This Saturday, Munster travel to Dublin’s RDS in a bid to atone for their thrashing at the hands of bitter rivals Leinster in last May’s Heineken Cup semi-final.
Played in front of a record crowd of 82,300 at Croke Park, it was one of the most colourful and vivid sporting occasions I’ve experienced.
Leinster went on to win the Heineken Cup for the first time in their history by beating Leicester 19-16 in the final at Murrayfield on May 23rd.
It was only then that they could finally look their great southern rivals in the eye.
Leinster’s success was based on coach Michael Cheika forging a toughness in the forwards that had hitherto been the preserve of Munster, and using it to complement their traditional brilliance out wide.
Their tries were a mix of the stunning and the opportunistic, putting the “fancy dan” tag to rest by smashing Munster in the collisions and bossing the breakdown.
The rivalry has simmered down through the decades but erupted with the advent of professionalism and the arrival of the Heineken Cup and Magners League.
Despite living in Munster’s shadow for much of the past decade, Leinster won the first major clash of the professional era between the two provinces when they came from behind to win the inaugural Celtic League final in 2001.
Leinster’s Eric Miller was sent off twenty minutes into the game for kicking Anthony Foley in the head and Munster led by 9 points early in the second half.
Ronan O’Gara describes the rest in his autobiography:
“Then they came up with two brilliant tries and knocked us back on our arses. I’ll never forget the Leinster coach, Matt Williams, going mental after the match, running up and down the side of the pitch. Rubbing our noses in it. We wouldn’t have done that but I suppose it was a big deal for them at the time to win a trophy.”
Munster more than avenged that defeat in the next big one, the 2006 Heineken Cup semi-final at Lansdowne Road.
It was the biggest and most anticipated fixture of any code in Ireland that year. The Munster support hijacked the World’s oldest international rugby ground outnumbering the Leinster fans by 2 to 1.
Leinster were favourites having filleted Toulouse in the quarter-final with one of the finest displays of running rugby of the professional era, orchestrated by the brilliant Argentine number ten Felipe Contepomi.
Well known for his short fuse, Munster’s plan was to “go after” Contepomi from the start and upset Leinster’s momentum. They succeeded when he lost the rag after being “bag snatched” in a ruck by a well known Munster back row.
Munster raced to a 10-0 lead and never looked back, eventually winning 30-6. Contepomi spent the entire match fluffing kicks and running about with steam coming out of his ears trying to settle the wrong type of scores.
His less than cordial relations with a number of high profile Munster players are well documented. It’s ironic that the 25 minutes he spent on the field in Croke Park last May before bowing out with a ruptured cruciate were his most effective and important in the colours of Leinster.
He set the scene for the massacre by steam-rolling O’Gara with his first possession, and then gave Leinster the lead on 15 minutes with a dropped goal. In a symbolic changing of the guard his replacement, Johnny Sexton, slotted a penalty as Contepomi was helped from the field.
Is there a better rivalry in rugby?
I’m not sure, but its sister code in Australia has produced one or two worth mentioning.
The annual State of Origin series between Queensland v New South Wales is played at an intensity rarely seen in either code.
The rowdy and feverish atmosphere experienced at Origin games is not the norm for the normally reserved Australian audiences.
For something with even more bite it’s worth travelling back to the 1980s to consider the nastiness that existed between Sydney rugby league clubs, Western Suburbs (The Fibros), and Manly (The Silvertails). In Bad Boys, Sydney journalist and former Western Suburbs coach Roy Masters tells a magnificent tale that reads more like a war than a rivalry.
He paints a filthy picture of forwards charging into tackles with elbows cocked and crowds spitting nails at each other.
It’s unlikely that Leinster v Munster will ever plumb those depths.
The recent success of both provinces has seen the majority of fans from either side grudgingly swallow a bitter pill and support the other when contesting major finals against teams from England and France. Indeed many a Munster fan appeared in Edinburgh for this year’s final wearing t-shirts that read “Leinster for a Day but Munster for Life” and vice versa in 2006 and 2008.
In Harry Byrne’s pub after Leinster’s “Day of Days” at Croke Park a Munster fan spelled it out for me when he pointed to a different rivalry that was once a war and said, “I’m never going to back a team of the Crown against one from Ireland.”
