Munster got their season back on track in Thomond Park on Saturday evening.
A win against the usually physically dominant Bulls pack would have been accepted, but to do so with a bonus point and a solid performance will please fans and coaches alike.
The Bulls weren't at their best in a wet and windy Thomond Park, however we can’t pick holes in Munster’s start to the season and then not praise them when they get things right.
Not everything stuck, but a lot of things came together on the night. The return of Emerging Ireland players, such as Shane Daly and Calvin Nash helped. Joey Carbery putting in a man-of-the-match performance was one of the most important aspects for their immediate future, as were the performances of new stars such as the colossal Edwin Edogbo.
There was plenty of encouragement to be taken from Munster's 31-17 triumph against the Bulls at Thomond Park, with the province's young guns shaping as key figures in Graham Rowntree's project. #RTErugby #AgainstTheHead pic.twitter.com/0l4irsVv2B
— RTÉ Rugby (@RTErugby) October 17, 2022
Jack Crowley is one of the most interesting current case studies in Munster. The pressure was on Carbery last night because Crowley’s pre-season performances and his Emerging Ireland tour have put him in the limelight. Who knows where his ceiling is, he is really only getting going.
Crowley would have been frustrated going into the first few games of the season. Munster stuck to their pecking order and gave Ben Healy the benefit of the doubt.
However, if you watched the pre-season friendlies, whatever they stand for, and if you have an idea of how Munster are setting up their attacking structures, Crowley is the second in command at Munster and Carbery is within his sights.
Crowley plays the game with a boyish excitement, yet his game management is taking huge strides forward. Managing the Emerging Ireland gameplan will have done wonders for his self-belief.
He's a proud Munster man, but Donal Lenihan's view of the Leinster-Munster rivalry and a huge weekend encounter at the Aviva is anything but rose-tinted. #RTErugby #AgainstTheHead pic.twitter.com/ApUAOitdTf
— RTÉ Rugby (@RTErugby) October 17, 2022
Despite not lacking in self-belief from the exterior, every decision-maker needs games under their belt, and against top opposition, to really and truly feel that you belong.
Crowley plays with confidence in the absence of ego, and is an all-round good guy. It makes it even easier to back his rugby-playing credentials because good people are important in this sport.
We saw his freedom playing at full-back on Saturday night, a jersey that he wore for me in Cork Constitution despite the pressure to put him straight in at out-half. Crowley doesn’t bat an eyelid with that sort of discussion.
He’ll play where he’s needed and he’ll do a good job of it. We saw that with his marauding runs in Thomond Park on Saturday night, and not even Marcell Coetzee was exempt from a slight humiliation in the presence of Crowley’s footwork.
An absolute student of the game, rugby discussions are never cut short, such is his obsession with his craft. That enthusiasm doesn’t stop on the attacking side of the ball, which is a huge attribute to bring to this Munster side who need to keep improving on the defensive side of possession. Crowley is easily the most physical and willing tackling out-half they have.
His current barriers to action are both Healy and Carbery, but surely he has now done enough for Munster to back him ahead of Healy. The Tipperary native and inaugural senior cup winner in Glenstal has all the technical ability and has ambidextrous kicking abilities, but he hasn’t the same attacking potency as his competitor Crowley.
This new attacking shape through the lens of Mike Prendergast and under the guise of Irish management is much more suited to the style of Carbery and Crowley.
Carbery has spent time playing this attacking strategy in a green jersey and under the instruction of Johnny Sexton. Crowley got an injection of intel through his tour with Emerging Ireland and it may well have been the environment that he needed, without the immediate competition and overthinking that comes back at your province.
Jack has yet to face any real struggle and dips in form as a pro, which is the positive outlook that Munster could actually do with at present. Someone that doesn’t view opportunity with a negative tinge, someone that only sees the spark in an opportunity and wants to naively grab it with both hands.
I would have thrown him into the mix against Leinster this weekend to see if his confidence and rising reputation could force a confident tone about the Munster game. However, Carbery reminded us that he’s the man in charge down south and won’t be giving up his jersey too soon.
He’s the heir to the Sexton throne still and will be backed from the top down so it won’t be as easy as just throwing Crowley in to the mix and giving him top tier game-management exposure.
Crowley will have to continue on his progressive journey, but he is fast becoming the bolter that could drive this red machine in the right direction. I’m not saying that a guy at his level won’t have mistakes or errors in his game management.
Carbery is rightly in the number 10 jersey in Munster, but Crowley’s tide is rising.
I coach or have coached him, so I have some bias towards him. However, I’d be very careful with that opinion. Before now I could see that he is growing in his role and was nearly ready to drive the team.
Now, I believe he is ready for centre stage and should push Carbery as close as possible for the starting jersey.
Watch Leinster v Munster in the United Rugby Championship on Saturday from 4.30pm on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player, listen to live commentary on RTÉ Radio 1's Saturday Sport and follow a live blog on RTÉ.ie/sport and RTÉ News app
