Munster opened their win account in this season’s Heineken Cup as Johne Murphy’s 67th-minute try put paid to Gloucester’s chances at Thomond Park, with the hosts running out 26-10 victors in the end.
VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS: MUNSTER 26 GLOUCESTER 10
Rob Penney’s men did enough to rebound from last week’s disappointing defeat away to Edinburgh although in a very tight Pool 6, they failed to engineer a bonus point push in Limerick.
Charlie Sharples and Damien Varley swapped tries in a first half that cantered along at a brisk pace, with Ian Keatley’s hat-trick of penalties separating the sides at 16-10.
The scoreline remained the same until Munster mustered 10 quick-fire points entering the final quarter hour, as Keatley added another penalty and converted a try for Johne Murphy which he set up.
Peter O’Mahony played a captain’s role for the province right from the off, carrying strongly initially and then helping to set up a close range penalty which Keatley stuck over.
Heineken Cup debutant Jonny Bentley misjudged his first kick at the posts as much-changed Gloucester sought an immediate response, their back-line needing an early adjustment as full-back Martyn Thomas was forced off.
Keatley doubled Munster’s lead in the tenth minute and the penalties continued to come, Casey Laulala a prominent figure as the hosts’ possession statistics soared to 82%.
A third successful kick followed from Keatley in the 13th minute, but Gloucester got into scoring range thanks to an inviting kick through from Dan Robson and hard chase from Sharples, and the winger dotted down in the very next play.
The visitors’ pack pressed from the close-in lineout before Robson ducked to the right from a ruck and timed his pass perfectly for Sharples to score at the corner.
Bentley landed a classy conversion from out wide, with quality breakdown work from Ben Morgan and Akapusi Qera allowing the Cherry and Whites to utilise their pace in the backs.
The sides maintained a high tempo with Thomas’ replacement Rob Cook flooring Keith Earls with a meaty challenge, while Laulala and David Kilcoyne made a number of carries for persistent Munster.
That directness from Munster paid off in the 34th minute when they shunned a kickable penalty and Varley, having set up a lineout maul, was driven over for a try which TMO Eric Gauzins confirmed.
The conversion from wide out on the left was swung over by Keatley, but a late ruck offence allowed Bentley to reduce the arrears to 16-10 for half-time.
On the resumption, it was man-of-the-match O’Mahony and Laulala who provided the inspiration again for Munster as they made yards into the Gloucester 22.
Livewire scrum half Robson led the Gloucester resistance, diving to disrupt O’Mahony at the base of a Munster scrum in front of the posts.
The province pressed out wide through Murphy whose kick through led to an obstruction call against Mike Tindall, however Keatley was wayward for the only time from the kicking tee.
There was little between the sides heading into the final quarter, the tension being lifted by Earls’ sidestepping run which saw him link with Murphy before desperate defending forced the ball free from Conor Murray’s grasp.
Keatley eventually broke the second half’s deadlock with a 66th minute penalty following an advancing scrum, and the result was put beyond doubt barely a minute later.
Winger Murphy gobbled up an expertly placed cross-field kick from Keatley on the left and evaded Sharples’ grasp on the way to the try-line. Keatley’s textbook conversion suddenly left Gloucester 16 points adrift.
Gloucester remained competitive though, Tindall, Sharples and Jonny May all testing the home defence before Earls was denied an injury-time try by an earlier infringement.
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