Pajo McGonagle
Guest
sorry the sentence 'The sheep though of playing Wales or England 3 times a year would be sheer sporting incest. It would be just wrong' should read: 'The sheer though of playing Wales or England 3 times a year would be sheer sporting incest. It would be just wrong'. An unfortunate typo making 'sheer' 'sheep'. Let's hope it isn't Freudian!
Pajo McGonagle
Guest
Knives Out, 'Weak Northern leagues'? Hmm, allow me to ponder that one a little. That's a lazy statement and one that popped out like a post dinner parp. Without much thought. The variety that the Heineken Cup offers means teams get to play a variety of opponentent for the first time in a really unpredictable arena. That added with all the best NH players and a fist full of top SH players (incl Argies Islanders blah blah) makes it real fun. This stuff will never get stale. The Top 14, GP, ML etc just make it even more interesting, add in the injuries and one can never predict what will happen. Just look at the crowds? 83,000 for the Munster leinster HC semi last year. Insane. Also, as an away fan, it is soooo cool visitng random never before seen parts of the continent following ones team. Compare that to my last visit to the Suncorp to watch the Reds do their thing. It could have been curling. Don't get me wrong, I dont want to start a juvinile debate here but, S14 format just bores me. Sometimes I wonder if the players get sick of seeing the same guys every week, not to mention the Tri Nations. The tri nations tests have been so devalued with the addition of third games. Catching a Bledisloe game is now almost like waiting for a bus. 'Awww sheeeeeeet, I've missed mah bus!, but hey, not to worry, there will be another two coming shortly'. It's just killed it. (Hang on dont they play 4 times this year in HK otr Tokyo too?) People here in Yourp just wouldn't watch it. Or if you did it would be whilst you clip your nails or read the paper or maybe make tea......... diluted. 'Who cares if we lose this week??' shrieks the numb and hideously desensitised SH sports fan 'we get three goes at these suckers!!!' The once off nature of the Heino Cup's latter 'sudden death' games is awesome. Plus, the fact that one only gets a winner takes all stab at their fellow 6 nations teams each year. One game against the auld enemy to put the record straight! Mess it up and you gotta wait 12 more months! The sheer though of playing Wales or England 3 times a year would be sheep sporting incest. It would be just wrong. That's why it has never been mooted. The belated and begrudging addition of the Argentinians will hopefully improve the situation. Pity it wont be till 2011 or whatever. Plus, it wont do anything to help the S14. RL is the game to watch down in the antipodes.
Knives Out
Guest
'I was trying to check out the last time Munster had played Northampton. Was it the ill-fated low scoring H Cup final?' I went to that game and can't recall a single moment. That Horgan try won me a delicious accumulator with France scraping past Wales (?) and Italy beating Scotland or the reverse. All three results were wonderfully fortuitous, which eased my student poverty that week. I was checking to see if the red card incident had been uploaded. Instead I found a slide show of Hayes frolicking in a pool with Marcus Horan.
Derm
Roar Guru
He is.
Derm
Roar Guru
I was trying to check out the last time Munster had played Northampton. Was it the ill-fated low scoring H Cup final? McGahan will tear strips off them tomorrow - but I can see O'Gara getting replaced at 10 before the season is out. He'll put Warwick in there. Horgan's last-minute-foot-just-out-of-touch try against England is one of my all-time favourites - up there with Geoghegan's in Twickenham. Where did you find the You Tube clip - hilarious.
Knives Out
Guest
Rory Best is out for a while, no?
Knives Out
Guest
JdV will encounter basically all the Lions backs this coming season. Yet more nightmares await him... Surely he hasn't come to play in the weak northern leagues to be upstaged at every turn? The Munster game is at Northampton. That could be a tough one. I'm still backing them to make a good fist of the coming season, nonetheless. I can't wait for the Leinster game next week. It should be scintillating. Horgan is an intelligent player. He always has been. I was always quietly pleased that he won his three Lions caps. A fitting reward for an industrious player. John Hayes had an Eric Miller moment, eh. It must be the derby conditions. At least he has a pop career to fall back on during his time away from the game: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_6_gUjdplOw You went to UCD, Pothale?
Derm
Roar Guru
He does his job.
mcxd
Guest
Pothale, what do you think of Cheika as a coach ?
