DESPITE Munster’s late loss to Racing Metro, an injury to Ronan O’Gara and slow ticket sales, the return home to Thomond Park is something all the players will be looking forward to. As Munster get set to face Edinburgh this Sunday 21 (kick off at 12.45pm), hooker Damien Varley cannot wait for the game to kick off.
“Playing at Thomond Park in the Heineken Cup is something very special for all players. The noise before the game. The people shouting at you and the general feeling around Limerick is indescribable. The excitement in the squad is really building this week. We will be like kids on Christmas morning. We cannot wait to get going”
The enthusiasm of the players under the new regime is clear for all to see. However, with three defeats in a row and 82 points conceded, can Munster fans expect to see the same new gameplan with a tighter defence? Varley thinks they can.
“I don’t think that the poor defence showings have been a byproduct of our new attacking gameplan. Being honest, we have not covered ourselves in glory in terms of defence, but they are little things than can be fixed. We don’t look at just the results. We look at things in the game we can change. Things like making sure we take our chances better and also, making sure we don’t allow our opponents off the hook or allow them to get out of trouble easily, these are somethings that we can work on. The positives are always there, we just have to work on the negatives too”
Munster face an Edinburgh side who were humiliated last weekend by Saracens, 45 – 0. Will Munster face the backlash?
“We don’t really read into any results bar our own,” responded Varley. “We know how good a side Edinburgh can be and will be this weekend. From playing them twice every year in the Rabo, we know what to expect from Michael Bradley’s side this weekend. It will be a real tough encounter.”
Last weekend’s loss to Racing has been blamed in some press quarters on Conor Murray alone for his late mistake. Varley is quick to come to his Garryowen and Munster teammate’s defence.
“We win and lose as a team. One error is never the reason you win or lose over 80 minutes. That is the great thing about this bunch. We are all united for one cause and that is Munster. Just like the fans, we all want to win together.”
