URC: Munster v Stormers, Thomond Park, Saturday, 5.30pm – Live Premier Sports 1
A week on from the latest, much-discussed instalment in the Ireland-Springboks rivalry, this game feels like an entirely apt follow on, way more than a mere postscript. When the URC organisers decided to expand the Pro 14 to include the four South African franchises they could only have wished for the kind of rivalry these two have rapidly developed over the last few seasons.
Granted, when the Stormers beat Munster 34-19 a year ago it was their first victory in five meetings. Even so, the matchup took off from the outset in October 2021, when Munster backed up a bonus-point win over the Sharks on the opening weekend of the campaign with a 34-18 victory against the Stormers at Thomond Park. The province recovered from a 15-0 deficit, RG Snyman’s first try for Munster and slam dunk finishing completing the comeback to a thunderous roar.
The following season, Munster unexpectedly salvaged their season, and a place in the playoffs, with a 26-24 win over the Stormers in Cape Town in Round 17. After overcoming Glasgow and Leinster away, they returned to South Africa for the final to beat the Stormers again to end an 11-year trophy drought.
While there’s no trophy at stake on Saturday, this clash is the biggest fixture of the URC season to date as the side are the only two with five wins from five. Munster are currently second in the standings behind the Stormers on scoring difference, so this game will determine who sits atop the table going into the European break.
Munster head coach Clayton McMillan has underlined the importance of Saturday’s game as a means of maintaining momentum ahead of their Champions Cup fixtures away to Johann van Graan’s Bath and at home to Gloucester at a sold-out Páirc Uí Chaoimh over the next fortnight.
All four of Munster’s Ireland contingent from last week’s defeat to the Springboks have been named in the province’s starting line-up. Tadhg Beirne resumes the captaincy after his second inclusion in World Rugby’s Team of the Year, while halfbacks Craig Casey and Jack Crowley are reunited and centre Tom Farrell returns after his Test debut.
With Damian Willemse, Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu and Cobus Reinach on Springboks duty against Wales in Cardiff, John Dobson makes six changes to the starting line-up from their win away to Benetton last month, one of which sees the 28-year-old Dylan Maart make his Stormers debut after joining on loan from Griquas.
The result in Treviso was the Stormers’s third successive away win, something they had never before achieved in the URC. Dobson has also gone for a 6-2 split on the bench, pointing toward another closely-fought tussle, suggesting Munster may again need to display the grittiness they’ve shown in their unbeaten start under McMillan.
MUNSTER: Shane Daly; Diarmuid Kilgallen, Tom Farrell, Alex Nankivell, Thaakir Abrahams; Jack Crowley, Craig Casey; Jeremy Loughman, Diarmuid Barron, John Ryan; Tom Ahern, Fineen Wycherley; Tadhg Beirne (capt), Jack O’Donoghue, Gavin Coombes.
Replacements: Niall Scannell, Michael Milne, Ronan Foxe, Edwin Edogbo, John Hodnett, Ethan Coughlan, Tony Butler, Dan Kelly.
STORMERS: Warrick Gelant; Dylan Maart, Wandisile Simelane, Ruhan Nel, Leolin Zas; Jurie Matthee, Stefan Ungerer; Vernon Matongo, André-Hugo Venter, Neethling Fouché; Salmaan Moerat (capt), Connor Evans; Paul de Villiers, Marcel Theunissen, Evan Roos
Replacements: JJ Kotzé, Oli Kebble, Sazi Sandi, Adré Smith, JD Schickerling, Ruan Ackermann, Dewaldt Duvenage, Clinton Swart
Referee: Andrea Piardi (Italy).
Forecast: Munster to win.
