HEINEKEN CUP POOL ONE Castres 24 Munster 27: PLUS ÇA change, plus c'est la même chose.
It seems apposite to borrow a phrase from the French critic and novelist Jean-Baptiste Karr to describe a remarkable seven days in the life of a rugby team and its outhalf.
Thomond Park and Stade Ernest-Wallon, Limerick and Toulouse, Northampton Saints and Castres Olympique, Munster and the Heineken Cup, two drop goals; linked forever courtesy of the metronomic rhythm and accuracy of Ronan O’Gara’s right boot.
For the second week in succession, as the game clock turned red, he sought isolation, watching carefully as his team-mates moved forward in small increments, trying to give their outhalf the best possible opportunity to strike a definitive blow in the context of the result.
There wasn’t the nerveshredding anxiety of 41 phases of a preamble as there had been at Thomond Park the previous weekend. O’Gara had to wait roughly 20 seconds before Munster’s destiny at the Stade Ernest-Wallon was entrusted to his right boot. In those moments the outcome can be gleaned from the player’s body language and within a second of making contact he had wheeled away, raising an arm.
The Irish province had penned an escape clause into a script that seemed to be heading for a disappointing epilogue. Munster captain Paul O’Connell admitted: “He’s (O’Gara) an incredible guy. To have the drive he has after so many years at the top is incredible. If every game could come down to that clutch position where it all rides on him that’s the way he’d like it to be; that’s his attitude.
“It’s great to know you have a guy behind the pack that wants those pressure moments, he’s quite a special character. I knew he had a great chance. I’d say if there was no pressure on, sometimes you may not fancy him, but it seems when the pressure is on he seems to get better and better.
“I think we were playing for anything we could get, a try, a drop goal, a penalty; whatever. From a forwards point of view, it’s about working as hard as you can then you hope the backs can take the opportunity at the right time to either run it or go for a drop goal. Luckily, Rog did that; he pulled the trigger at the right time.”
Victory is not a complete panacea though for another fitful Munster performance. The visitors would have been crestfallen had the match ended level. Castres began with tremendous physical intensity, but that dissipated from storm proportions to a zephyr even before the interval.
Munster’s facility to invite their hosts back into the match through turnovers, mistakes and some questionable decision taking made for a fraught afternoon.
The Irish province demonstrated that when they took a direct route and put pace on their patterns that the French club were vulnerable. Castres were lazy in a defensive line that resembled an s-bend in shape, slow to realign and susceptible to players making random individual choices rather than adhering to collective organisation. The home side’s pillar defence was also brittle and Munster made serious headway there.
All five tries in the game could be attributed to an element of sloppy defence. Florian Denos recklessly shot out of the line to allow Doug Howlett an easy run in for Munster’s first try. The Castres fullback then completely overran his covering line, which permitted the outstanding Peter O’Mahony to straighten and canter over unopposed for Munster’s second try.
O’Mahony and Niall Ronan demonstrated excellent footwork in taking contact on their own terms and generally required multiple tacklers to be corralled.
O’Connell demonstrated a huge work ethic and, while more direct and less evasive in his running, he – along with Wian du Preez – did more to haul Munster back into a match they trailed 11-0.
Castres outhalf Pierre Bernard kicked two wonderful long-range penalties – one from inside his own half – while hooker Brice Mach grabbed a try. In mitigation the home side did lose two players in the first 12 minutes; France international wing Marc Andreu to an ankle injury that may sideline him for three months and Mach hurt in the act of scoring.
The French side’s team selection looked a little bit strange beforehand, but may be partially explained by coach Laurent Labit’s post match comments: “We’re taking part in this competition to gain experience and we hope that it will be beneficial for the rest of the Top 14, which is still the main objective for the club.
“Now we’ll have to make use of the four remaining matches to continue our apprenticeship at the highest level.”
Munster Tony McGahan will have noted that his team again demonstrated the aptitude to find a solution to win a match. He’ll have been pleased with the strong impact that the bench provided for a second successive week, including a particularly impressive cameo from Will Chambers.
McGahan, though, will realise that the scope for improvement is appreciable and that progress must be made quickly before they visit the Scarlets next month.
SCORING SEQUENCE – 2 mins: Bernard pen 3-0; 5 mins: Barnard pen 6-0; 11 mins: Mach try 11-0; 22 mins: Howlett try, O'Gara con 11-7; 35 mins: Lakafia try, Barnard con 18-7; 40 (+5) mins: O'Gara pen 18-10 (half-time: 18-10) 44 mins: O'Mahony try, O'Gara con 18-17; 51 mins: Barnard pen 21-17; 67 mins: Chambers try, O'Gara con 21-24; 69 mins: Teulet pen 24-24; 80 mins: O'Gara drop goal 24-27.
CASTRES OLYMPIQUE: F Denos; M Evans, P Bonnefond, P Garcia, M Andreu; P Bernard, T Lacrampe; A Peikrishvili, B Mach, K Wihongi; S Murray, J Tekori; J Bornman, Y Caballero, C Masoe (capt). Replacements: PG Lakafia for Andreu (4 mins), M Bonello for Mach (12 mins), L Ducalcon for Wihongi (45 mins), M Coetzee for Peikrishvili (56 mins), R Capo Ortega for Caballero (61 mins), R Tales for Denos (63 mins), R Teulet for Lacrampe (69 mins) M Rolland for Murray (73 mins).
MUNSTER: J Murphy; D Howlett, D Barnes, L Mafi, D Hurley; R O'Gara, C Murray; W du Preez, D Varley, BJ Botha; D Ryan, P O'Connell (capt); P O'Mahony, N Ronan, J Coughlan. Replacements: W Chambers for Barnes (43 mins), D O'Callaghan for Ryan (50 mins), T O'Leary for Murray (56 mins), D Leamy for Coughlan (65 mins), D Fogarty for O'Mahony (69 mins).
Referee: W Barnes(England).
O’Gara’s Five Best Drop Goals
2011: Stade Ernest Wallon
Munster v Castres OlympiqueOnce again time is up and with the sides level at 24-24 the Munster pack inch forward as O'Gara drops back to provide an extra micro second of time and space. One swish of his right boot and the tie is decided.
2011: Thomond Park
Munster v Northampton SaintsMunster are trailing 21-20 as the match clock turns red. Some 41 phases after a Munster player first secures possession, O'Gara drops back into the pocket and calmly bisects the posts.
2011: Stadio Flaminio
Ireland v ItalyHis drop goal in the 78th minute ensured both an Ireland victory and also that his team did not lose their unbeaten record against Italy in the Six Nations.
2009: Millennium Stadium
Ireland v WalesIt ensured Ireland's first Grand Slam since 1948, and has become not only an iconic moment in Irish rugby history but also a wonderful visual snapshot as O'Gara was captured in photographs wheeling away with his arms raised and outstretched.
2004: Lansdowne Road
Ireland v ArgentinaHaving scored all Ireland's points in a 17-12 victory over South Africa two weeks earlier, O'Gara lands a drop goal to ensure that the home team prevail, 19-17.
