Munster Rugby welcomed an All Blacks XV to Thomond Park on Saturday Afternoon, where despite a spirited performance the tourists recorded a 38-24 victory.
In what was a touch-and-go game for all but four minutes, Munster and the All Blacks delivered an absolute thriller in Limerick.
It was the All-Blacks who came racing out of the traps, launching themselves fourteen points ahead early on, yet despite the early concerns, Munster shot back quickly closing the deficit to two points before heading in for the break.
As the teams reemerged after the break and the game descended into a true test battle, both sides traded blow for blow to leave Munster just two points worse off heading into the final five minutes.
In as traditional an All Blacks fashion as possible, the travelling side ran in two breakaway tries in the dying moments to make the scoreboard more flattering than either side deserved.
The game wasn't shown on terrestrial TV but instead streamed on Munster's Access Munster platform
2 November 2024; John Ryan of Munster celebrates his side's third try during the match between Munster and All Blacks XV at Thomond Park in Limerick. Photo by Brendan Moran/Sportsfile
Munster apologise to fans over streaming issues
The game wasn't shown on terrestrial TV but instead streamed on Munster's Access Munster platform.
Those who wanted to tune in were required to sign up for a month-long subscription to Access Munster, the club's streaming site which cost €10 for the month of November and €4 per month after that.
However, controversy struck when a number of fans who had paid the €10 were left unable to watch the game after the streaming service ran into difficulties that the provider was unable to solve.
After the province came under fire from fans who had paid and were unable to watch the game, Munster Rugby issued an apology to those who'd been affected.
Munster Rugby would like to apologise to our supporters who experienced difficulties in accessing Saturday evening’s live stream of Munster v All Blacks XV on Access Munster.
We encountered an issue with our website provider who were unable to isolate and fix the problem quickly.
The majority of subscribers were able to watch the match without any problems, however, we deeply regret the difficulties encountered by those impacted.
The club did confirm that streaming the game was not their first preference and that terrestrial providers had been offered the opportunity to show the game, revealing the service comes at a high cost to the province.
The decision to live stream the game on Access Munster was only made after the match was offered to terrestrial television providers in Ireland. Those providers opted against broadcasting the match.
Matches this season and in previous seasons have been successfully live streamed on Access Munster including pre-season matches against Gloucester and Leinster in addition to the Barbarians double-header in September 2023.
These matches require a significant cost to broadcast, particularly Saturday evening’s fixture which included a multiple camera set-up, referee mic and TMO capabilities.
Munster Rugby are continuing to investigate the issue with the provider and, once we confirm the users that were affected, we will be in contact directly with them.
While Munster Rugby were obviously apologetic about the issues, they come off the back of a tough week for the club that saw Graham Rowntree depart mid-season under a shroud of controversy.
SEE ALSO: "It's Been A Very, Very Difficult Week": Ian Costello Praises 'Incredible' Munster For All Blacks Performance
