Cups half empty

It is perhaps representative of the changing face of Irish rugby that the provincial cup competitions have been relegated down the list of importance for clubs in Ireland. Where once a provincial cup success was the pinnacle for a club in a season, supported by the crowds which used to attend the finals over the decades, it is now greeted in lukewarm fashion, particularly by supporters.

A diet of Heineken European Cup and Guinness interprovincials and the success of the Irish provinces in the former means that contracted players are not available to clubs for the cup campaigns, especially now with the fixture reshuffle which has seen the cups run off in October and November.

Nowhere is the apathy more startling than in Munster and last weekend's Munster Senior Cup semi-finals support this assertion. Shannon faced Garryowen in one semi-final at Thomond Park while Cork Constitution squared up to Young Munster at Musgrave Park in the other. The top four clubs in the province were in action yet only a combined attendance of roughly 1,000 people was recorded.

Ten years ago, seven or eight thousand would have attended each match. Next week Shannon will face Young Munster in the final and fortunately for the Munster Branch, there aren't too many counter attractions and they might reasonably hope for a decent crowd.