Munster back in the race after thrilling win
REPORT: Rory Scannell’s incredible last-gasp penalty completed a remarkable comeback for Munster in the Pro14’s 2000th match.
In a fitting way to bring up the milestone, Scannell’s penalty capped off a thrilling 25-24 victory – which saw the Warriors open up a 14-point lead thanks to two George Horne tries.
But Alex Wootton and Alby Mathewson whittled it down to two, leaving Scannell to take the plaudits at the death.
The result sees Munster move back into contention in Conference A after falling to fifth before the European break.
After a busy European period, a return to domestic action provided the players with another opportunity to sharpen up before the autumn internationals.
Munster was boosted by the return of wing Keith Earls, while Glasgow made eight changes to the side which beat Cardiff Blues in the Champions Cup – including a start for Horne.
The home side started quickly, playing at a ferocious pace – helped by a superb Earls break into the Warriors 22.
And that led to the first try of the match, with Sean Cronin powering over from close range with the help of John Ryan following some impressive work from the forwards.
But the Warriors hit back in style in the 24th minute. Opting to run from their own 22, Rory Hughes floated a superb pass out wide and that created space for their backs to run into.
A couple of neat passes later and Horne was away, sprinting for the corner and sliding in to score.
The scrumhalf did it again before the break, Nick Grigg picking a clever line off the left to receive the ball and he burst through before slipping a pass for Horne to run clear.
With just two defeats from their last eight matches against Irish provinces, the Warriors were noticeably confident and they scored a third try after the break – with Matt Fagerson picking up a loose ball off the back of a scrum and diving over.
JJ Hanrahan almost cut that gap with a scything run through the Warriors defence but he was held up just short.
The fly-half did reduce the deficit to three with a penalty following a scrum infringement but Glasgow brought up the bonus point in style as George Horne chipped ahead for brother Peter to touch down.
Munster got back into it when Wootton burst through to score in the corner, before scrumhalf Mathewson threw a dummy pass and dived over from three metres out. Ian Keatley kicked the conversion to reduce the gap to two points.
And Scannell completed the comeback with a long-range penalty with the last kick of the game.
The scorers:
For Munster:
Tries: Cronin, Wootton, Mathewson
Cons: Hanrahan, Keatley
Pens: Hanrahan, Scannell
For Glasgow:
Tries: G Horne 2, Fagerson, P Horne
Cons: P Horne, Thomson
Yellow card: Chris Cloete (Munster, 45)
The teams:
Munster: 15 Mike Haley, 14 Andrew Conway, 13 Sammy Arnold, 12 Rory Scannell, 11 Keith Earls, 10 JJ Hanrahan, 9 Alby Mathewson, 8 CJ Stander, 7 Chris Cloete, 6 Peter O’Mahony (captain), 5 Billy Holland, 4 Jean Kleyn, 3 John Ryan, 2 Niall Scannell, 1 James Cronin
Replacements: 16 Kevin O’Byrne, 17 Dave Kilcoyne, 18 Stephen Archer, 19 Fineen Wycherley, 20 Arno Botha, 21 Neil Cronin, 22 Ian Keatley, 23 Darren Sweetnam
Glasgow: 15 Ruaridh Jackson, 14 DTH van der Merwe, 13 Nick Grigg, 12 Sam Johnson, 11 Rory Hughes, 10 Pete Horne, 9 George Horne, 8 Matt Fagerson, 7 Callum Gibbins (captain), 6 Adam Ashe, 5 Scott Cummings, 4 Rob Harley, 3 D’Arcy Rae, 2 Grant Stewart, 1 Oli Kebble
Replacements: 16 Kevin Bryce, 17 Jamie Bhatti, 18 Petrus du Plessis, 19 Greg Peterson, 20 Chris Fusaro, 21 Nick Frisby, 22 Brandon Thomson, 23 Niko Matawalu
Referee: Dan Jones (Wales)
Assistant referees: Chris Busby (Ireland), TBC
TMO: Brian MacNeice (Ireland)