Derm
Roar Guru
LOL! 'Rocky who' is right. I was thinking you might say that, KO. And you'd be right. His successor, young McLaughlin from my alma mater got Man of the Match for his performance around the field and helping set up a try. Very encouraging evening for test rugby at one level, and disappointing on another at the abysmal performance of Munster. I can't wait to see if a backlash occurs against Northampton next week. Lose there, and Munster's hegemony of recent years may start to fade. Leinster have hit the heights at the right time, and the match up against London Irish next week in the H Cup should make for a good clash. Irish are looking very, very tasty and Leinster need to get their feet back on the ground very quickly to prepare for that. Shane Horgan is a man transformed - was astonished at his performance tonight - a couple of dropped passes maybe, but he was storming about the place, putting in tackles, making a nuisance of himself, and made some lovely runs. Glad to see O'Brien got on for the last 20 minutes - as I figured he wanted to make his mark - loved his dash down the wing and attempted chip to try and score - enterprising stuff from a 7. Jennings will have the experience edge on him, but I hope Kidney bloods him for one of the test matches - maybe Fiji. And should I have doubted O'Driscoll v de Villiers? BOD left him for dead as he burst forward, swerved around de Villiers flailing dive tackle, and then escaped past the clutches of Earls to touch down for a peach of a try. de Villiers the best centre in the world at the moment? Not a chance. John Hayes stamp had everyone wincing - given his nature - everyone was sure it was O'Connell's boot - but when the replays came up, there were collective groans but no animosity. He'll be cited and Munster will miss him next week. Automatic 3/4 week ban?
Knives Out
Guest
How did JdV play, btw?
Knives Out
Guest
30-0. Wow. Astonishing. I'm a bit taken aback. Just as astonishing was my work with the bookmakers today. I hammered them during the Dragons v Connaught live betting and various other sporting contests. Plus Tottenham drew and Man Utd had a tough time of it. A good sporting day. Surely not a Shaggy Shane Horgan revival? How has a player managed a decade of top class rugby with such an Elvis inspired, skiffle impersonation bouffant on his head? It seems that John Hayes probably didn't have as much fun as you thought he would. Rocky who?
Pothale
Guest
And another boring, kick-infested NH rugby game comes to a close. Munster held scoreless for the first time in the ML. Sweet. Revised Irish XV for the AIs. 15 Kearney 14 Horgan 13 O'Driscoll/Cave 12 Darcy/Wallace 11 Trimble/Fitzgerald 10 Sexton/Humphreys 9 Reddan/O'Leary 8 Heaslip 7 Jennings/ O'Brien 6 Ferris 5 O'Connell 4 Cullen 3 Healy 2 Fogarty/Best 1 Hayes/ Maybe two Munster guys have a spot secured.
Pothale
Guest
And this just gets better n better. Horgan with an intercept and it's 30 points to nil. Munster will never live this down. The power in Irish rugby has shifted.
Knives Out
Guest
It seems the power has shifted to Dublin.
Pothale
Guest
This game is a cracker! Leinster are bossing the breakdown. Sexton is gonna take O'Garas place.
Pothale
Guest
Hmmm - now that I'm here in the heat of it, I have to get the home flag out. Leinster by 5..... maybe.
Knives Out
Guest
At least Healy is getting regular game time. I don't doubt the ability of Ross, but Cheika seems to love Stan Wright. I shall wait with interest to see the starting line-up during the HC. Talking of ability, I reckon that Hayes has got a good while left in him yet. I heard that he clocked 11 seconds over 100 metres during pre-season, for goodness sake.
Derm
Roar Guru
Completely. The names he got called last season could not be repeated on this site. The accountants in Leinster must be tearing their hair out - if they had any. Ross may just take some time to bed in. Sometimes happens. And it may take a H Cup match to bring out the niggle in him. Though maybe he'll get a run out tomorrow depending on how the game is going - it'll be interesting to see if the old farts in the Munster front row can still give the slightly younger farts a run for their money. Hayes will probably enjoy it.
Knives Out
Guest
I'm going for the home boys. Mike Ross doesn't seem to be making the desired impact, however, any impact no matter how slight is better than Van der Linde's contribution. Surely one of the most useless signings ever?