- Teams Scotland and Ireland are set to meet in the United Rugby Championship semi-final at Thomond Park on Saturday.
- Their meeting has been marred by continued heated confrontations and nagging in recent years.
- Former Glasgow star Wilson has always been at the heart of the action and said the Warriors’ win in the 2015 Pro12 final was probably the start of the rivalry.
- Glasgow’s win at URC at Thomond Park last season could give them the confidence they need to reach this year’s final.
MUNSTER will be most people’s favorites to reach the URC final again but I’d like to give Glasgow Warriors a fighting chance to beat them in tomorrow’s semi-final.
Munster peaked at the right time last season and have had the difficult road ahead, winning all three rounds of the play-offs at home.
They looked strong again this season, topped the regular season standings and beat the Ospreys in the quarter-finals on Friday night. Munster could be the team to stop again this year, especially on home advantage.
But I wouldn’t rule out Glasgow just yet. I thought my old team looked incredibly impressive in the quarter-finals against the Stormers, especially in the second half. After a few tough results there were questions about their mentality and ability to cope with the pressure of rugby’s knockouts, but they answered all of them in style.
It might have been easy for the Stormers to be a bit shaken when they got their first try of the game, but they hit back immediately with a score of their own. And when the Stormers scored again, Glasgow’s response was to get over the line twice more to secure a brilliant win. They showed that on Saturday night after losing to Toulon in last season’s Challenge Cup final and losing to Munster in the URC quarter-finals.
Scotstoun will have been buzzing all week and they will travel to Limerick confident with the result. They should also remember their visit to Thomond Park a year ago where they won for the first time in almost a decade.
2017 Ryan Wilson and Peter O’Mahony wrestle on the grass as both fighters enter.
Things got tight for Matt Fagerson last year as Glasgow secured a fine win at Munster.
Glasgow congratulate Sebastian Cancelliere for his efforts in leading the Stormers to a quarter-final defeat.
I think I was the 24th man to run the water that day, and what a joy it was to see the boys rioting. Domingo Miotti was brilliant at 10 and the downfall worked perfectly to put the boys up 28-0 at half-time. I have never experienced such quiet Munster fans!
Their side came back in the second half and finished much tighter, but it was still a massive win for Glasgow and will hopefully give the boys faith that they can do the same again this weekend.
Munster will be clear favorites, but if Glasgow can make their maul work and get their passing game going, they will have a decent chance of making the final.
I would take Glasgow’s backline over Munster any day of the week and in the likes of Sione Tuipulotu and Huw Jones we have players who can turn a game around. I’ve spoken to a few Glasgow fans this week and they’re expecting a pretty decent following to visit Limerick, so hopefully they’ll be able to hear their voices during the game.
Munster like to pretend they don’t have a rivalry with Glasgow, but I think there is. I heard that Warriors’ defensive coaches Pete Murchie and Johnny Matthews are blaming me for causing trouble between the two clubs! I can’t take full responsibility, but it was a lot of fun and there was always a bit of conflict between the players every time we played.
Munster’s Jack Crowley avoids Ospreys’ Morgan Morris in the quarter-finals.
The combination of Huw Jones and Sione Tuipulotu will be crucial to Scotland’s victory hopes.
I’m not sure when it all started, but beating them in the 2015 Pro12 final was definitely a big moment and they only seemed to progress from there. Simon Zebo is a friend of mine, but he told me a few years ago that a lot of Munster people don’t really care about me, and I’ll take that as a compliment!
A few years ago we had a big issue about Conor Murray targeting his standing leg when he was taking box kicks. We saw a swarm of caterpillars moving and rushing from the other side, but nothing more. But I loved all the mind games and dialogue on the field and always trying to finish off Munster players. And they gave back something equally good.
I’m going to cover tomorrow’s game for Premier Sports and I’m really looking forward to it. They even talked about putting me in with the Munster fans, but I’m not sure if that’s a good idea!
Young warriors are given a chance
Gregor Townsend has named his team for a summer tour of Scotland and it was great to see some of the young Glasgow lads getting their chance there. Players like Max Williamson and Gregor Brown have stood up and been noticed throughout the season and now deserve a chance to show what they can do on the international stage.
I always expected it would be a relatively young group that Gregor would take on there, but he’s also added some experience with Sione and Huw and others. I hope everyone gets a chance to show what they can do over the course of four Test matches.
Ryan Wilson will feature in every URC semi-final on Premier Sports this weekend.
Ryan Wilson is part of the Premier Sports team broadcasting live coverage of the massive URC semi-final in Limerick this Saturday as Glasgow Warriors take on URC champions Munster. Join the Premier Sports team of Ross Harries, John Barclay, Stephen Ferris, Tom Shanklin, Ryan Wilson and Rory Hamilton live from Thomond Park on Premier Sports 1 from 5.15pm. Vodacom Bulls v Leinster coverage will also be shown live on Premier Sports 1 from 2.30pm. afternoon. For more information, visit www.premiersports.com.
Premier Sports includes LA LIGA, Scottish Premiership, Scottish Cup, Scottish League Cup, Copa América 2024, United Rugby Championship, EPCR Challenge Cup, TOP14, NHL, IIHF Worlds, NASCAR and KSW are available in both markets.
