Munster: Heineken Cup Factfile

We take a closer look at Munster’s enviable record in the Heineken Cup – their current squad, all the player and team statistics and their run of results over the years – as Sunday’s semi-final showdown with Saracens draws ever closer.

MUNSTER RUGBY

Musgrave Park
Ballyphehane, Pearse Road
Cork

Tel: 00353 (0) 21 4323563
Fax: 00353 (0) 21 4323956

Thomond Park (capacity 13,200)
Limerick

Tel: 00353 (0) 61 451392
Fax: 00353 (0) 61 325000

Munster Rugby Website

Chief Executive – Garrett Fitzgerald
Director Of Rugby/Coach – Declan Kidney
Team Manager – Shaun Payne
Team Captain – Paul O’Connell

Home Jersey: Red/Navy Blue; Home Shorts: Navy Blue; Alternate Jersey: Navy Blue/Red; Alternate Shorts: White

2007/08 HEINEKEN CUP RESULTS –

Round 1 – November 10, 2007 – Lost 24-23 v London Wasps (away)
Round 2 – November 18, 2007 – Won 36-13 v ASM Clermont Auvergne (home)
Round 3 – December 8, 2007 – Won 29-16 v Llanelli Scarlets (away)
Round 4 – December 16, 2007 – Won 22-13 v Llanelli Scarlets (home)
Round 5 – January 13, 2008 – Lost 26-19 v ASM Clermont Auvergne (away)
Round 6 – January 18, 2008 – Won 19-3 v London Wasps (home)
Quarter-Final – April 5, 2008 – Won 16-3 v Gloucester (away)

FIXTURES TO COME –

Semi-Final – April 27, 2008 – Saracens v Munster, Ricoh Arena, 3pm
Final – May 24, 2008 – Saracens or Munster v London Irish or Toulouse, Millennium Stadium, 5pm

Full 2007/08 Heineken Cup Fixtures and Results

2007/08 MUNSTER SQUAD:

