THIS week is Magners League week five for Munster. A normal week for everyone else in the sporting World, but not for Munster rugby fans. Magners League week five has been highlighted on every Magners League wall chart and diary since the fixtures came out. This Saturday night, Munster take on arch rivals Leinster in the RDS. The derby has grown in recent years to become one of the marquee fixtures in World rugby.
The two sides will be star studded for the event and those who are lucky enough to be travelling are in for a real rugby treat.
Ahead of this week’s match, Munster find themselves at relatively full strength. The win last weekend over the Dragons was secured without the services of O Connell, Earls and Wallace to name but a few. This weekend’s team, to be announced on Friday, will be more or less the same side that will face Northampton the following week in the Heineken Cup opener. The only possible doubts for Munster this week are Barry Murphy (ankle) and Alan Quinlan (neck). Lions captain O Connell, Lions players Wallace and Earls are likely to return and play some part. Niall Ronan, Peter Stringer, Jerry Flannery and Ian Dowling are also available for selection. (Mouth watering yet?) Throw in the return of Paul Warwick and you can see why Munster will be raring to go come Saturday night.
The selection headache is a tough but welcome one for head coach Tony Mc Gahan. There was always going to come a time when Munster were going to be at full strength and this week seems to be it. What a week it is too. Last season Munster managed the Magners League double over Leinster, but that mattered little as hearts were broken by the soon to be European Champions in “that” semi final.
Is there a sense of revenge hanging in the air? Not so according to Munster manager Shaun Payne. “These games are always going to be massive. There has to be winners and losers but you need to focus on the next game and not dwell on the last. The two previous semi finals have been epic encounters and I am sure that this weekend will be no different”. Sentiments echoed this week by returning Aussie Paul Warwick. “These games are the real big ones. Derby games always are. It is going to be tight and we know as a squad that 100 per cent effort is required to even compete with Leinster. In relation to last season’s game, that is in the past now and we have to move on. We have lost big games before and have always come back so this time will be no different”
Without trying to get inside Mc Gahan’s head, the team for this weekend will be a hard one to pick. Horan and Buckley did nothing wrong on Sunday last, and neither did hat trick hero Nick Williams. The backline is anyone’s guess, with cover in all positions going as deep as three players for each shirt.
I wouldn’t be me though without giving it a guess, so here is my team for Saturday. Horan, Flannery, Hayes, O Connell, O Callaghan, Leamy, Ronan, Wallace, O Leary, O Gara, De Villiers, Mafi, Howlett, Hurley, Earls.
In the past I may have attacked the Leinster side before a game. Is it that I have matured? Is it that I have learned my lessons? or is it that I am running out of space?
Let’s see what happens. Munster had their fingers burned last time out, still though, time to put our hands back in the fire. After all, that is where the trophies are forged. Verdict: Munster to win on Saturday.
To add some balance, here is some Leinster squad news and quotes. Brian O’Driscoll is added to the panel that defeated Edinburgh 21-19 last weekend and is one of 13 Ireland internationals named in the extended squad for Saturday’s interprovincial derby. Head coach Michael Cheika had these words for the Limerick Post this week.
“The two matches against Munster (and the three which can happen which are good!) are the highlights of your season. For me as a foreigner who has come to understand the rivalry, it’s a real classic. You don’t find these types of rivalries in many other places. What we have to is break the tit-for-tat nature of this encounter. They win and then we win, we win two and then they win two. If we want to be successful on Saturday then we’ll need to break that cycle because I want us to be the team that’s mentally angrier and wants to come back and win the match even though we won the last time. Last time means nothing.”
Setanta Sports will broadcast the big Leinster v Munster Magners League clash exclusively live on this Saturday October 3rd.
To celebrate this fantastic sporting battle of the provinces, Setanta Sports is also giving rugby fans a chance to predict the final score of the game and, by doing so, to be in with a chance to win a trip to Ireland’s next 6 Nations game in Paris. The prize includes two night’s accommodation, flights, transfers and match tickets to the game for four people.
To be in with a chance to win the prize, you can enter by text, email or online. Go to www.setanta.com/battle for further details and competition terms and conditions.
