MUNSTER will aim to avoid a fifth loss on the bounce with a result against Dragons in the URC at Cork’s Virgin Media Park this Friday, 7.45pm.
Sixth-placed Munster are strong favourites.
After a few bad setbacks, the home side certainly need an impressive performance to boost their confidence and, even without some of their key players, it will be time to stand up and be counted for the team.
After the weekend Champions Cup 31-29 loss to Castres in Limerick, captain Tadhg Beirne was honest.
“We weren’t switched on and we weren’t good enough in those crucial moments,” he said.
“It’s the first time I haven’t been in the knockout stages of the Championship Cup. It doesn’t sit well with me at all. That dressing room, you would certainly feel it in there. We’ll just have to look at this. We don’t want to be in in this situation again.”
Coach Clayton McMillan observed: “What we know is that we’ve played some quality teams over the last four or five weeks and while we haven’t played our best rugby, we haven’t been that far away in most of those games either.”
“So it’s certainly not ‘throw everything out the kitchen window and start again’. We’ve got a lot of confidence in the people in the room. We just have to learn the lessons and learn them fast because the same ones keep hurting us.”
There is no doubt that the Kiwi has been disappointed with the performances and with the end of the season in sight he must be considering bringing in some class players.
Munster will still be in action in another Cup fixture when they take part in the Challenge Cup Round of Sixteen, away to Exeter Chiefs at the beginning of April.
It will only be a second appearance by Munster in this competition, and a first in 15 years.
Munster have just three remaining home fixtures this season, v Dragons, v Zebre (Thomond Park, April 25) and v Emirates Lions (Thomond Park, May 16).