Munster fans could have been forgiven for groaning when their brightest prospects were plucked from the province's ranks to head to Bloemfontein for the Emerging Ireland tour, but RTÉ analyst Donal Lenihan believes the trip will end up yielding rich dividends.
While Simon Easterby's young guns were busy defeating the Griquas, the Pumas and the Cheetahs, a Munster outfit shorn of its nascent talents was enduring a four-game winless run in the URC that only ended with Saturday's encouraging 31-17 victory over the Bulls at Thomond Park.
The Munster contingent only returned to base last Thursday, but the likes of Shane Daly, Jack Crowley and Thomas Ahern made eye-catching contributions in the bonus-point success.
As Graham Rowntree attempts to restore Munter to their former glory, while keeping a lid on expectations, Lenihan believes that the young talent that the head coach has at his disposal will prove key to the success of the project.
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
"The problem with Munster is that, for years and years, there's a level of expectation that's there," the former Ireland captain said on Against the Head.
"Munster are held with an aura about them that I'm not so sure that their performances over the last five years actually warrants.
"Thomond Park as an entity isn't the sort of mad citadel that it was years ago and that's understandable.
"But, for me, the more important thing is that there is a massive cohort of really good young players, and that's why I think that this Emerging Ireland tour will in the long term be good for Munster.
"The nine players that Munster had down there are far closer to making the first team than the nine players that Leinster had there. They're sort of their third/fourth tier.
"If I was Graham Rowntree, I'd have been absolutely raging if I was told three weeks in advance that they were going to lose those nine players because I've no doubt that the likes of Ahern, Crowley, these were fellas he wanted to integrate early on.
"But I'm hoping that as a consequence of the confidence that they generated down there – he brought seven of those nine into the matchday squad – why?
"I think there was a feelgood factor from them when they came home from South Africa. That resonates and rubs off on the other players.
"I think it will be a good thing in the long term for Munster."
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
