Munster’s Tony McGahan praises Ronan O’Gara’s last minute heroics at 2011/12 Heineken Cup
Thomond Park based Munster Rugby’s Director of Rugby, Tony McGahan, has praised the Irish international Rugby Union fly half, Ronan O’Gara, for his heroics in the dying minutes of the their
2011/12 Heineken Cup’s opening encounter against the English professional Rugby Union outfit, Northampton Saints.
Munster hosted Northampton Saints in a Pool 1 encounter of the 2011/12 Heineken Cup competition. O’Gara’s dramatic late drop goal has helped Munster to register 23 – 21 victory over the visiting
Saints side. The match was played on Saturday, November 12, at Thomond Park, Limerick.
Commenting on his sides impressive performance during their weekend encounter, McGahan said, “It was something special. The belief in the group, the way they stuck at it for 80 minutes, a lesser
side would maybe not even have been in the contest.”
Recalling O’Gara’s drop goal, McGahan said, “Ronan O'Gara's kick at the end, he's a special person to do that, to show the bottle to put his hand up and make the kick.”
The match was an epic encounter as Saints delivered one of their best performances in the season. Both teams played a high scoring first half of the game in which the sides scored 30 of their
match 44 points. Munster ended the first half with a lead of four points over the visitors as the scorecard read 17 – 13.
McGahan termed the Saturday’s game situation as do or die. He added, “This felt like a Round Six encounter during the week when it actually was an opening-round game. There is a great sense
of achievement for the group at this early stage.”
Munster started the second half strongly as O’Gara’s 41st minute penalty extended their lead to seven points. However, Saints managed to establish control over the proceedings as they dominated
both ball and territory possession.
Saints reduced the lead to four points, courtesy of their fly half Ryan Lamb’s 44th minute penalty. They were put in the lead for the first time in the match courtesy of their centre
James Downey’s 56th minute try, which took the scorecard reading 21 – 20.
Both sides played the remaining part of the second half without scoring a point, before O’Gara struck a magnificent drop goal in the closing moments of the game to deny Saints a win.
O’Gara was part of the Ireland’s 2011 Rugby World Cup squad, as he finished the match with 13 points.
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