Tony Buckley – Prop – Born: 08/10/80; Height: 6ft 5in; Weight: 21st 1lb
Brian Carney – Winger – Born: 23/07/76; Height: 5ft 11in; Weight: 14st 4lb
James Coughlan – Back Rower – Born: 09/12/80; Height: 6ft 1in; Weight: 16st
Sean Cronin – Hooker – Born: 06/05/86; Height: 6ft; Weight: 15st 8lb
Ian Dowling – Winger – Born: 05/10/82; Height: 5ft 11in; Weight: 14st 9lb
Keith Earls – Centre/Winger – Born: 02/10/87; Height: 5ft 11in; Weight: 14st
Jerry Flannery – Hooker – Born: 17/10/78; Height: 5ft 11in; Weight: 17st 6lb
Denis Fogarty – Hooker – Born: 16/07/83; Height: 6ft; Weight: 17st 4lb
Anthony Foley – Back Rower – Born: 30/10/73; Height: 6ft 3in; Weight: 16st 11lb
John Hayes – Prop – Born: 02/11/73; Height: 6ft 4in; Weight: 19st 9lb
Marcus Horan – Prop – Born: 07/09/77; Height: 6ft 1in; Weight: 16st 3lb
Anthony Horgan – Winger – Born: 15/11/76; Height: 5ft 11in; Weight: 14st
Doug Howlett – Winger – Born: 21/09/78; Height: 6ft 1in; Weight: 14st
Darragh Hurley – Prop – Born: 08/10/85; Height: 6ft 1in; Weight: 17st 8lb
Denis Hurley – Full-Back – Born: 15/07/84; Height: 6ft 2in; Weight: 13st 7lb
Gerry Hurley – Scrum Half – Born: 16/05/84; Height: 5ft 9in; Weight: 11st 13lb
Denis Leamy – Back Rower – Born: 27/11/81; Height: 6ft 2in; Weight: 17st
Kieran Lewis – Centre – Born: 19/08/80; Height: 6ft 1in; Weight: 14st
Lifeimi Mafi – Centre – Born: 15/08/82; Height: 5ft 10in; Weight: 13st 3lb
Jeremy Manning – Out-Half – Born: 11/09/85; Height: 5ft 10in; Weight: 13st 3lb
Eugene McGovern – Prop – Born: 25/05/82; Height: 6ft 1in; Weight: 17st
Barry Murphy – Centre – Born: 28/11/82; Height: 6ft; Weight: 13st 7lb
Donncha O’Callaghan – Lock – Born: 24/03/79; Height: 6ft 6in; Weight: 17st
Paul O’Connell – Lock – Born: 20/10/79; Height: 6ft 6in; Weight: 17st
Mick O’Driscoll – Lock – Born: 08/10/78; Height: 6ft 5in; Weight: 16st 11lb
Ronan O’Gara – Out-Half – Born: 07/03/77; Height: 6ft; Weight: 13st 1lb
Tomas O’Leary – Scrum Half – Born: 22/10/83; Height: 5ft 11in; Weight: 13st 5lb
John O’Sullivan – Back Rower – Born: 12/07/80; Height: 6ft 2in; Weight: 14st 13lb
Jake Paringatai – Back Rower – Born: 13/04/81; Height: 6ft 1in; Weight: 13st 7lb
Shaun Payne – Full-Back/Winger – Born: 22/02/72; Height: 6ft; Weight: 15st 1lb
Federico Pucciariello – Prop – Born: 24/06/75; Height: 5ft 9in; Weight: 17st 4lb
Alan Quinlan – Back Rower – Born: 13/07/74; Height: 6ft 3in; Weight: 16st 7lb
Niall Ronan – Back Rower – Born: 14/09/82; Height: 6ft 3in; Weight: 16st
Donnacha Ryan – Lock – Born: 11/12/83; Height: 6ft 6in; Weight: 16st 11lb
Tim Ryan – Prop – Born: 06/06/84; Height: 6ft 2in; Weight: 18st 12lb
Frankie Sheahan – Hooker – Born: 27/08/76; Height: 5ft 11in; Weight: 16st 11lb
Peter Stringer – Scrum Half – Born: 13/12/77; Height: 5ft 7in; Weight: 11st 4lb
Rua Tipoki – Centre – Born: 11/08/75; Height: 5ft 10in; Weight: 14st 6lb
David Wallace – Back Rower – Born: 08/07/76; Height: 6ft 2in; Weight: 15st 6lb
Paul Warwick – Out-Half – Born: 08/01/81; Height: 5ft 11in; Weight: 13st 9lb

MUNSTER – HOME AND AWAY RECORD:

Home – Best Winning Run: 31 matches; Worst Run Without A Victory: 1 match

Away – Best Winning Run: 7 matches; Worst Run Without A Victory: 8 matches (including 1 draw)

FULL EUROPEAN RECORD:

1995/96: beat Swansea 17-13 (h), lost to Castres 12-19 (a)

1996/97: beat Milan 23-5 (h), lost to Cardiff 18-48 (a), beat Wasps 49-22 (h), lost to Toulouse 19-60 (a)

1997/98: lost to NEC Harlequins 40-48 (a), lost to Cardiff 23-43 (a), beat Bourgoin 17-15 (h), lost to Cardiff 32-37 (h), lost to Bourgoin 6-21 (a), beat NEC Harlequins 23-16 (h)

1998/99: beat Petrarca 20-13 (h), beat Neath 34-10 (h), lost to Perpignan 24-41 (a), drew with Neath 18-18 (a), beat Perpignan 13-5 (h), beat Petrarca 35-21 (a), Q-F lost to Colomiers 9-23 (a)

1999/00: beat Pontypridd 32-10 (h), beat Saracens 35-34 (a), beat Colomiers 31-15 (a), beat Colomiers 23-5 (h), beat Saracens 31-30 (h), lost to Pontypridd 36-38 (a), Q-F beat Stade Fran?ais 27-10 (h), S-F beat Toulouse 31-25 (Stade Chaban Delmas), FINAL lost to Northampton 8-9 (Twickenham)

