THE provincial rivals meet in the Guinness Pro 14 final as Munster seek a first piece of silverware since 2011 against four in a row chasing Leinster.
Munster secured qualification to this Saturday’s Guinness Pro 14 final nearly three weeks ago after defeating interpro rivals Connacht 20-17 in Thomond Park.
In their final pair of regular season games, Munster shuffled their pack but produced two more wins to finish off the season with six consecutive wins.
Awaiting them in the final is Leinster who cemented their place in the final just a day after the Thomond Park outfit.
After weeks of waiting, the sides will meet in the RDS Arena this Saturday at 5pm in their first final clash in a decade.
Despite the ten year absence since their last final meeting, they are no strangers to one another in the knockout stages of the competition in recent years. The sides have met in the semi-finals of the competition in each of the past three seasons.
In 2018, Leinster had a slender 16-15 win in the RDS and repeated the trick 12 months later with a 24-9 win the same venue.
In September of 2020, they met behind closed doors in the Aviva with Leinster claiming a 13-3 triumph en route to collecting a third successive title.
Their previous final encounter came in 2011 as Munster claimed the then Magners League by virtue of a 19-9 win in Thomond Park.
On that day, Doug Howlett and Keith Earls both dotted down with Ronan O’Gara adding the extras.
Earls and Conor Murray are the only players to feature that day that will be in contention for this years showpiece game.
Billy Holland was a member of that Munster squad and will be playing in his final domestic game should he appear in the final after he announced his retirement at the season’s end.
It will also be CJ Stander’s final Pro 14 game after he announced his retirement just over a week ago.
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That 2011 victory was Munster’s last piece of silverware having lost in two domestic finals in the interim.
In 2015, they lost out 31-13 to Glasgow and were on the wrong side of a 46-22 result against the Scarlets two years later.
They have also fell in five Champions Cup semi-finals since the 2011 Celtic League success.
Their opponents Leinster are no opponents to Pro 14 finals, as they seek a fourth consecutive trophy. A win on March 27 would be a sixth title since Munster’s last success in the competition.
They sit atop the Pro 14 roll of honour with seven titles, three clear of the Ospreys and four ahead of their final opponents Munster.
Leinster vs Racing 92
Leinster’s Isa Nacewa celebrates with the European Rugby Champions Cup trophy
Mandatory Credit ©INPHO/Dan Sheridan
If Munster are to upset the odds, they will need to improve on their dreadful recent record against their interprovincial rivals.
Munster have taken on Leinster 14 times since the beginning of the 2015/16. In that time, they have come away with just two victories with the blue side coming out on top in the other 12 meetings.
Both of those wins came at Thomond Park, with Munster losing their other three home games against the visitors.
Johann van Graan masterminded the 2018 success against Leinster and will lead Munster into a final for the first time since his appointment in 2017.
After a number of semi-final losses, the South African is pleased to have gotten over the hump and into a final.
“Obviously, from a club perspective that’s brilliant, our first final in a few years. It’s something that we can enjoy and embrace now. It’s a once-off game now. You’ve got get into a final to win something and we’re in it now, so we’ll enjoy that.”
After finishing the regular season with six wins on the trot, all attention will now be firmly fixed on Leinster this Saturday and ending the decade long trophy famine.
The post PREVIEW: Munster seek first Pro 14 final win in a decade against four in a row chasing Leinster appeared first on Sporting Limerick.
