Munster need to beat Zebre at home in only competitive fixture until late March

Munster entertain bottom side Zebre in Round 12 of the URC at Thomond Park on Saturday knowing that only victory will do if they are to get their stuttering season back on track.

As this is Munster’s only competitive fixture between 30 January, when they lost away to Glasgow, and 21 March, when they make the long journey to South Africa to face the Sharks, it is quite an awkward one in terms of selection for head coach Clayton McMillan.

Normally a home league tie against Zebre would be seen as an opportunity to bring in some youngsters, but with every fit squad member eager for minutes it is difficult to judge who should get minutes here and who should miss out.

Michael Milne, Edwin Edogbo and Tom Farrell have been released from Ireland duty so will all want minutes, while Alex Kendellen, Jean Kleyn, Calvin Nash and JJ Hanrahan are all available again after recent injuries.

Sean Edogbo and Brian Gleeson were flying before the break in fixtures and will want to keep the forward momentum going, while the likes of Ben O’Connor and Shay McCarthy will be thinking they are due some minutes too.

It would certainly be memorable if the Edogbo brothers were to be on the pitch at the same time, as they have yet to appear together in Munster colours. The pack physicality certainly would be boosted if they were to appear in the same side.

OPTIONS

A number of academy players have been seen in action for Munster A recently, but if they do not get picked this weekend, then the only other likely fixture for them is the 18 April trip to Benetton. 

We are about to reach the business end of the campaign very quickly, when there will be no room for experimentation anymore.

Young scrum half Jake O’Riordan is one such player, while the two academy hookers Danny Sheehan and Max Clein have been waiting for recognition all season. It does seem like now or never for some of these players for this season.

Neither JJ Hanrahan nor Tony Butler have impressed when filling in for Jack Crowley in the outhalf berth in this campaign, as the back-up ten position has become another area of worry for Munster fans. Tom Wood debuted off the bench against Glasgow in Munster’s last game and had some fine moments, while he really impressed as he quarter-backed the Irish U20s to victory over England at the Rec last weekend. 

A lot of Munster fans will be hoping to see more of Keith Wood’s talented young son in Munster red this season.

FAVOURITES

Regardless of what team McMillan selects it is taken as a given that Munster must collect all five points on offer this weekend.

Munster were sitting pretty at the top of the URC table when they beat both Leinster and Connacht back in October, but that coincided with a tight head injury crisis, which has also coincided with a huge drop off in form for the entire team.

Since that Connacht game on 25 October, not including the Argentina XV game, Munster have played ten URC and Champions Cup matches, losing seven of them. This sequence has seen them falling out of the Champions Cup completely into the Challenge Cup, while also dropping down to sixth in the URC table.

That is not to blame Michael Ala’alatoa, who came in and manfully, and literally, propped up the Munster pack on his own for a couple months, but it does showcase the importance of the tight head role in modern club rugby. 

If a club is not overstocked in this position, then they are likely to fail. 

There is no doubt that McMillan is well aware and it is why it is expected that a couple of players will be recruited in this position for next season.

Zebre are rock bottom in the table with 12 points. They started the campaign really brightly, winning their two opening ties at home to Edinburgh and the Lions, but the wheels have come off since, with them losing all nine league games since.

If Munster fail to make that 10 in a row, then there will be serious questions to answer.