Munster started 2013 in the worst possible manner after a comprehensive defeat at the hands of Cardiff Blues on Saturday evening in Musgrave Park. It wasn't just the result that will have infuriated followers of the Red Army but the manner of the performance. On a foggy night in Cork, the weather perfectly illustrated Munster's eerie display. Ronan O'Gara was making his 234th appearance for his province but it wasn't the memorable night that he was hoping for.
Munster's performance was littered with a frightening amount of unforced errors that ultimately cost them any momentum or go forward ball. The home side were unfortunate to lose both Mike Sherry and Conor Murray to injury but what was equally as worrying was that their replacements really struggled to make any sort of impact on the game. Sean Henry replaced Sherry but his lack of game time at this level really told. The lineout was a disaster with Henry repeatedly missing his jumper at the set piece. Whether this was down to his inexperience or a lack of leadership in the lineout remains to be seen but with Donnacha Ryan presumably calling the shots, it didn't reflect well on the Lions hopeful.
Duncan Williams took Murray's place at scrum-half but had another game to forget in a red jersey. Williams is yet to really win the Munster fans over. His basic skills are still not up to the standard at this level. His passing on Saturday evening was all over the shop. Had it not been for O'Gara showing good handling in picking the ball off his toes or from above his head on numerous occasions, Williams performance would have looked even worse. His handling error at the base of a ruck proved costly when former Kilkenny College schoolboy Robin Copeland raced over from thirty metres to cap off a fine individual performance. With Munster academy scrum half Cathal Sheridan putting in some impressive performances for both his club side UL Bohemians and for the Munster A's in the British & Irish Cup this season, his opportunity to shine for the first team shouldn't be too far away at this stage.
Munster were outscored by two tries to one which will have hurt. The majority of Munster fans are behind Rob Penney and his attempts to implement this new adventurous attacking style but they must have a Plan B. Time after time the game plan failed on Saturday evening with not one of the players willing to take the initiative to try something different. The argument still remains that Munster simply don't have the players to play the way Penney wants to especially with O'Gara evidently unable to threaten the line. O'Gara is still a valuable asset to Munster but there seems to be a conflict of interests in the way Penney wants his out half to play and the way in which he is capable of playing.
January is simply a make or break month for Munster's season. Rob Penney would have looked at Saturday's game as a good warm up for the trip to Edinburgh next Sunday but will have been left scratching his head at how his side could put in such a dire performance at such a crucial time in his side's season. Munster have slipped to sixth position in the league, two points outside of the play off positions. The severity of the injuries suffered by Murray, Sherry and Archer remains to be seen but the hope is that all will be fit enough to be included in the squad for next week's crunch encounter.
Munster take on an Edinburgh side who having reached the semifinals of the Heineken Cup last season have endured a torturous campaign this time around. Munster managed to secure a late bonus point in their meeting with the Scots in Thomond Park back in October, a game which saw the away side fail to register a single point.
With the game scheduled for a 12:45 kick off on Sunday afternoon in a presumably near-empty Murrayfield stadium, Munster must quickly shake off the cobwebs of Saturday's dismal display. If they harbour any hopes of getting out of their pool, a fiver pointer is a must on Sunday. Munster will take comfort in the fact that they can welcome back the likes of Zebo, O'Callaghan and especially O'Mahony, a player who has become invaluable to this current Munster side.
The Munster faithful will as per usual travel in their hoards, all in hope that Saturday was a mere blip on their way to qualifying from a pool in which plenty have written them off. A five point win on Sunday would set them up for a grandstand clash with Racing Metro a week later in Thomond Park.
