Munster win scrappy affair

A stray Castres kick in the early stages meant Munster had a scrum inside the half of the visitors, and they pushed their way inside the 22 before a penalty was given by referee JP Doyle, who had a busy afternoon. JJ Hanrahan’s first kick at goal went straight between the posts.

It was all Munster and they won another scrum penalty inside the Castres 22 ten minutes later, which Hanrahan smashed over again.

The first half ended 6-0 with Castres not touching the ball in the Munster 22, and the dominance from the home side continued into the second half.

An attacking scrum gave Conor Murray excellent field position and a bit of space, and with that he found Rory Scannell who battled his way over the try line, increasing the lead further.

Hanrahan then slotted over another penalty after a scrappy sequence of play that summed up the match, but Munster finally clicked into gear and got their second try on 67 minutes.

Murray was again the catalyst, beating his man, before giving a delightful offload to CJ Stander who powered over the try line.

Munster then managed to put together another delightful sequence of passes with five minutes to play, resulting in Hanrahan – who was awarded Heineken Man of the Match – stretching over for try No.3.

Laveau did score a consolation try for Castres but Urdapilleta could not convert as Doyle blew up on an attritional affair.

The sides will do battle again next week in Stade Pierre Fabre, with all still to play for in Heineken Champions Cup Pool 2.

via EPCRUGBY.COM