Munster v Ulster: Gerry Thornley on a deep-seated rivalry that makes for feisty fare

Back on January 3rd, 2003, at Thomond Park there wasn't too much festive goodwill in the air. Ulster were in a grimly dark mood. The previous November only Gary Longwell had featured in Ireland's wins over Australia and Argentina.

Feeling disenchanted with, and disenfranchised from, Team Ireland, the Ulster players had targeted this Celtic League semi-final meeting as their final trial, their chance to prove a few points.

This was an historical about-turn, for perceived slights from the Irish selectors were traditionally Munster's terrain.

Indeed, as recently as the 1980s and for much of the 1990s - it now seems incredible - Munster couldn't buy a win over Ulster, going 13 interpros in a row without a victory, and the Irish team duly reflected that golden era for the northern province.

Belfast was then impregnable for Munster, the Southerners finally ending a winless sequence dating back to 1980 with a 25-24 victory in Queen's in 1999 and a 21-16 win in the seasonal opener at Ravenhill the following season thanks to five penalties from five and a couple of drop goals by Ronan O'Gara.

By then, though, the Irish landscape had changed. Although Ulster had won the European Cup in 1999, they would endure some barren years thereafter.

Team Ireland weren't too hot either, however, the Lens World Cup defeat to Argentina in 1999 being followed by the 50-18 opening championship thrashing at Twickenham.

Famously, on the Monday before the redemptory win over Scotland in the 2000 Six Nations, the Munster players decided to up the ante at a training session in Greystones.

Putting in big hits, abrasively seeking contact, they made a physical statement of intent. Eight Munster players started against the Scots, Mick Galwey earning a recall and O'Gara, Peter Stringer and John Hayes winning their first caps. Ulster had only the prodigal Kieron Dawson of London Irish.

After a 44-22 win that was followed by a home win over Italy and victory in Paris, Munster would go on to reach the Heineken European Cup final and the rest, as they say, is history.

Cue January 3rd at Thomond Park, and Ulster were probably too grimly determined for their own good.

Justin Fitzpatrick was sent off after 11 minutes, necessitating the withdrawal soon after of Neil McMillan, with Simon Best brought into the frontrow.

What followed was carnage, Munster winning ruthlessly by 42-10 and five tries to one. Ulster's time would have to wait some more.

They've met four times since, but never remotely at full strength. It's as if, fearful of days like that one, the Ireland management have been striving desperately to keep their frontliners wrapped in cotton wool to prevent them from beating each other up, and it's been the same more or less whenever they've faced the other Irish provinces as well.

But that's changed this season. Both today, and in two more "interprovincial" rounds over Christmas, the head-to-heads look like being - as Clive Woodward might say - massively full-on: a quasi-series of final trials. And now, Ulster's time seems to have come as well.

Against New Zealand and Australia, Munster's representation still outnumbered Ulster's; against the Wallabies there were six Munstermen in the starting line-up compared to two Ulstermen.

But Ulster had six more on the bench, and come the Romanian victory there were six Ulster players in the starting 15, a tally that would probably have reached eight but for the leg injuries Matt McCullough and Rory Best sustained against Australia after being brought on as replacements.

Meantime, there were only three Munster players starting: Marcus Horan, Donncha O'Callaghan and Denis Leamy.

Eddie O'Sullivan hates dividing the Irish team along provincial lines.

"We've moved on from those days," he stresses whenever the topic raises its ugly head, and you can see where he's coming from.

But try telling that to the players, or for that matter the supporters. These things matter, as they would in any internecine rivalry in any team sport, be it Barcelona and Real Madrid, Canterbury and Auckland or whoever. It doesn't mean they hate each other any more, or that they can't play alongside each other in national teams; it just means there's more at stake when they do meet.

Still the masters at perceiving slights against them, and ever effective at maximising their potential for motivation, Munster will have their grievances and points to prove today.

None more so than their inspirational captain Anthony Foley, who reputedly didn't receive so much as a phone call when omitted from the November Tests despite being next in line to captain the side if Simon Easterby's broken nose hadn't mended in time.

Ditto David Wallace, another Munster cause celebre and probably the most dynamic ball-carrying forward in Irish rugby yet repeatedly overlooked, playing in just four of Ireland's last 25 matches over two years, despite the development of a more ball-in-hand game and a relative dearth of ball-carriers up front.

