Castres Olympique edged Munster Rugby 16-14 in a Round 2 fixture of the 2024/25 Investec Champions Cup at the Stade Pierre-Fabre in Castres, France.
It was clear from kick-off that Castres were determined to get their Round 2 off to the perfect start with the French side enjoying much of the opening exchanges in the Munster half.
Despite early Castres cries for a try being soon waved away after a review, it would not be long before the French side would have to wait before opening the score.
Following a line-out dangerously positioned six metres from touch, the ball found its way to Abraham Papalii who powered his way through to break through the Munster defence for his side’s first.
The home side were not satisfied with their 5-0 lead though, and Quentin Walcker forced the ball home after the French move had taken the Munster defence by surprise.
The Irish visitors did not let this get them down though, and thanks to an inspired John Hodnett carrying the ball through several Castres men following a line-out, Munster went into the break with just a three-point deficit. Half-time score 10-07 in favour of Castres Olympique.
Already being led, it was clear from the second-half get-go that Munster was keen to not fall behind further and let Castres run away with the affair.
And the Irish side’s determination to make it a more balanced affair was reflected on the scoreboard after they had grown into the second half.
Munster gradually got closer to the Castres try line before they eventually broke through the French back line.
The responsibility eventually fell to John Hodnett to touch the ball down which, combined with a Jack Crowley conversion, meant that the visitors were in the lead for the first time in the match.
Said lead did not last as long as they would have hoped for, as Castres were soon afforded a penalty which Louis Le Brun duly converted for the hosts.
This set the tone for what were tense closing stages, but Munster was ultimately unable to find touch in the final seconds thanks to an impressive catch to end the tie in a 16-14 win over Munster.
Scorers:
Castres Olympique: Tries: Abraham Papalii, Quentin Walcker. Penalties: Jeremy Fernandez, Louis le Brun.
Munster Rugby: Tries: John Hodnett (2). Conversions: Jack Crowley (2).
Teams
Castres Olympique: 15 Julien Dumora, 14 Geoffrey Palis, 13 Jack Goodhue, 12 Andrea Cocagi, 11 Rémy Baget, 10 Louis le Brun, 9 Jeremy Fernandez, 8 Abraham Papalii, 7 Tyler Ardron, 6 Mathieu Babillot (c), 5 Leone Nakarawa, 4 Gauthier Maravat, 3 Will Collier, 2 Gaetan Barlot, 1 Quentin Walcker. Replacements: 16 Loris Zarantonello, 17 Wayan de Benedittis, 18 Nicolas Corato, 19 Paul Jedrasiak, 20 Feibyan Tukino, 21 Santiago Arata, 22 Theo Chabouni, 23 Adrien Seguret.
Munster Rugby: 15 Mike Haley, 14 Calvin Nash, 13 Tom Farrell, 12 Alex Nankivell, 11 Thaakir Abrahams, 10 Jack Crowley, 9 Craig Casey, 8 Brian Gleeson, 7 John Hodnett, 6 Peter O’Mahony, 5 Tadhg Beirne (c), 4 Fineen Wycherley, 3 Stephen Archer, 2 Niall Scannell, 1 Dian Bleuler. Replacements: 16 Diarmuid Barron, 17 Dave Kilcoyne, 18 Oli Jager, 19 Tom Ahern, 20 Alex Kendellen, 21 Paddy Patterson, 22 Rory Scannell, 23 Jack O’Donoghue.