don’t want to speculate on it, it might be a week, it might be three weeks, it might be longer. There is no specific timeline on it.”