Munster were soundly beaten on Saturday by the Sharks who by winning on Saturday won only their 5^th game of the season.

In those 13 games they have faced South African sides on multiply occasions. The Sharks dominated the set piece both scrum and line out and although a few calls at scrum time in particular could have gone either way, for the most part the Sharks were full value for the win.

Yet another campaign is threating to be derailed for Munster who will need a huge showing next Saturday in the 12pm kick off against the Bulls in Pretoria.

This season started with such promise where Munster won their opening 5 games and even though one or two of those results were very close on the score board it did look as though Munster had turned a corner but since the Argentina game back in November things have gone very stale.

They have slipped down the table in the URC and performances have gone by the wayside and it will need another trademark strong finish to the year to get into the last 8 of the URC not withstanding a very tricky away last 16 Challenge Cup game vs Exeter.

Clayton Mc Millian now knows what is required and yes he took the job on for 3 years but the level of performance has just fallen off a cliff edge in recent months. Yes the Sharks were far better in the set piece on Saturday but I didn’t see Munster trying to problem solve on the field and use the “smarts” we hear so often about.

Some of the handling and work at the line out was very abject and again begs the question what is happening on the training pitch. There was a delay in leaving Ireland but that happens on a daily basis and can’t be the sole reason for the showing.

Yet again, we see a Munster coach bemoaning a poor display and apologising to supporters and promising a better showing next time out, time for that crap to stop and get back to basics on the training pitch.

Some of the calling at the line out on Saturday was so poor that the Sharks could easily mark where the ball was going to end up and get there to sniff out any chance of a Munster attack.

Some bright sparks on the day when there was very little to make you think that Munster will be challenging at the end of the season for the 2 trophies they are still in contention for.

Sean Edogbo was a good addition and could see more game time before the end of the campaign, some of the work by John Hodnett at the breakdown at least gave Munster some small hope. The pressure that the Sharks exerted on Munster made it so difficult for Munster to gain any real momentum and when they had some possession they knocked balls on with regularity and that in turn stalled any momentum.

The recurring theme for Munster in recent years has been inconsistent performances and having to dig it out at the tail end of a campaign, this looks very certain to be the case again this year but Munster could possibly see themselves squeezed out of the top 8 and it will take a number of wins to help them secure a top 8 finish, starting on Saturday against the Bulls.

They will welcome back there Irish contingent for the game and that should help the level of performance also but it can’t just be down to those players to help lift the level of performance  needed for the rest of the year.

The backs are to the wall yet again for Munster and while the expectation will be they will rise to the challenge and find a way to get the wins needed to secure URC knock out rugby at the very least will be interesting to watch in the coming weeks.

First up it’s the Bulls on Saturday in Pretoria and then its Exeter away so the tough fixtures keep coming for Munster. Here is the 23 I would pick to face the Bulls –

15 Shane Daly

14 Calvin Nash

13 Dan Kelly

12 Alex Nankivell

11 Sean O Brien

10 Jack Crowley

9 Craig Casey

8 Gavin Coombes

7 John Hodnett

6 Sean Edogbo

5 Edwin Edgobo

4 Jean Kleyn

3 John Ryan

2 Lee Barron

1 Michael Milne

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16 Niall Scannell

17 Jeremey Loughman

18 Micheal Alalatoa

19 Fineen Wycherley

20 Tom Ahern

21 Ethan Coughlan

22 JJ Hanrahan

23 Tom Farrell

Ireland go into the final day of the Championship with an outside shot a winning a 3^rd title under Andy Farrell and if you gave Farrell and his charges this news at full time in Paris they would have more than likely taken your hand off.

From a Scotland point of view they are in with a real chance of a first Championship since they won the last title of the 5 Nations era in 1999 after a terrific win over France in Murrayfield by 10 points 50-40.

Gregor Townsend knows his charges are in with a live chance and a first win in Dublin over Ireland since 2010 would aid that belief. There is a mental block for Scotland with Ireland since that afternoon in Croke Park, be it 6 Nations or 2 World Cup group games in the intervening 16 years.

They will need to overcome that and also deal with expectation from within Scotland through supporters and pundits who will most likely tell all who will listen that this is the golden chance they have waited for so even though it is a home game for Ireland all the pressure will be on the Scots and Ireland can just play their own game on Saturday.

