Zebre 12 Munster 16
If this season is ever to be recalled by Munster historians any self-respecting recounting might be inclined to gloss over the 80 minutes played out in Parma on Saturday afternoon.
Munster and Zebre entered a fog-shrouded Stadio Sergio Lanfranchi without their international stars, and while in such circumstances a win can be deemed acceptable in almost any guise, there can be little doubt Anthony Foley would have wished to see more from his side.
Sporting a flawless record against their hosts, Munster looked set to leave with the win at minimal expense – and for the opening 10 minutes that pre-ordained script looked set to run its course.
Munster's Mark Chisholm crossed the Zebre line on six minutes, in somewhat dubious circumstances.
The defence offered little beyond cursory resistance to a Munster maul off a lineout inside their 22, and the secondrow touched down with a somewhat artless finish. Ian Keatley added the conversion from a tight angle to put Munster into a handsome early lead.
Zebre looked uncertain and uncomfortable for those opening 10 minutes, until a penalty on the halfway allowed Kelly Haimona to kick for the Munster 22. A scrum off the resulting lineout led to a penalty that Haimona converted to settle the Italians.
From there on expectations of Munster dominance at a canter soon drifted into memory, with Zebre settling into a pattern of repeatedly making quick metres through the Munster lines.
Kayle van Zyl collected a pass inside his own half and galloped to the Munster 22 before he was hauled down by chasing red shirts, at the concession of a penalty.
Haimona trimmed the gap to one.
Zebre were again quick to arrive in the Munster 22 off the restart. Their forwards collected additional yards with each phase until finding reward with another penalty under the posts. Haimona put the home side ahead at a stroll.
Approaching the half-hour, Johan Meyer slid beyond Munster tackles before the flanker was held up on the line. Zebre squeezed a penalty from the situation though and Haimona was again left with little to do as he put the Italians ahead 12-10. Foley's side looked to be lacking leadership and cohesion, with the scoreboard reflecting their failings.
Munster’s lineout and scrum remained the strongest weapons in a scantly stocked armoury. With the game tightening around them they turned to exploit their advantage at set plays and successfully stemmed Zebre’s momentum in open play.
Zebre hooker Oliviero Fabiani earned himself a trip to the sin bin with eight minutes left in the first half but as the half ended Muster had added just a further Keatley penalty.
If the first half was a vague battle of styles, the second was a vacuum of any. Dropped passes, misplaced kicks and knock-ons from both sides contributed to a faint, uninspiring chaos.
On 63 minutes Keatley had a chance to give Munster some breathing space amidst the mire, but his penalty drooped tamely under the posts. Zebre managed to fail to legally complete the 22 drop out and we were back to a scrum in the mud of Parma.
A powerful Munster scrum saw Keatley drop a feint to duck inside and stretch Zebre’s defence to the point of mild panic, but the attack was soon quenched by a Munster knock-on. We were now half an hour adrift from the last sign of a score.
Entering the last 10 minutes there seemed little to suggest Zebre could win the game, as they settled into holding out to repeated, but inaccurate, Munster advances on the fringe of their 22.
On 72 minutes there was a sliver of light through the fog, as Keatley stood on the 22, collected a Duncan Williams pass off a ruck and kicked the drop goal. It wasn't quite cinematic, but it spelled the end of Munster's flirtation with upset.
SCORING SEQUENCE – 6 mins: M Chisholm try, I Keatley con 0-7; 13 mins: K Hiamona pen 3-7; 16 mins: Haimona pen 6-7; 20 mins: Haimona pen 9-7; 22 mins: Keatley pen 9-10; 30 mins: Haimona pen 12-10; 37 mins: Keatley pen 12-13; 72 mins: Keatley drop goal 12-16.
ZEBRE: Kayle van Zyl; Dion Berryman, Tommaso Boni (U Beyers), Matteo Pratichetti, Michele Visentin (M Muliana); Kelly Haimona, Luke Burgess; Andrea de Marchi (B Postiglioni), Oliviero Fabiani, Pietro Ceccarelli (G Roan), Gideon Koegelenberg (F Ruzza), Marco Bortolami (capt), Eimiliano Caffini (F Cristiano), Johan Meyer, Jean Cook.
Replacements: Emiliano Coria for Berryman (33-42) and for Fabiani (71 mins) ; Bruno Postiglioni for De Marchi (41 mins); Mils Muliana for Visentin (48 mins); Guillermo Roan for Pietro Ceccarelli (62 mins); Federico Ruzza for Koegelenberg (66 mins); Filippo Cristiano for Caffini, Giulio Toniolatti for Van Zyl (both 71 mins); Ulrich Beyers for Boni (73 mins). Yellow card: Fabiani (32 mins).
MUNSTER: Andrew Conway; Darren Sweetnam, Francis Saili, Rory Scannell, Ronan O'Mahony (G Van Der Heever); Ian Keatley, Tomas O'Leary (D Williams); James Cronin (D Kilcoyne), Niall Scannell (M Sherry), John Ryan (M Sagario), Dave Foley (S Buckley), Mark Chisholm, Billy Holland (capt), Jack O'Donoghue (D O'Callaghan), Robin Copeland.
Replacements: Dave O'Callaghan for O'Donoghue (41 mins); D Williams for O'Leary (49 mins); D Kilcoyne for Cronin. Sherry for N Scannell (both 59 mins); M Sagario for Ryan (66 mins); Shane Buckley for Foley (71 mins); Gerhard van der Heever for 74 mins. Not used: Cian Bohane. Yellow card : O'Callaghan (47 mins)
Referee: Dudley Phillips (IRFU)
