A Christmas With A Difference

It will be a very different Christmas this year for Munster Rugby coach Clayton McMillan.

Back home in his native New Zealand, it’s off season and a time for relaxation.

But having made the move from the Waikato-based Chiefs to take charge of Munster, he now finds himself in the middle of a hectic sequence of festive fixtures.

Last weekend, he took his team to Wales for a meeting with the Ospreys at Bridgend’s Brewery Field, a game they won 26-10 to move up to second in the Vodacom URC table.

Next up, this Friday, it’s a huge seasonal showdown with league champions Leinster Rugby at a sold out Thomond Park in Limerick.

“It’s all new for me,” said McMillan.

“It’s usually barbeques and beers at this stage of the year!

“No doubt people are going to turn up in great festive spirit. That sort of adds to the occasion, doesn’t it?

“People come home and spend time with their families. I understand it’s a bit of a ritual to put the colours on and head along to Thomond Park and support Munster over that festive period. I see the game is sold out.”

McMillan’s men will be looking to complete the league double over Leinster having beaten them 31-14 at Croke Park in October.

“We got a good outcome last time,” he said.

“We caught them on the hop and they will be hurting, so we know what’s coming.

“That first game at Croke Park was a hell of an experience.”

The 51-year-old McMillan was born in Perth, Australia, but raised in Rotorua on New Zealand’s North Island and played at No 8 for Bay of Plenty before moving into coaching, starting out with Coca-Cola Red Sparks in the Japanese city of Fukuoka.

He went on to coach Whakarewarewa rugby club, Bay of Plenty and New Zealand U20s ahead of taking the reins at the Chiefs in 2020, guiding them to four Super Rugby finals and also working with the All Blacks XV, a role which saw him go up against Munster in Limerick while on tour last year.

“I have had an experience on the other side of the fence coming to Thomond Park with a full capacity and vocal home crowd,” he said.

“It’s going to be a hell of a game against Leinster and I’m looking forward to the challenge.”

Munster have won six of their seven Vodacom URC matches this season, with their only defeat having come against the table-topping Stormers.

“I’ve been speaking to lots of media people who have been questioning that we have been winning but not necessarily doing it pretty, but that’s not overly concerning to me,” said McMillan.

“When you look across the competition, everyone is kind of in a similar place, with teams looking a bit scratchy but getting across the line.

“That’s the stage of the season we are at. It’s cold, it’s wet, it’s windy, everyone is fighting for points.

“There’s a long way to go in the season. I am not even thinking about titles at this stage.

“It’s just a case of respecting the opposition you come up against because I don’t think there are any easy wins in this competition and it’s even harder when you go away from home.”

As for Leinster, they have bounced back from a disappointing start to the season by stringing together five successive victories in all competitions.

The latest of those came in Belfast last Friday when they turned around a 17-7 half-time deficit to beat Ulster Rugby 24-20.

Head coach Leo Cullen added: “We were pleased with the result – to get a bonus point win after being ten points down at half-time.

“We looked a bit incohesive in the first half. Some of the combinations were not quite working and we were giving away some cheap possession. We gave away a couple of very soft tries.

“What’s pleasing is how we responded in the second half and it was great to come away with the bonus point win. It’s positive that we found a way to get a positive outcome, but it’s not the way you’d want to do it week on week.

“We need just a bit more composure at the start of the game and to build more pressure on the opposition rather than building pressure on ourselves.”

Looking ahead to the meeting with Munster, he said: “It’s going to be a great challenge. It will be a packed house, I presume, and a great atmosphere down there as always. They are always brilliant occasions.

“We played them in Croke Park already this season where we were poor and Munster were good, picking up a bonus point win.

“That’s why we are where we are in the league, chasing the rest of the teams ahead of us. But there’s a bit of positive momentum in terms of results. “Performance-wise, I believe we can still get a hell of a lot better, so that’s what we need to try and focus on.”