Rugby
Miserable record in Inter-pros continues to haunt Connacht
After another inter-provincial defeat on Saturday at home to Munster, Connacht will finish the season without a win in match ups against their Irish neighbours.
It’s now 11 straight defeats and they have to go back to September of last season for their last win.
Head coach Pat Lam doesn’t speak in specifics as we know at this stage. He won’t look at a record against Munster or any other province and see how it can be addressed, he’ll instead look at the game from a Connacht standpoint and the mistakes that were made. Poor execution and decision making were to blame on Saturday as far as the Samoan was concerned.
This all has to be given time because in essence he has a point. Had Connacht executed a stable lineout and a correctly timed drive five metres from the Munster line in the first half, perhaps all would have been different. At least two of the three first half tries conceded in the 32-23 defeat were completely avoidable.
On a broader scale though, the barometer for progress will be measured by the impact Connacht can make against their near neighbours in the coming season. If you want to be a relevant force in the Pro 12, losing all six games against Irish provinces just won’t cut it and when it comes to these match ups, Connacht seem mentally outfoxed every time.
For more, read this week’s Galway City Tribune.