GUINNESS PRO12 Season launch

[L'irlandais]

In spite of the re-Branding of the Pro12, (aka GUINNESS PRO12 Season launch) it was business as usual :

Glasgow Warriors come good under the watchful eye of Nigel. Robbie will be happier than myself about that. :clap:

Good start to the season for Edinburgh too. No reflection on Leighton Hodges' preformance, but are professional sides more successful at milking penalties from referees? (Munster coach reflects on the game.)

 

[Pegleg]

Munster losing at home = Business as usual? I think you've been away too long.

 

[L'irlandais]

Munster losing at home = Business as usual? I think you've been away too long.

Like the coach said in the linked webpage

"You learn more from your defeats than you do from your wins at times. It's about us now making sure that that performance is our low ebb of the year."

Elsewhere in a preseason TV interview the team captain admitted the days of "Fortress Munster" belong to the 2006 era. Losing 3 in a row may be a first for the Professional era Thomond Park, but over the past few seasons fans have gotten used to the occasional defeat at home.

 

[L'irlandais]

12th loss at home over the past 5 seasons. Some stats to support that view :

Last season Ulster beat us at home 17 - 19 during the business end of the season. The other match in this current 3-in-a-row was : Glasgow Warriors : 5 - 22
Season before that both Ospreys - 13 - 17 & Leinster : 9 - 18 caught us on the hop.
Season 2010/11 Quins beat us - 12 -20
Season 2009/10 it was Ospreys - 11 - 15

Even in silverware seasons like 2008/09 we lost at home. Both in November okay we did led the All Blacks by 16-13 at one point during that game ; and January Ulster 11 - 37. Still won the ML that year. During that time we have also lost friendlies at home to London Irish, Wasps, & Leister Tigers.

As the man said, we generally learn more from our mistakes.

 

[Pegleg]

Muster don't lose many at Thomond True Musgrave is not so good a ground for them 12 in all comps in 5 seasons is not bad. Friendlies are largely irrelevant as is the game against the ABs.

 

[L'irlandais]

Muster don't lose many at Thomond True Musgrave is not so good a ground for them 12 in all comps in 5 seasons is not bad. Friendlies are largely irrelevant as is the game against the ABs.

The unbeaten record at Thomond, is partly due to Munster not playing all their home games in that Stadium.
If you look at things objectively, Munster's magic comes from winning on the road.

15 - 19 Leinster Rugby on 16th December 1995
25 - 35 Samoa XV on 9th November 1996 (Musgrave Park)
19 - 55 Australia XV on 26th November 1996 (Thomond Park)
32 - 37 Cardiff Rugby Saturday on 27th September 1997 (Musgrave Park)
18 - 24 Leinster Rugby on 21st August 1998 (Dooradoyle)

The 8 - 9 loss to Northampton Saints on 27th May 2000 (Twickenham) was a turning point for Munster Rugby.

2000/01 Unbeaten at home for the following 3 seasons.
2001/02 "
2002/03 "

2003/04
12 - 19 Llanelli Scarlets on 12th September 2003, KO 19:30 (Thomond Park)
15 - 16 Ulster Rugby on 10th October 2003, KO 19:30 (Musgrave Park)
15 - 18 Ospreys on 27th February 2004 (Musgrave Park)
6 - 16 Newport Gwent Dragons on 12th March 2004 (Thomond Park)
17 - 28 Edinburgh Rugby on 16th April 2004 (Musgrave Park)
32 - 37 London Wasps on 25th April 2004 (Lansdowne Road) *Home advantage
2004/05
Lost pre-season friendly 5-15 London Irish 17th August 2004 (Thomond Park)
2005/06
17 - 20 Ulster Rugby on 3rd December 2005 (Musgrave Park)
20 - 26 Glasgow Warriors on 18th February 2006 (Thomond Park)
2006/07
18 - 26 Leicester Tigers on 25th August 2006 Pre season friendly (Musgrave Park)
10 - 21 Edinburgh Rugby on 13th October 2006 (Thomond Park)
6 - 13 Leicester Tigers on 20th January 2007 H-Cup (Thomond Park)
* Ending 10 years unbeaten at home in the H-Cup.
12 - 19 Cardiff Blues on 2nd March 2007 (Musgrave Park)
2007/08
17 - 19 Cardiff Blues on 5 Oct 2007 (Musgrave Park)
3 - 10 Leinster Rugby on 30th November 2007(Musgrave Park)
18 - 21 Glasgow Warriors on 10th May 2008 (Musgrave Park)

5 home losses in the 1st five years of the professional era, only two at Thomond.
& of 11 further "Home" losses (2000 'til 2008) only 5 were actually played at Thomond.
I make that 23 home losses, over the (18 seasons?) pro-era, excluding the preseason friendlies & Tests against National squads. Happy to be corrected on that.

 

[Pegleg]

I'd suggest 23 home loses in 18 years is a pretty tidy record that most teams would settle for, especially considering 2 were against touring sides. So the above or (even more impressively) 21 in 18 Makes very impressive reading. So to lose the first one of a league season is significant in my book.

 

[L'irlandais]

... So to lose the first one of a league season is significant in my book.

Nah, Edinburgh always trip us up. At the business end of the season we will be there, or there abouts. No worries! :knuppel2:

(By the way, I'd already discounted the 2 touring sides.)

 

[L'irlandais]

Lost 4 times to Ulster at home.
Lost 4 times to Leinster at home.
(Logical we meet Irish sides more often.)
3 times to Cardiff
3 times to Ospreys
3 times to Glasgow
3 times to Edinburgh
Still pretty logical.

Okay to lose a couple of times to English sides, what were we thinking?