Cape Town – Even though his team went down 31-17 to Munster, Bulls coach Jake White said he was “proud of the way the boys fought back” in Saturday night’s United Rugby Championship clash at Thomond Park in Limerick.
The Pretoria side were 24-3 down three minutes into the second half, after replacement flyhalf Chris Smith fumbled a bouncing ball inside his 22, which saw Munster prop Jeremy Loughman kick it through and score.
That incident, in a nutshell, was how the Bulls’ night was going, as they struggled to contend with the wet and blustery conditions, lost numerous lineouts and weren’t able to shut down Munster’s attack with their defence.
But White felt that his players showed genuine fighting spirit in the second half, where flank WJ Steenkamp and replacement wing David Kriel scored tries – despite Munster securing a four-try bonus point.
“I don’t think we were outmuscled today at all. I thought we played quite well at times. Defensively, we leaked a couple of tries again from close quarters. But they are a good team. Six forwards on the bench, internationals… One player here has more Munster games than our whole team put together in the URC,” the former Springbok coach said.
“I was proud of the way the boys fought back. It was a good learning curve for them. And it’s not ideal – you don’t like to lose. But we were here this time last year: we lost 31-3 to Leinster in the first game, and we ended up playing Leinster in the semi-final.
“So, it’s a long way to go. Losing these two games – against a talented Glasgow side with lots of internationals, and a Munster side with a lot of internationals – this Munster side is not going to be at the bottom of the log. They will definitely be near the top.”
Young hooker Jan-Hendrik Wessels – who was retained in the starting line-up following a shaky performance in last week’s loss to Glasgow – was again placed under enormous pressure in the lineouts, where Munster’s Irish Test jumpers Tadhg Beirne and Jean Kleyn, as well as new young lock Edwin Edogbo, contested strongly.
Halfbacks Embrose Papier and Johan Goosen were also constantly harassed by the Munster defenders when trying to clear their lines or find territory.
“It’s raining, they have six forwards on the bench, internationals all over the field… A young hooker that’s throwing in, it’s not easy. Good contesting in the lineout, and yet at the end of the game, we were still fighting and showing a lot of resilience,” White said.
“I don’t want to keep repeating myself, but we are still a long way from where we need to be. We have young guys in certain positions. If you look at our two (Wessels), eight (Elrigh Louw), nine (Papier), 10 (Goosen) and 15 (Kurt-Lee Arendse), they are youngsters – and that’s the backbone of any team.
“Compared to (Munster, who have) an international at two (Niall Scannell), international at eight (Gavin Coombes), international at nine (Craig Casey), international at 10 (Joey Carbery)… And last week (against Glasgow), and next week (against Benetton, it will be the same).
“They’ve shown this team can play. Conditions didn’t help us tonight. We probably kicked a little bit inaccurately, but again, it’s difficult. There was such a strong wind that if you kicked contestables, you could end up with the ball coming back to you.
“And therefore, you kick it a bit long and it looks like you’ve given the opposition free runs. So, it was difficult. But when you’ve (replacement scrumhalf) Conor Murray and the players that they have, then you get used to those conditions.”
As if the defeat wasn’t enough, Goosen (concussion) and Cornal Hendricks (groin) are unlikely to be ready for Friday’s clash against Benetton in Treviso (6.30pm SA time kickoff).
“Cornal’s groin was a bit tight, so I didn’t want to risk him. And you’re right (about Goosen), that’s exactly what happened (to him). Right just before halftime, Goosen fell on his back, and I think he got a bit of whiplash (and he had to go for an) HIA,” White said.
“The ruling here is that you can get called off by the medical doctor, and the match-day doctor called him off and tested him, and I don’t think he passed that HIA test – which meant that he wasn’t allowed back.
“So, it was a bit disruptive as you have a new winger (Kriel) and a new flyhalf (Chris Smith) straightaway after halftime. It’s not ideal as you’ve only got three backs on the bench, and two of them literally go at halftime.
“So, it was a little bit of a mix and match, but I’m fully confident that we will get it right. We’ll get better. We’ll learn from this, and we will become a good team.”
Points-Scorers
Munster 31 – Tries: Gavin Coombes (2), Jeremy Loughman, Tadhg Beirne. Conversions: Joey Carbery (4). Penalty: Carbery (1).
Bulls 17 – Tries: WJ Steenkamp, David Kriel. Conversions: Chris Smith (2). Penalty: Johan Goosen (1).
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