2000/01: beat Newport 26-18 (h), beat Castres 32-29 (a), beat Bath 31-9 (h), lost to Bath 5-18 (a), beat Newport 39-24 (a), beat Castres 21-11 (h), Q-F beat Biarritz 38-29 (h), S-F lost to Stade Fran?ais 15-16 (Stadium Nord)

2001/02: beat Castres Olympique 28-23 (h), beat NEC Harlequins 24-8 (a), beat Bridgend 16-12 (a), beat Bridgend 40-6 (h), beat NEC Harlequins 51-17 (h), lost to Castres Olympique 13-21 (a), Q-F beat Stade Fran?ais 16-14 (a), S-F beat Castres Olympique 25-17 (Stade de la Mediterranee), FINAL lost to Leicester Tigers 9-15 (Millennium Stadium)

2002/03: lost to Gloucester 16-35 (a), beat Perpignan 30-21 (h), beat Viadana 64-0 (h), beat Viadana 55-22 (a), lost to Perpignan 8-23 (a), beat Gloucester 33-6 (h), Q-F beat Leicester Tigers 20-7 (a), S-F lost to Toulouse 12-13 (Stade Municipal, Toulouse)

2003/04: beat Bourgoin 18-17 (a), beat Benetton Treviso 51-0 (h), lost to Gloucester 11-22 (a), beat Gloucester 35-14 (h), beat Benetton Treviso 31-20 (a), beat Bourgoin 26-3 (h), Q-F beat Stade Fran?ais 37-32 (h), S-F lost to London Wasps 32-37 (Lansdowne Road)

2004/05: beat NEC Harlequins 15-9 (h), beat Neath Swansea Ospreys 20-18 (a), lost to Castres Olympique 12-19 (a), beat Castres Olympique 36-8 (h), beat Neath Swansea Ospreys 20-10 (h), beat NEC Harlequins 18-10 (a), Q-F lost to Biarritz Olympique 10-19 (a)

2005/06: lost to Sale Sharks 13-27 (a), beat Castres Olympique 42-16 (h), beat Newport Gwent Dragons 24-8 (a), beat Newport Gwent Dragons 30-18 (h), beat Castres Olympique 46-9 (a), beat Sale Sharks 31-9 (h), Q-F beat Perpignan 19-10 (h), S-F beat Leinster 30-6 (Lansdowne Road), FINAL beat Biarritz Olympique Pays Basque 23-19 (Millennium Stadium)

2006/07: beat Leicester Tigers 21-19 (a), beat Bourgoin 41-23 (h), beat Cardiff Blues 22-12 (a), beat Cardiff Blues 32-18 (h), beat Bourgoin 30-27 (a), lost to Leicester Tigers 6-13 (h), Q-F lost to Llanelli Scarlets 15-24 (a)

2007/08: lost to London Wasps 23-24 (a), beat ASM Clermont Auvergne 36-13 (h), beat Llanelli Scarlets 29-16 (a), beat Llanelli Scarlets 22-13 (h), lost to ASM Clermont Auvergne 19-26 (a), beat London Wasps 19-3 (h), Q-F beat Gloucester 16-3 (a)

MUNSTER – SEASON BY SEASON:

1995/96 – Director Of Rugby/Coach: Jerry Holland; Captain: Pat Murray; Record: Played 2, Won 1, Lost 1; Top Scorers: Points: Ken Smith 19; Tries: Pat Murray, Richard Wallace 1 each

1996/97 – Director Of Rugby/Coach: Jerry Holland; Captain: Mick Galwey; Record: Played 4, Won 2, Lost 2; Top Scorers: Points: Killian Keane 41; Tries: Anthony Foley, Brian Begley 2 each

1997/98 – Director Of Rugby/Coach: Niall O’Donovan/Declan Kidney; Captain: Mick Galwey; Record: Played 6, Won 2, Lost 4; Top Scorers: Points: Conor Burke 34; Tries: John Lacey 4

