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Ireland centre Farrell sets out the game-plan Munster must use to beat Saracens

By Nathaniel Cope
Chris Farrell has no issue with overseas players qualifying through residency to play for Ireland (Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images)

Chris Farrell admits Munster’s inability to progress beyond the semi-finals has become a concern that will influence their approach to Saturday’s Champions Cup clash with Saracens.

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The rivals meet at Coventry’s Ricoh Arena in a repeat of the 2017 semi-final in Dublin that saw Mark McCall’s men run out emphatic 26-10 winners en route to claiming a second successive Champions Cup title.

Munster have failed to progress beyond the last four since 2008 – the year they lifted the second of their two European crowns – and Farrell insists that only by carrying the fight to Saracens can they make a critical breakthrough.

“We’ve got to get past the semi-final stage because this is our third in a row now,” the Belfast-born centre said.

“It’s a 14th semi-final, which is a record, but we’ve got to get past this point. It can’t be a sticking point all the time

“We can’t have the same mindset as in previous years, we’ve got to do something different and implement things that haven’t worked in the past.

“Saracens have been one of the biggest forces in Europe over the last few seasons. They’re always there or thereabouts, but we gave them too much respect two years ago.

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“We’re not going to sit back the way we did in 2017 and let them enforce their game in the second half, which is what they did that time.

“Eventually we cracked and we didn’t really look like we could trouble them. They were a better side that day, but we’re different now and we’ve added a lot to our team.

“We’ve got some real quality now – Tadhg Beirne is a big, big asset to us and Peter O’Mahony is playing rugby like he’s never played before. This time we’re better.”

Farrell believes the contest will be decided by a combination of technique and desire, with Munster determined to make an early statement.

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“Saracens are the number one team in Europe coming into this game and will be expecting to win, so we have to show we won’t make it easy for them. We want to put them under pressure early,” Farrell said.

“They are a really physical team and we can expect it to be a real battle. The breakdown and in the contact area will be huge for us in terms of trying to knock their momentum.

“They’re a team who when they get momentum are really dangerous off the back of it. When you stop them at source, get your body height right and get the collisions correct, you have a chance.

“They rely massively on their set piece and the contact area, so being physical will be crucial.

“We always say that we start from zero and this is a new game, regardless of what happened in the quarter-final. This is our chance to start from zero.”

PA

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Jon 8 hours ago
Jake White: Are modern rugby players actually better?

This is the problem with conservative mindsets and phycology, and homogenous sports, everybody wants to be the same, use the i-win template. Athlete wise everyone has to have muscles and work at the gym to make themselves more likely to hold on that one tackle. Do those players even wonder if they are now more likely to be tackled by that player as a result of there “work”? Really though, too many questions, Jake. Is it better Jake? Yes, because you still have that rugby of ole that you talk about. Is it at the highest International level anymore? No, but you go to your club or checkout your representative side and still engage with that ‘beautiful game’. Could you also have a bit of that at the top if coaches encouraged there team to play and incentivized players like Damian McKenzie and Ange Capuozzo? Of course we could. Sadly Rugby doesn’t, or didn’t, really know what direction to go when professionalism came. Things like the state of northern pitches didn’t help. Over the last two or three decades I feel like I’ve been fortunate to have all that Jake wants. There was International quality Super Rugby to adore, then the next level below I could watch club mates, pulling 9 to 5s, take on the countries best in representative rugby. Rugby played with flair and not too much riding on the consequences. It was beautiful. That largely still exists today, but with the world of rugby not quite getting things right, the picture is now being painted in NZ that that level of rugby is not required in the “pathway” to Super Rugby or All Black rugby. You might wonder if NZR is right and the pathway shouldn’t include the ‘amateur’, but let me tell you, even though the NPC might be made up of people still having to pull 9-5s, we know these people still have dreams to get out of that, and aren’t likely to give them. They will be lost. That will put a real strain on the concept of whether “visceral thrill, derring-do and joyful abandon” type rugby will remain under the professional level here in NZ. I think at some point that can be eroded as well. If only wanting the best athlete’s at the top level wasn’t enough to lose that, shutting off the next group, or level, or rugby players from easy access to express and showcase themselves certainly will. That all comes back around to the same question of professionalism in rugby and whether it got things right, and rugby is better now. Maybe the answer is turning into a “no”?

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j
john 11 hours ago
Will the Crusaders' decline spark a slow death for New Zealand rugby?

But here in Australia we were told Penney was another gun kiwi coach, for the Tahs…….and yet again it turned out the kiwi coach was completely useless. Another con job on Australian rugby. As was Robbie Deans, as was Dave Rennie. Both coaches dumped from NZ and promoted to Australia as our saviour. And the Tahs lap them up knowing they are second rate and knowing that under pressure when their short comings are exposed in Australia as well, that they will fall in below the largest most powerful province and choose second rate Tah players to save their jobs. As they do and exactly as Joe Schmidt will do. Gauranteed. Schmidt was dumped by NZ too. That’s why he went overseas. That why kiwi coaches take jobs in Australia, to try and prove they are not as bad as NZ thought they were. Then when they get found out they try and ingratiate themselves to NZ again by dragging Australian teams down with ridiculous selections and game plans. NZ rugby’s biggest problem is that it can’t yet transition from MCaw Cheatism. They just don’t know how to try and win on your merits. It is still always a contest to see how much cheating you can get away with. Without a cheating genius like McCaw, they are struggling. This I think is why my wise old mate in NZ thinks Robertson will struggle. The Crusaders are the nursery of McCaw Cheatism. Sean Fitzpatrick was probably the father of it. Robertson doesn’t know anything else but other countries have worked it out.

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