Tomás O’Leary To Perpignan?

Canal+ are reporting that Munster’s Tomás O’Leary has signed for Perpignan. This move has been rumoured for a couple of weeks, and while O’Leary’s agent has issued a typical non-denial denial, there are a number of factors which point toward it being as good as a done deal. While Donal Lenihan reckons that O’Leary has not yet signed on the line that is dotted [thank you, Glengarry Glen Ross], there’s every indication that O’Leary is off to the sunny sud-ouest. Continue reading

Match Reaction: Munster 51 – 36 Northampton

Zoooooom!

Munster turned in a phenomenal second half performance that crushed the spirit of Northampton for the second time in four months and sent a tremor of fear down the spine of any and all prospective opponents in the knock-out stages of the Heineken Cup. Continue reading

Billy, Don’t Be A [Munster] Hero

Billy Holland: just when I thought I was out, they ... pushed me further out.

The Mole was watching the Munster vs Treviso game at Thomond Park on the idiot-box a couple of weeks ago, and was struck by one selection call in particular. Niall Ronan hobbled off just before halftime, and he was replaced by … Donncha O’Callaghan. Continue reading

M85-86*

C86 was an NME mix tape that catalogued the emerging British music scene in 1986. 'C' stood for cassette, and 86 ....

The Mole was second-guessing himself over the holiday season. Was it The Fear? Partially. It was also the feeling that he can be a little bit too harsh on certain elements of the Munster set-up.  Continue reading

How Munster Can Beat The Scarlets

Not intended as a slight on McGahan, but he's down a lot of backs.

If you’re down your entire first choice back three in Howlett/Earls/Jones – one of whom is a Hall of Fame calibre player, one of whom is a confirmed international try-scorer, and the other of whom is a great broken field runner – and you don’t have particularly good centers, what’s the point in playing to your weaknesses? Continue reading

Ospreys vs Munster: Defensive Line Speed And How To Check It

Andrew Bishop - the key to the Ospreys' line-speed and defense against Munster

The Ospreys’ quick line-speed in defense severely hampered Munster’s attack for the greater part of the match. Sean Holley and Scott Johnson have done an extremely good job with the region over the last six months; they’ve shed some seriously talented but somewhat egotistical players in Mike Phillips, James Hook and Lee Byrne, and in the recent past have been operating with a number of important players unavailable due to injury. Continue reading