It’s win or bust for Connacht in crunch tie with Munster

IT might only be early March but the PRO14 season is coming to a conclusion. The early finish is now set in stone and Connacht have just three fixtures remaining. To make the final of the competition, they have to make up a nine point deficit on Conference B leaders Munster who they face in Thomond Park on Friday (7:35). Unlikely as that might be as a target, meeting the side they are chasing in the run-in at least keeps things interesting.

Even if Connacht were on top of the table, they would be outsiders coming into a fixture at a venue that has proved to be a mood killer for four decades now. Just one win in 36 years and oh what a win that was. Bundee Aki’s try after Robbie Henshaw’s brilliant break saw Connacht win there in their title winning season of 2016.

The memories of that night will linger long after all the players have retired. The sight of Aki pounding his chest after that score, the roars from the thousands of Connacht fans in the stadium at full time, the emotion in Eoghan Masterson’s voice during the post game interviews. It was an amazing night at a venue where Connacht had suffered some of their heaviest defeats in the years before that.

The stakes don’t seem as high this weekend and the drama might not end up being as visceral, but the size of the task is arguably as big if not bigger. Sure Munster have numerous players away on international duty, but they have rotated squads for this fixture plenty times in that past and will still field a strong side on Friday.

For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.

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