Yet the points to prove are by no means exclusively Munster's. Ulster's young backrow tyros were in the vanguard of the new breed, but Roger Wilson has been overtaken after his breakthrough on the Japanese tour, while Neil McMillan, despite an excellent season so far, is amongst a plethora of young, up-and-coming openside tearaways.

Simon Best and John Hayes will also be squaring up to each other as opposing tightheads, with the former now nudging ahead of The Bull in many eyes while the latter, for years the only tighthead around, is also under pressure for his provincial place from Federico Pucciariello.

The Bull will never have felt so threatened. And it will be hurting Fitzpatrick like mad, more so even than his recuperating broken hand, that he'll have to sit out this one.

All over the park there are potentially far-reaching personal collisions. Most of the collisions are up front and at halfback.

Although there's been an overdue emergence of some indigenous young Munster backs, Tomás O'Leary and Barry Murphy are only just maturing, whereas Tommy Bowe and Andrew Trimble are further down the track both provincially and, hence, internationally.

Those, hopefully, are rivalries for another day, but there's plenty more to be going on with.

We've moved on from those days? Hardly.

Most probably, not ever.

The backrow

Now this is where it gets really interesting. Cast off, seemingly, as too venerable, Anthony Foley would provide the classical response of a jettisoned Munster legend were he to produce a stormer this afternoon.

The clamour for David Wallace would become deafening if he were to eat up the yardage and - in a nod to Eddie O'Sullivan - tackle hard, while, ironically, Denis Leamy, the hit of the autumn, has least to prove.

Neil Best knows only one way to play the game, hard and abrasive, while Roger Wilson, equally hard-running and aggressive but needing an improvement in his handling game, requires a big match if he's not to fall off the radar a bit.

Neil McMillan has an opportunity to impress as perhaps the most effective backrower on view at the breakdown as well as in his support play, although he could spend too much time buried under the action.

Could get feisty.

Nah, will get feisty.

Worth the admission money alone.

Mick O'Driscoll v Matt McCullough

O'Driscoll has arguably been in the better form of these two, both fringe contenders this past month. He looks to have more desire and physical presence since his Perpignan sojourn, and is the bigger, more experienced and proven lineout operator.

McCullough is a much better player than he showed against Australia at Lansdowne Road and, with the abrasive Justin Harrison alongside him, will be stoked to prove that very point against O'Driscoll and Donncha O'Callaghan.

For Munster, the latter does a specific job, hitting rucks, making big hits, winning lineouts with 100 per cent commitment.

Expect the earth to shudder.

Peter Stringer v Kieran Campbell

The clamour for an alternative to Stringer wasn't assisted by Campbell's performance last Saturday. Although tidy and technically correct, and with that big break off a tap penalty, he lacks Stringer's speed of service - nor does he influence a match as much as he should.

He wouldn't be human if he didn't see this as a big chance, but similarly Stringer will enjoy the challenge and this opportunity to remind everyone that there's more to his game.

A real competitor, Stringer seems to have recaptured his enthusiasm and a belligerent belief in himself despite the increasing brickbats. Also lurking, of course, is Ulster's new Kiwi scrumhalf, Isaac Boss.

Jerry Flannery v Rory Best

Shane Byrne's age profile and lack of game time have raised the succession stakes.

In fact, with Frankie Sheahan's neck injury a real worry, suddenly this set-to could help decide the starting number two jersey against Italy in February.

Many in Munster were aggrieved that Flannery missed out to Best despite his man-of-the-match display against Castres.

Their darts, scrummaging, tackling and ball-carrying will stand in direct comparison.

Best - as a converted loosehead - appears the better scrummager, but Flannery is the more dynamic man on a mission.

Ronan O'Gara v David Humphreys

The most enduring and classical of today's rivalries, now going back six seasons. For all the concerns about Humphreys's age - he's just turned 34 - this season they look further ahead of the outhalf posse than ever.

Both looked wrapped in tactical straitjackets in the tests, but after an unusually poor kicking game against Australia, when he would have felt scapegoated, and a reputed row with Eddie O'Sullivan, O'Gara will be itching for this one.

And whatever about Ireland's supposed ball-in-hand game, in more of a reversion to provincial type, their kicking games will be crucial. Battles elsewhere will probably determine which one of them finishes on top.