Munster coach Declan Kidney felt his side’s poor discipline was a big factor in allowing Magners League leaders Leinster chalk up a 21-12 win in Saturday’s derby tie at the RDS.
“We’re disappointed with our discipline. Obviously there were a lot of penalties against us, especially at the start of the game,” Kidney said in the aftermath of the Dublin clash.
“It gave Leinster a foothold in the game. The possession stakes would come against us too. It’s very hard to score when you don’t have the ball.
“What’s important is we take a look at what’s under our control and work on that. We’ll take a good look at what we did wrong – there’s lots of things we need to learn from tonight and we have to put that to good use.
“It was a very good day for Leinster. It wasn’t a good day for us, so we have to congratulate Leinster,” he added.
The Corkman was quick to praise Leinster for the way they went about securing their second win of the campaign over Munster.
“We were looking forward to the game. But you have to give credit where it’s due, I think Leinster played very well.
“They’ve shown a lot of consistency throughout this league. You can come up with excuses, but that wouldn’t be our way.”
Kidney welcomed the fact that the two provinces now seem to be driving each other on to achieve better results and standards, with Leinster particularly eager to claim a first league title under Michael Cheika and build for next season’s Heineken Cup.
“Most educationalists would tell you that if you’re in a good class, the people drive each other on in the class and they bring the standards up,” Kidney said.
“It’s probably not for me to say as coach to one side, but sides do bring one another on. That rivalry, once it’s dealt with properly, can only be good for everybody involved.”
The sight of both Ronan O’Gara and Peter Stringer having to be helped off the RDS pitch caused concern for the Munster management and fans alike.
O’Gara did not appear for the second half after shipping a knee injury at a ruck in first half injury-time, while an accidental clash with Anthony Foley’s elbow left Stringer with soft tissue damage to his neck and shoulder area.
An initial scan showed no serious damage to O’Gara’s knee, although it will not be known until mid-week whether the Heineken Cup’s record points scorer will be able to play against Saracens in the forthcoming semi-final.
There was also positive news for Stringer, who had to be stretchered off the pitch. He was taken immediately to St. Vincent’s Hospital but was later discharged.
A Munster spokesman said that in both cases it would be later in the week, probably Wednesday, before it could be ascertained how soon they could be expected to be back in action.
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