1998/99 – Director Of Rugby/Coach: Declan Kidney; Captain: Mick Galwey; Record: Played 7, Won 4, Drawn 1, Lost 2; Top Scorers: Points: Killian Keane 54; Tries: Mick Galwey 4

1999/00 – Director Of Rugby/Coach: Declan Kidney; Captain: Mick Galwey; Record: Played 9, Won 7, Lost 2; Top Scorers: Points: Ronan O’Gara 131; Tries: Jason Holland, Keith Wood 4 each

2000/01 – Director Of Rugby/Coach: Declan Kidney; Captain: Mick Galwey; Record: Played 8, Won 6, Lost 2; Top Scorers: Points: Ronan O’Gara 127; Tries: Anthony Horgan 5

2001/02 – Director Of Rugby/Coach: Declan Kidney/Niall O’Donovan; Captain: Mick Galwey; Record: Played 9, Won 7, Lost 2; Top Scorers: Points: Ronan O’Gara 129; Tries: Jason Holland 4

2002/03 – Director Of Rugby/Coach: Alan Gaffney; Captain: Jim Williams; Record: Played 8, Won 5, Lost 3; Top Scorers: Points: Ronan O’Gara 103; Tries: Anthony Foley, John Kelly 4 each

2003/04 – Director Of Rugby/Coach: Alan Gaffney; Captain: Jim Williams; Record: Played 8, Won 6, Lost 2; Top Scorers: Points: Ronan O’Gara 88; Tries: Anthony Foley 4

2004/05 – Director Of Rugby/Coach: Alan Gaffney; Captain: Anthony Foley; Record: Played 7, Won 5, Lost 2; Top Scorers: Points: Ronan O’Gara 41; Tries: Denis Leamy 3

2005/06 – Director Of Rugby/Coach: Declan Kidney; Captain: Anthony Foley; Record: Played 9, Won 8, Lost 1; Top Scorers: Points: Ronan O’Gara 115; Tries: Trevor Halstead, Paul O’Connell 3 each

2006/07 – Director Of Rugby/Coach: Declan Kidney; Captain: Paul O’Connell; Record: Played 7, Won 5, Lost 2; Top Scorers: Points: Ronan O’Gara 77; Tries: Denis Leamy 3

2007/08 – Director Of Rugby/Coach: Declan Kidney; Captain: Paul O’Connell; Record: Played 7, Won 5, Lost 2; Top Scorers: Points: Ronan O’Gara 89; Tries: Shaun Payne, Rua Tipoki, Brian Carney, Marcus Horan 2 each

TEAM RECORDS –

Highest Score: 64 (v Viadana, 02/03 (h))
Biggest Margin Of Victory: 64 (v Viadana, 02/03 (h))
Most Tries In A Match: 9 (v Viadana, 02/03 (h), Viadana, 02/03 (a))
Highest Score Against: 60 (v Toulouse, 96/97 (a))
Most Tries Against: 9 (v Toulouse, 96/97 (a))
Heaviest Margin Of Defeat: 41 (v Toulouse, 96/97 (a))

INDIVIDUAL RECORDS –

Most Points In A Match: 29 (Ronan O’Gara v Newport, 00/01 (a))
Most Tries In A Match: 3 (Anthony Foley v Biarritz, 00/01 (h))
Most Conversions In A Match: 8 (Ronan O’Gara v Viadana, 02/03 (h))
Most Penalty Goals In A Match: 7 (Ronan O’Gara v Biarritz, 00/01 (h))
Most Drop Goals In A Match: 2 (Ronan O’Gara v Newport, 00/01 (a), Toulouse, 02/03 (a))
Leading Points Scorer: 930 Ronan O’Gara
Leading Try Scorer: 23 Anthony Foley
Try Hat-Tricks: 1 Anthony Foley
Most Points Against: 27 (Lee Jarvis, Cardiff, 97/98 (h))

MUNSTER’S TOP HEINEKEN CUP TRY SCORERS:

