Gloucester were defeated away from home by a semi-convincing Munster side in round two of the Investec Champions Cup.
Here’s how we rated the Gloucester players:
Backs
15 George Barton: The talented full-back started so strongly that many were left wondering why he’s been overlooked for so long. On kicking duties early on, he scored Gloucester’s only points to take the lead. He followed this up with a brilliant tackle on a Munster winger to force him into touch, winning his side the lineout, and more importantly, possession. He was a regular chaser of the chipped ball, helping to gain his side 30 metres on one occasion, and later brilliantly turned over the ball in a tackle to give his side the chance of a counterattack. Also, it must be noted, still in the first half, he hit the most audacious 50:22 off the back of an opposition 22-dropout. His first half performances showed him to be dead-secure in the air, assured with the ball in hand, and pinpoint with his kicks. His second half, however, undid all the above, proving just why he’s been overlooked as a regular starter for many years. He started the half with a brilliant breakthrough, but after finding space, his attempted kick forward landed in touch. Miscommunication with a teammate midway through the second half led to a dropped ball and an attacking scrum to the opposition. With his performance dwindling and his confidence with it, he sliced a clearance kick from a defensive scrum, giving Munster yet another opportunity to attack. As things went from bad to worse, Munster almost scored in the dying minutes when Barton had the ball ripped from his arms. There’s certainly talent there, but the basics need to be tuned. 6
14 Josh Hathaway: The speedy winger almost made the assist of the year with an out-the-back spin pass early on, but that was his only impact of note. Guilty of losing the ball on a couple of occasions, and gave away a penalty on the second half restart after pushing Tadhg Beirne. 5
13 Will Knight: His channel was targeted, and despite planting his shoulder into most contact, he missed three tackles just in the first half. Nothing much to note on the other side of the ball. 4
12 Max Knight: Like his centre partner, he offered very little in attack, but on the contrary, defensively, he was solid, not missing a single tackle. 6
11 Rob Russell: Light-footed in attack, but light-shouldered in defence. One defender beaten does not make up for four missed tackles. 4
10 Charlie Atkinson: The England prospect settled into his number ten role with confidence after playing at 15 for much of this season. He wasn’t afraid to run with the ball when required, and put in a couple of clever kicks to keep the Munster defence honest. Extremely solid in defence also. 7
9 Mike Austin: Used his chipped box kicks well to put the outside backs under pressure, and chose when to do so, well. His impact on the game diminished slightly in the second half when the opposition cottoned on to his tactics, however. 6
Forwards
8 Jack Clement: The powerful number 8 was a constant attacking threat, making 15 carries for 33 metres through his hard running lines. Although he was successfully marshalled by the Munster defence, his explosive power enabled him to provide Gloucester with front-foot ball. 7
7 Harry Taylor: Did well to clean up a dangerous bouncing ball early on, and didn’t look back from then on. With a joint high of 16 tackles, Taylor was a defensive leader. He was brilliant with his turnover work, and when the lineout went to him, it was secure. 7
6 Josh Basham: He made his carries, but failed to make much yardage from them. His tackling wasn’t powerful enough either, missing three during the match. 5
5 Arthur Clark: The giant second row made an incredible 15 tackles in the first half, helping his side to remain in the game. He made a great take from the restart to help his side regain possession after conceding early in the second half. Brought off with 20 minutes to go, his side truly noticed his absence. 7
4 Cameron Jordan: It was a very ordinary performance from Jordan. He went about doing his business as needed, but made no major impact on the game either way. Nothing to be disappointed about, nothing to brag about. 6
3 Jamal Ford-Robinson: He made up for his prop teammate conceding an early scrum penalty by winning a scrum-winning penalty of his own. Sadly, that was his last positive action of the game. He looked lost at times, bullied in the ruck, and was given a yellow for a clear out at the ruck, which came dangerously close to being a red for shoulder to head contact. 3
2 Jack Innard: He lost three out of his first four lineouts, but soon fixed it. Defensively, he put the work in, but like many of his teammates, he was caught off balance more than once. 5
1 Dian Bleuler: Struggled at scrum time, notably coming in at the angle and giving away what should have been an important attacking opportunity early in the match. Missed an astonishing three tackles in the first half. Dragged off 11 minutes into the second half, but not before unforgivably giving the ball away early at a ruck early into the second half. 3
Replacements: The scrum was sured up with the arrival of the bench, but the inexperience of the new arrivals showed, as the world-class talents of Munster started to strut their stuff. Kealan Freeman-Price’s overthrown lineout led in the final few minutes summed up the occasion, as Beirne’s try sealed the deal for the visitors. 4