The Munster Rugby Thread 24/25

[nelly sham]

18 years ago though. What has our level been since?

You're applying some recency bias.

You're never as good nor as bad as they say you are. That team back then weren't best in the world either but they were, more often than not, the clichéd hardest workers in the room and punched above their weight.

 

[Jukka]

I was in a bar yesterday with the Mrs and we were admiring a few photos of the 2006 success on the wall. 20 years ago.

We were saying that it's not a case of Munster getting back to those levels. Munster were never at those levels, those few years were an anomaly. Where Munster are now is their level.

Too harsh, or correct?

There is no level. The amateur era is of little to no relevance to the professional era, and neither can you really compare the early professional years where lads were mainly playing AIL.

I think what we see at the moment is Munster have a group of young players who were standouts for Ireland at underage level and we should be bringing them through to backbone a much stronger decade or so ahead.

The URC should be the main metric - we should be getting home knock outs and properly challenging regularly, in the way someone like Glasgow has for years.

Europe is harder to gauge. To be at the level of Tolouse, UBB and (pre this year) Leinster requires a lot to go right, and excellent NIQ signings.

 

[How bad boy]

There is no level. The amateur era is of little to no relevance to the professional era, and neither can you really compare the early professional years where lads were mainly playing AIL.

I think what we see at the moment is Munster have a group of young players who were standouts for Ireland at underage level and we should be bringing them through to backbone a much stronger decade or so ahead.

The URC should be the main metric - we should be getting home knock outs and properly challenging regularly, in the way someone like Glasgow has for years.

Europe is harder to gauge. To be at the level of Tolouse, UBB and (pre this year) Leinster requires a lot to go right, and excellent NIQ signings.

I'd agree that's about Munster's level, although had they won that game in March against the Bulls, which they only lost by 3 points, they'd have gotten 4th. Small margins.

 

[Yermon]

I was in a bar yesterday with the Mrs and we were admiring a few photos of the 2006 success on the wall. 20 years ago.

We were saying that it's not a case of Munster getting back to those levels. Munster were never at those levels, those few years were an anomaly. Where Munster are now is their level.

Too harsh, or correct?

Way too harsh.

Sport has highs and lows. We're down now but we were up before. We're one of the best supported teams around even when just plodding along in the top half of things. We won't win silverware every year, or second year, but we do on occasion bubble to the top, far more often than sink to the bottom where we appear to be now off the pitch. We'll come again in time though

 

[How bad boy]

Way too harsh.

Sport has highs and lows. We're down now but we were up before. We're one of the best supported teams around even when just plodding along in the top half of things. We won't win silverware every year, or second year, but we do on occasion bubble to the top, far more often than sink to the bottom where we appear to be now off the pitch. We'll come again in time though

The infrastructure is there, the support is there, it's just not clicking at the moment. There's times when they do get their mojo that they look excellent (Leinster, Ulster, Argentina, Gloucester). other times where things fall apart entirely (Bath, Sharks, Bulls, Connacht, Exeter 1st half, Ulster).


Early in the season, Munster were not playing amazingly well, but winning the close matches, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Connacht.

It seems to have changed with the Ulster game. Played really well against Leinster, could have won, were dominant for much of the game against almost a full strength Leinster. Bit of a lack of a cutting edge, some silly mistakes, but fundamentally, were the better team.

Once Ulster absolutely gave them a kicking, the fight seems to have drained away a bit, loss in Toulon that could have been won, loss to Castres that should have been a win and barely scraping a win against Dragons at home.

If you go back through this thread to the new year, I think there was a bit of a feeling that things really were turning around, which to me is a sign Munster aren't far off doing well in the league and in Europe. Just need McMillan to pay off.

 

[MerchantOfEnnis]

We're playing Leicester Tigers in a friendly in Irish Independent Virgin Media Musgrave Park on September 12th.

I went to the Bath friendly last year and it was fucking grim. I think it was done in three 30 minutes periods, and the rain and wind was horrific. I left halfway through

 

[Yermon]

We're playing Leicester Tigers in a friendly in Irish Independent Virgin Media Musgrave Park on September 12th.

I went to the Bath friendly last year and it was fucking grim. I think it was done in three 30 minutes periods, and the rain and wind was horrific. I left halfway through