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Munster sent to Coventry
By David Thorpe
 The
Irish bars in Coventry are bracing themselves for an influx of fans on
Friday night as the Reds travel to the Midlands city to play London Wasps.
Opponents Wasps were unable to find any other ground in London capable
of hosting Heineken Cup matches so they have had to travel to Coventry
to play their homes games in the tournament.
But the publicans in O’Neills, The Foggy Dew and other Irish bars
won’t be complaining as the legendary Munster army paint the town
red.
After making a disastrous start to their season Munster have started to
improve in recent weeks, winning three of their last four games in the
Magners League as they prepare for their opening Heineken Cup clash of
the season.
Munster’s revival has been a tale of two players, one old and one
new.
The new name covering himself in glory is Brian Carney. The former rugby
league star has excelled in his debut season for Munster bringing a touch
of genuine class to the Reds back division which has traditionally been
their weakest unit.
The old face returning to the peak of his powers is Ronan O’Gara
who was man-of-the-match as Munster defeated Edinburgh last weekend.
O’Gara had a hand in all of Munster’s scores, executing a
delightful crossfield ball for Denis Leamy to score the game’s only
try.
Munster manager Declan Kidney says he has been happy with how his team
have fared so far.
“We had less wins under our belt at this stage last season, so that
we are winning now has to be a positive.
“It is always difficult integrating the 12 players who departed
on international duty back into the team but the guys who were at the
World Cup came back, worked hard in training and are showing again why
they are among the best players in this competition.”
Wasps are one of Britain’s top club rugby teams with England World
Cup-winner Paul Sackey and Ireland scrum-half Eoin Redden probably their
best attacking players.
The Munster pack will have to be at the top of their game against the
experienced Wasps eight with the nous and fighting qualities of Lawrence
Dallaglio and James Heskell sure to inspire the London outfit.
Declan Kidney and his men have started to hit their stride in recent weeks
and with their Irish internationals appearing to have found some of the
pride and passion for Munster which was missing from their displays with
Ireland it could be that the Reds enjoy another night of European action.
How to get there:
From London:
Trains depart every half-an-hour from London Euston and Kings Cross for Coventry, with the last return train at 11pm.
From Manchester:
Trains leave Manchester Piccadilly every 40 minutes for London, every second train (approx one-and-a-half hours apart) stops in Coventry.
From Birmingham:
Trains depart every 20 minutes for Coventry and it is three stops along the line, with the last return train leaving at 00:15
From Ireland:
Fly to Birmingham International Airport. There is a train station in the airport, with trains every half-an-hour to Coventry.
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