Munster Faces Exeter Challenge to Preserve European Season

Saturday’s Challenge Cup last-16 tie kicks off at 12.30pm at Sandy Park. The match will be shown live on Premier Sports 1.

Match context

Munster travel to Exeter for a knockout tie twenty minutes from Exeter town centre. Sandy Park sits beside the M5 in England’s southwest.

The visitors arrive after knocking out Ronan O’Gara’s La Rochelle in a one-point European thriller almost a year ago. Exeter are former kings of Europe, having won the Champions Cup in 2020.

Team selections and key absences

Both coaches have named strong XIs for the fixture. Recent resting of captains suggested rotation, but this game drew serious squads.

Exeter rested Wales lock Dafydd Jenkins last week. Munster’s Tadhg Beirne missed their mini-tour of South Africa.

Pack and forward match-ups

Exeter’s pack features heavy internationals. Scott Sio starts at loosehead. Ross Vintcent and Tom Hooper add international experience in the back row.

Munster counter with Tadhg Beirne and Edwin Edogbo in the engine room. The lock and second-row collisions will shape the contest.

Backline threats and returns

Immanuel Feyi-Waboso returns for Exeter after a hamstring layoff. This is his first game since January.

Henry Slade rejoins Exeter’s backline after missing a week for the birth of his child. Munster possess pace in Thaakir Abrahams and Diarmuid Kilgallen.

Tactical battle

Exeter expect Munster to try to drag the game into a frantic European-style contest. That style often hinges on aggressive breakdown work and tactical kicking.

How Exeter neutralise Beirne’s poaching will be crucial. Control at the breakdown and accurate exit kicking could decide the outcome.

Form, weather and outlook

Munster have won twice in eight matches since the new year. They need a positive result to steady their European campaign.

Light rain is possible at kickoff. The game is not yet a sell-out, despite the knockout stakes.

With Munster facing Exeter in the Challenge, their European season looks fragile. A win would provide much-needed momentum for the visitors.

Teams

Exeter Chiefs

• Olly Woodburn
• Paul Brown-Bampoe
• Henry Slade
• Will Rigg
• Immanuel Feyi-Waboso
• Harvey Skinner
• Stephen Varney
• Scott Sio
• Jack Yeandle
• Jimmy Roots
• Dafydd Jenkins (capt)
• Andrea Zambonin
• Tom Hooper
• Ross Vintcent
• Greg Fisilau

Replacements: Joseph Dweba; Ethan Burger; Bachuki Tchumbadze; Rusi Tuima; Finn Worley Brady; Tom Cairns; Will Haydon-Wood; Campbell Ridl.

Munster

• Ben O’Connor
• Thaakir Abrahams
• Tom Farrell
• Alex Nankivell
• Diarmuid Kilgallen
• Jack Crowley
• Craig Casey
• Jeremy Loughman
• Lee Barron
• John Ryan
• Edwin Edogbo
• Tadhg Beirne (capt)
• Jack O’Donoghue
• Alex Kendellen
• Gavin Coombes

Replacements: Niall Scannell; Michael Milne; Michael Ala’alatoa; Tom Ahern; Ruadhán Quinn; Ben O’Donovan; Seán O’Brien; John Hodnett.

Filmogaz.com will monitor the match build-up and post reaction after full-time. Expect a physical encounter with European knockout stakes.