Wasps 14-35 Munster: Covid-ravaged Irish province earn bonus-point Champions Cup win after Brad Shields red card
Keith Earls, Patrick Campbell, Andrew Conway, Scott Buckley score tries as Munster posted a crucial Champions Cup bonus-point win at Wasps; 48 Munster players and staff were in Covid isolation due to ill-fated URC trip to South Africa; Wasps skipper Brad Shields was critically red carded.
By Michael Cantillon at CBS Arena
Last Updated: 13/12/21 5:16pm
A Munster squad missing 34 players due to Covid-19 isolation picked up a sensational 35-14 bonus-point victory at Wasps as Brad Shields was red carded.
Experienced Munster wings Keith Earls and Andrew Conway each grabbed a try on the day, as did 19-year-old full-back Patrick Campbell and 21-year-old hooker Scott Buckley - both on their Munster debuts.
Joey Carbery kicked three penalties and three conversions in the victory, but the most significant moment of the match saw Wasps skipper Shields red carded in the 26th minute for a shoulder to the head of Munster prop Dave Kilcoyne.
Wasps No 8 Alfie Barbeary scored in response to put the hosts into a 7-6 lead, but they were second-best for the remainder of the contest, with Michael Le Bourgeois' second-half try purely consolation.
Munster arrived minus a total of 34 players and 14 staff, including head coach Johann van Grann, due to Covid-19 isolation (14 in South Africa, 34 in Ireland), with a total of 12 debutants named in the squad, made up of eight academy players, two inexperienced senior pros and two from outside of the academy.
Wasps came into the clash with a hefty injury list themselves, and four further players were ruled out due to positive Covid-19 results the morning of the match in Sebastian De Chaves, Elliot Stooke, Jacob Umaga and Tom Willis.
With less than two minutes on the clock, Wasps came extremely close to an opening score as only an immense Peter O'Mahony try-saving tackle in the corner stopped a rampaging Thomas Young from touching down. The Munster captain leading from the front early in what was a remarkable display of leadership and ability.
A textbook Damian de Allende breakdown penalty in midfield once Munster completed their exit allowed the visitors their first entry into the 22, and once Wasps were caught offside, Carbery was on hand to slot over the opening points of the contest.
It didn't take long for Wasps to respond, however, as a powerful carry from Barbeary preceded Munster being penalised for failing to roll away. Jimmy Gopperth made a good connection with the boot from all of 45 metres out, but was unlucky to see his effort bounce back off the post.
A Wasps scrum penalty saw the hosts back near the Munster 22 before long, and after turning down a shot at goal for a five-metre lineout drive, superb goal-line defence from the visitors forced a knock on and turnover.
A quick-tap Wasps penalty and kick ahead in the 19th minute nearly opened the door again for the chasing Barbeary, but the bouncing ball just dropped off the park.
Munster openside John Hodnett got his side back into the right attacking areas on 20 minutes when he forced a superb breakdown steal, but the move around the Wasps 22 was ended when De Allende knocked on.
After 25 minutes, the game turned as Wasps' Shields was red carded by referee Romain Poite after a lengthy TMO review for catching Munster loosehead Kilcoyne in the neck/head area with a high tackle.
To huge surprise, Carbery missed the resultant penalty from close range off the post, but made amends moments later curling over with a far more difficult effort for 6-0.
Just past the half-hour mark it was Wasps who would register the first try though, as Barbeary - who started the move with a lovely offload to Young deep in his own half - finished off a hectic period of play where both sides were sucked into a loose, end-to-end spell of offloading.
Gopperth converted for the lead, but a Tadhg Beirne breakdown penalty following the restart saw Munster kick to the corner - a zone from which they would grab their first try.
After 11 phases of close-range carries, scrum-half Conor Murray put in an unusual chip kick with the outside of his right on advantage which took an even more unusual bounce to fall directly in front of wing Earls, who needed only to land on the loose ball to score.
Carbery converted superbly to push the lead out to 13-7, but a penalty against Munster hooker Buckley for sealing off invited Wasps back into the 22 before the break. The home side failed to take advantage as Sam Wolstenholme's grubber kick rolled too long for wing Zach Kibirige.
In the final moments of the half, more drama unfolded, as a charge down from lock Eoin O'Connor on Wolstenholme saw Beirne come within inches of a second Munster try.
Wasps proceeded to cynically kill the ball on their own line and hooker Dan Frost was sent to the sin-bin as a result.
Though facing 13, Munster took a quick-tap and could not score from a yard out before the end of the half as referee Poite awarded a knock on apiece after a phase of scrambled play.
More bad news came Wasps' way at half-time when the outstanding Barbeary was replaced through injury, and two minutes into the second period Munster did have their second try courtesy of debutant Campbell.
With De Allende having broken from deep initially, and both Beirne and Conway producing fantastic carries and offloads in the build-up, Munster then shipped the play to the opposite wing where Wasps' stretched 13 could not contain the pace of Campbell.
A magnificent break from 19-year-old No 8 Daniel Okeke should have seen Munster score a third try soon after, but Kilcoyne carried when he should have passed, before an O'Connor knock on saw the chance evaporate.
With Wasps still down to 13, Munster did get their third try in the 49th minute when Conway intercepted a loose ball to sprint in and touch down.
Carbery's conversion left things 25-7 before Frost emerged from his sin-binning, but Gopperth's restart went straight off the park as Wasps' spirit for the clash visibly started to slip away.
Dangerous broken-field runners such as Luke Mehson meant Wasps still carried a threat, but Munster hooker Buckley - flawless at all 15 lineouts on debut - produced a superb breakdown steal to end the hosts' next promising chance.
Back-row Okeke was growing in stature within the game too, and almost romped in after another lovely sequence of Munster offloading, but just knocked on five metres out.
On 57 minutes, Munster then forced the crucial bonus-point score as Buckley tore through off a Beirne inside pass to slide in as part of a set-piece lineout move - the score not being checked for a possible forward pass by the Munster lock.
Within moments, rangy Wasps centre Le Bourgeois crashed through to score his side's only points of the second half, before Carbery added his third penalty of the day in response up the opposite end.
In a day of huge positives for Munster, the one concern for the province will be that starting out-half Carbery was forced to leave with a serious-looking arm injury late on.
Munster face Top 14 outfit Castres at Thomond Park next week, while Wasps must travel to face defending champions Toulouse in France.