23 – Anthony Foley
14 – Anthony Horgan, John Kelly
13 – Jason Holland
12 – Alan Quinlan
9 – Mick Galwey, Denis Leamy, Frankie Sheahan, David Wallace
8 – Marcus Horan, Mike Mullins
7 – Paul O’Connell, Ronan O’Gara
6 – Dominic Crotty, Peter Stringer

MUNSTER’S TOP HEINEKEN CUP POINTS SCORERS:

930 – Ronan O’Gara
118 – Killian Keane
115 – Anthony Foley
84 – Jason Holland
70 – Anthony Horgan, John Kelly
60 – Alan Quinlan
45 – Mick Galwey, Denis Leamy, Frankie Sheahan, David Wallace
40 – Marcus Horan, Mike Mullins
35 – Paul O’Connell

MUNSTER’S MOST-CAPPED HEINEKEN CUP PLAYERS:

86 – Anthony Foley
77 – John Hayes
74 – Peter Stringer
73 – Ronan O’Gara
67 – John Kelly
61 – David Wallace
60 – Marcus Horan
57 – Alan Quinlan
56 – Anthony Horgan
54 – Frankie Sheahan
52 – Donncha O’Callaghan
48 – Mick Galwey
46 – Mike Mullins
39 – Mick O’Driscoll

MUNSTER – HEINEKEN CUP HOME ATTENDANCES:

1995/96 – 1 match – Total Attendance: 6,000 – Average Attendance: 6,000
1996/97 – 2 matches – Total Attendance: 7,500 – Average Attendance: 3,750
1997/98 – 3 matches – Total Attendance: 21,000 – Average Attendance: 7,000
1998/99 – 3 matches – Total Attendance: 7,500 – Average Attendance: 2,500
1999/00 – 4 matches – Total Attendance: 42,400 – Average Attendance: 10,600
2000/01 – 4 matches – Total Attendance: 45,600 – Average Attendance: 11,400
2001/02 – 3 matches – Total Attendance: 33,000 – Average Attendance: 11,000
2002/03 – 3 matches – Total Attendance: 31,800 – Average Attendance: 10,600
2003/04 – 4 matches – Total Attendance: 51,600 – Average Attendance: 12,900
2004/05 – 3 matches – Total Attendance: 39,885 – Average Attendance: 13,295
2005/06 – 4 matches – Total Attendance: 88,400 – Average Attendance: 22,100
2006/07 – 3 matches – Total Attendance: 39,200 – Average Attendance: 13,067
2007/08 – 3 matches – Total Attendance: 37,460 – Average Attendance: 12,487

TOTALS – 40 matches – 451,345 – 11,284

HEINEKEN CUP SEMI-FINALS – DID YOU KNOW?:

– Toulouse and Munster will both wear red in their semi-finals – and they will have the home dressing rooms at Twickenham and the Ricoh Arena respectively.

Saracens will wear their traditional all-black strip and London Irish will be wearing their green and white jersey

– Five Munster players – Ronan O’Gara, Peter Stringer, John Hayes, Donncha O’Callaghan and Anthony Foley – have appeared in a record six semi-finals

– Out-half Ronan O’Gara is the only player to kick two drop in a semi-final, for Munster against Toulouse at Le Stadium in 2003

– The 2003/04 semi-finals had the greatest combined attendance of 82,500 when the ties were played at Lansdowne Road (Munster v London Wasps, 48,500) and at Stade Chaban-Delmas in Bordeaux (Toulouse v Biarritz Olympique, 34,000). That Munster v London Wasps attendance is the tournament record for a semi-final

– The 24 Heineken Cup semi-finals played so far have been watched by 614,817 fans – an average attendance for each of those semi-finals of 25,617

Heineken Cup Statistics: Saracens v Munster

HEINEKEN CUP CHAMPIONS:

2007 – London Wasps
2006 – Munster
2005 – Toulouse
2004 – London Wasps
2003 – Toulouse
2002 – Leicester Tigers
2001 – Leicester Tigers
2000 – Northampton Saints
1999 – Ulster
1998 – Bath
1997 – Brive
1996 – Toulouse

– Statistics courtesy of Westgate Sports Agency