Munster survive late Racing rally in dour battle of attrition

Munster survived a late French rally to record their first Champions Cup win of the season at Thomond Park in what was a dour battle of attrition.

The terrible weather conditions made handling and passing extremely difficult and the game remained scoreless until Conor Murray’s 60th-minute try.

Winger Andrew Conway crashed over in the corner 10 minutes later with Ian Keatley converting both tries from extremely difficult angles.

Racing pushed late on with Leone Nakarawa crossing to cut the deficit to just seven points and earn a valuable losing bonus point. Munster repelled several late attempts to hold out for the win.

The Thomond Park crowd commemorated the first anniversary of the tragic death of their former head coach Anthony Foley with a minute’s applause.

Racing out half and All Blacks’ legend Dan Carter was subdued on his return to full fitness, picking up a leg injury in the second minute before going off early in the second half.

The slow tempo resulted in a lethargic opening half and it wasn’t until a brilliant off-load by Simon Zebo after the interval that the crowd became engaged. It would have been the try of the round had Earls managed to hold the pass but it wasn’t to be and Munster would have to go again.

On the hour mark, Racing captain Maxime Machenaud’s sloppy kick was charged down by Murray. The crowed drew breath in nervous anticipation as all that remained for the deadlock to be broken was for Murray to gather the ball and dot down.

📸 But a few of tonight's key men..@ConorMurray_9, Conway, @iankeatley and @davidkilcoyne1 #MUNvR92 pic.twitter.com/HVAk4yQwau

— Munster Rugby (@Munsterrugby) October 21, 2017

He did just that with Keatley slotting the extras for a crucial 7-0 lead. Munster then enjoyed another concerted spell of pressure with good go-forward ball by the forwards and after 10 phases Conway gathered Rory Scannell’s pass and darted over in the corner.

Racing emptied the bench and their considerable bulk put Munster under considerable pressure in the closing stages. Fijian Leone Nakarawa bundled over to set up a tense finale.

The visitors had a lineout close to the Munster line in the final minute but didn’t take the opportunity to leave Limerick with anything more than a losing bonus point, as Munster joined Leicester at the top of the pool on five points each.

Munster will face Leicester Tigers again on Saturday 9th of December at 19:45 at Thomond Park with the reverse fixture coming a week later.

Munster survived a late French rally to record their first Champions Cup win of the season at Thomond Park.

Terrible weather conditions contributed to a poor game that was scoreless until Conor Murray’s 60th-minute try.

Andrew Conway darted over in the corner 10 minutes later with Ian Keatley converting both sideline conversions.

Racing’s bench made an impact, Leone Nakarawa crashing over with five minutes remaining as they applied late pressure but Munster hung on.

The Thomond Park crowd commemorated the first anniversary of the tragic death of their former head coach Anthony Foley with a minute’s applause.

The game was a disappointment and All Blacks’ legend Dan Carter was subdued on his return to full fitness, picking up a leg injury in the second minute before going off early in the second half.

The slow tempo resulted in a lethargic opening half and it wasn’t until a brilliant off-load by Simon Zebo after the interval that the crowd became engaged.

Racing captain Maxime Machenaud’s sloppy kick was charged down by Murray, who sprinted for the line and slid in for the game’s opening score after the hour mark.

Munster had a good spell of pressure with good go-forward ball by the forwards and after 10 phases Conway gathered Rory Scannell’s pass and darted over in the corner.

Racing appeared disinterested for long spells but their bench influenced the final 10 minutes and Nakarawa bundled over to set up a tense finale.

The visitors had a lineout close to the Munster line in the final minute but didn’t take the opportunity to leave Limerick with anything more than a losing bonus point, as Munster joined Leicester at the top of the pool.

Munster: Zebo; Sweetnam, Farrell, Scannell, Earls; Keatley, Murray; Kilcoyne, Marshall, Archer; Kleyn, Holland; O’Mahony (capt), O’Donnell, Stander.

Replacements: O’Byrne, O’Connor, Ryan, Flanagan, O’Donoghue, Williams, Hanrahan, Conway.

Racing 92: Lambie; Rokocoko, Chavancy, Tuitavke, Dupichot; Carter, Machenaud; Ben Arous, Chat, Tameifuna; Le Roux, Nakarawa; Lauret, Nyanga, Claassen.

Replacements: Szarzewski, Afatia, Johnston, Chouzenoux, Maka, Iribaren, Tales, Vulivuli.

Munster: Zebo; Sweetnam, Farrell, Scannell, Earls; Keatley, Murray; Kilcoyne, Marshall, Archer; Kleyn, Holland; O’Mahony (capt), O’Donnell, Stander.

Replacements: O’Byrne, O’Connor, Ryan, Flanagan, O’Donoghue, Williams, Hanrahan, Conway.

Racing 92: Lambie; Rokocoko, Chavancy, Tuitavke, Dupichot; Carter, Machenaud; Ben Arous, Chat, Tameifuna; Le Roux, Nakarawa; Lauret, Nyanga, Claassen.

Replacements: Szarzewski, Afatia, Johnston, Chouzenoux, Maka, Iribaren, Tales, Vulivuli.