Ireland have experience in these situations at International level where as Scotland will enter fresh territory with a live chance going into the last round for the 1^st time in a long time.

Gregor Townsend is the only one in the Scottish set up who knows what winning a 5/6 Nations title feels like, yes some of his charges have won titles at club level but this one is different and even though the chances of either Scotland or Ireland winning the Championship are slim due to the fact that France hold a 2 point lead and will be on home soil facing England still smarting from the manner of the loss in Edinburgh.

The 6 Nations has thrown up several big results this season and has its stand out finish on “Super Saturday” where all 3 games will be played back to back starting with Ireland v Scotland in Dublin then Wales vs Italy and then it’s off to Paris for France vs England in “Le Crunch” and unfortunately for a number of well-known pundits it won’t be a coronation evening for England but they can still be a fly in the ointment in the quest at stopping France from taking a second straight title.

Ireland will know they have plenty to work on this week in the build up and will be hell bent on finishing the campaign in the best possible way in front of a home crowd. The chances of a title may be slim but while the flame still flickers there is always hope of a 3^rd Championship in the reign of Andy Farrell.

Ireland’s set piece will face a stern examination from Scotland who may do something similar to Saturday vs France by bringing Zander Fagerson in late in the 1^st half after Darcy Rae has done his bit in the opening 40 minutes.

At the breakdown Ireland will also need to be up to speed and cleaver in when they go after the Scots at the breakdown. In defence they will need to work hard and close off the space on the outside and not allow Scotland the time to get there offloading game going which means in turn they will move Ireland’s forwards all over the pitch.

It might take a while for Saturday’s game to get going but once it does I think supporters and pundits alike could be in for a cracking game and similar to 2015, you have 3 sides in with a real chance and all 3 can score tries both France and Scotland probably finding scores easier to come by and Ireland may have to throw the shackles off in an attacking sense and just play what’s in front of them. Saturday promises to be a special day for 1 side with the other two wishing and wondering what may have been.

It is perfectly set up so now it is over to all 6 teams but in particular the 3 with title aspirations to go out and see how they get on. Enjoy it because very rarely does Rugby Union serve up an exciting finish…..

Ireland defeated Wales last night 27-17 in a game that saw Wales discover there battling qualities and there work both at the breakdown and in defence kept them in the game until the last moments.

Ireland produced a performance more in line with the French game and in round 2 at home to Italy. They mixed the good with the bad and the inaccuracy of those first 2 games was on show at times over the 80 minutes last night.

Goal kicking was an issue last night with Jack Crowley missing 2 conversions that he would normally stick over. Those 4 points could have been critical given there was only 7 points between the sides with only 5 minutes left.  

Ireland dominated the opening exchanges and were only 7-3 up after they had a try chalked off that could have put them 12-3 up but they steadied the ship and Ireland did lead 12-10 even after Rhys Carre steam rolled his way to the try line with the clock in the red at the end of the opening 40.

Defence and the set piece have been ongoing issues over the campaign and last night when Wales made a number of changes with Nicky Smith replacing Rhys Carre, the Welsh scrum continued to put real pressure on Ireland and gained a number of penalties and they never took full advantage of.

There are certainly bright sparks for Steve Tandy and his staff to be pleased with as the weeks have gone by but they will have to work hard to find that first win in 29 games now with only victories over Japan a bright note over the past few seasons.

They certainly have a base to work from going into a home game with Italy next weekend. You can be sure given the small incremental improvement of recent weeks they will see the final game vs Italy as a big opportunity to get that first win in a while.

For Ireland, they go into next weekend in search of a Triple Crown and if results go a certain way this afternoon (March 7^th) they could be still be in the hunt for a title with France and Scotland heading into Super Saturday.

Team selection will be watched keenly next week, there is an argument for keeping faith with a number of guys but a few others may be looking over their shoulder.

Nathan Doak did enough to keep his spot on the bench by not missing a beat while Jamison Gibson Park was in the blood bin getting a cut on his knee looked after, while Tommy O Brien will sense a chance to steal a march on Jacob Stockdale in the race for the left wing slot.

