Reds boss Clayton McMillan reckons it will be ‘popcorn time’ when Ireland face New Zealand in Chicago, with inspirational skipper Beirne hailing the ‘different culture’ the Kiwi has brought to the province who lead the way in the URC with the Stormers
Munster’s Tadhg Beirne and Craig Casey celebrate after the 31-14 victory over Leinster(Image: ©INPHO/Tom Maher)
Munster skipper Tadhg Beirne has urged frustrated team-mates to keep asking Andy Farrell questions after missing out on Ireland selection.
The Reds top the URC table with four wins from four, with Saturday’s impressive 31-14 victory over champions Leinster raising the bar.
If Andy Farrell is feeling uneasy about how his Leinster Lions have started the season with Ireland’s All Blacks clash at Soldier Field just 12 days away, he will at least be delighted that Beirne hit the ground running at Croke Park.
The 33-year-old was immense in a brilliant team performance that made a mockery of the fact that only four Reds are booked on Ireland’s flight to Chicago on Tuesday, with 21 Blues for company.
Leo Cullen knew that Farrell’s squad announcement would add further fuel to Munster’s fiery cause and so it proved. “Look, it’s a tough time for those who were hoping to be in there,” said Beirne.
“But they have to look at these kinds of games as opportunities to put in a performance, to ask questions and get in the minds of the selectors of the Irish team.
“The sport is full of rollercoasters and it’s tough not to be selected, but it doesn’t mean you’re not going to be selected in the future. So you have to brush yourself off as quickly as possible, just like you do after a loss, and put in performances to make the decision unbelievably difficult for the selectors going forward.”
Munster head coach Clayton McMillan with his family after the game (Image: ©INPHO/Ben Brady)
Clayton McMillan echoed Beirne’s advice. “All our guys can do is just go out and give a good account of themselves and force the question,” said Munster’s head coach.
“Like Tadhg said, the decisions have been made now, we get right in behind the whole Irish squad, particularly our guys that have been selected.
“We’ll soldier on and hopefully let our performances speak for themselves – and as Tadhg said, somewhere down the road, hopefully that’s rewarded in selection. But the squad has been named, the disappointment has been felt, and we’ll celebrate tonight.”
He added: “It’s actually hard. That’s why you applaud teams like Leinster, who continue to win and keep finding a way to win, and they stay on the top of the heap. That’s not an easy thing to do.
“We’ve found a little bit of a way at the moment, but we’ve got to find other ways to keep getting better and to get closer to that level.
“Again, it’s a good night tonight, but we’re far from the finished product. I think we’ve got a big ceiling. We just keep working every day to try and get closer to it.”
Beirne’s turnover king reputation was only enhanced at GAA HQ – he was at the heart of a stunning Munster defensive effort after they scored three first half tries to move themselves 21-7 ahead at the break.
It took Leinster until the 80th minute to score their second try, by which time it was game over. The immense work-rate of the visitor’s man mountain from Kildare will give encouragement to Farrell that Ireland can find a performance against the All Blacks so early in their season.
Munster’s Tadhg Beirne up for a line out at Croke Park(Image: ©INPHO/Dan Sheridan)
“It’s difficult in terms of getting minutes, to just go into a hot international game like that,” Beirne noted. “As Faz has been saying to us, ‘no excuses’. We have to just get on with it.
“We’re more than good enough to still win, without all of us having game minutes. There’ll be no excuses, we’re all up to speed. We’ll get the work done.”
McMillan, a Kiwi, acknowledges that there will be a big disparity between Ireland and New Zealand in terms of game time. “The benefit that they (All Blacks) have had is they’ve played nine Test matches, so they’ll come battle-hardened,” he said.
“But Tadhg’s performance today suggests you can actually front up on the back of very little rugby and still perform. It’ll be a fascinating contest. Get out the popcorn.”
Meanwhile, Beirne has hailed the “different” culture that McMillan has already bedded in at the Reds. He praised summer arrival McMillan, who was credited with building a great culture with the Chiefs, for the quick turnaround in the province’s fortunes.
“The vibe around the place, it’s brilliant,” enthused Beirne. “Clayton has brought that good – I hate using the word culture, but it’s a different type of culture than we probably had over the last year.”
Macmillan landed with help from his former club, with ex-Chiefs manager Martyn Vercoe and their head of athletic performance, Brad Mayo, providing invaluable support.
“He’s brought great people with him,” confirmed Beirne. “With Vercs and Brad, they’ve brought a lot of energy, everything that I’ve been involved with has been really enjoyable and you can see that within the group. We’ve used a lot of players and lads have gotten opportunities. We’re winning, which helps, so everything’s positive.”
Beirne came into the set-up later than planned as he ended up getting elbow surgery after his heroics with the Lions in Australia. “I wasn’t straight back in, which probably helped in terms of slowly getting to know all the new plays and new systems,” he explained.
“I let Craig (Casey) and (Diarmuid) Barron do their thing and didn’t overstep. They were leading at the time and then I slowly integrated back in, and hopefully I did a good enough job.”