There is at the very least 1 bit of silverware up for grabs next weekend and that is the Triple Crown and while in 2026, the aspirations of the vast majority of supporters would not think of a Triple Crown as something special just ask anyone who grew up or watched rugby through the 70s, 80s and 90s how much those special days of 1982, 1985 were and how much those Triple Crowns wins meant to people.

Here is the team I would select to take Scotland on next Saturday at 2.10pm.

15 Jamie Osbourne

14 Robert Baloucounne

13 Garry Ringrose

12 Stuart Mc Closkey

11 Tommy O Brien

10 Jack Crowley

9 Jamison Gibnson Park

8 Caelan Doris

7 Josh Van Der Flier

6 Jack Conan

5 Joe Mc Carthy

4 Tadgh Beirne

3 Thomas Clarkson

2 Dan Sheehan

1 Michael Milne

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16 Ronan Kelleher

17 Tom O Toole

18 Tadgh Furlong

19 James Ryan

20 Nick Timoney

21 Nathan Doak

22 Ciaran Frawley

23 Jimmy O Brien

Ireland face Wales this evening in round 4 of the 6 Nations in Dublin. Wales are looking for a first win of the campaign while Ireland are looking to continue the upturn in form that has seen them beat Italy and England in round 2 and 3.

Wales will hope to beat Ireland for the first time in 5 years and while the smart money will be on Ireland winning and continuing the recent form line that has them back in contention for a Triple Crown win.

Amazing over the past number of years that a Triple Crown would not really register anymore because it’s a Championship win or Grand Slam or bust, For so many years a Triple Crown was hard to achieve for any Irish team and that was beat Wales, Scotland and England and you’d secure this mythical trophy which has only had a trophy to mark it over the past 24 years or so.

Ireland have made a number of changes with 5 in total and still have the spine of experience that should help with complacency. The win over England in particular has focused the minds of all the players.

The challenge now will be can Ireland kick on from the high of 2 weeks ago and finish the campaign with strong performances to show that the win over England wasn’t just a flash in the pan.

Andy Farrell and his coaches have helped find the answers but will know that it is important to keep things moving forward. He has been linked with a move away from Ireland after the World Cup in October 2027. At that point he will have chalked up 11 years of involvement with Ireland as an assistant and head coach.

Ireland and Wales will come at the game this evening in differing form but Wales will know that they have slowly improved but have yet to put in a complete performance over the last while. Several issues are in the background and will continue to overhang the Championship. All the players in the Welsh camp can do is continue to perform and see can they find the vital win that might just kick-start things for them.

The WRU need to hold up there end of the bargain and get around the table again with all the stakeholders and try and trash out a deal that will work for all parties. It is a mess that has defiantly impacted performances on the field.

Ireland will know they have a chance to pick up a win this evening and put themselves in a strong position heading to play Scotland next week in the early kick off on “Super Saturday”.

Sport like most walks of life can be very fickle and the good things and deeds can be so easily forgotten when the pressure comes on. Wales will come to Dublin with everything to gain and nothing to lose and that will keep them alive in the contest.

Tonight is  another one of those moments where being complacent can cause trouble but I can say that Ireland will do as much as is possible that stop that from happening. Triple Crowns may not be the “in” thing but given the way the Championship began in Paris, the sight of trophy next week on the line will be important and who knows if Scotland topple France in Murrayfield tomorrow afternoon there may even be an outside hope of a Championship win, slim I know but we can but hope !!!

Here is the 23 I would select to face Wales on Friday evening in Dublin kick off 8.10pm.

15 Jamie Osbourne

14 Robert Baloucoune

13 Garry Ringrose

12 Stuart Mc Closkey

11 Tommy O Brien

10 Jack Crowley

9 Jamison Gibnson Park

8 Jack Conan

7 Nick Timoney

6 Cian Prendergast

5 James Ryan

4 Edwin Edogbo

3 Thomas Clarkson

2 Ronan Kelleher

1 Micheal Milne

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16 Dan Sheehan

17 Jeremy Loughman

18 Tadgh Furlong

19 Joe Mc Carthy

20 Tadgh Beirne

21 Nathan Doak

22 Ciaran Frawley

23 Jimmy O Brien

This is the 23 I would pick to face Wales in the game on Friday evening…..