# 2016–17 Munster Rugby season

The 2016–17 Munster Rugby season was Munster's sixteenth season competing in the Pro12, alongside which they also competed in the European Rugby Champions Cup. It was Anthony Foley's third season as head coach and Rassie Erasmus's first season as director of rugby.

## Events

In August 2016, Munster started using the new central training base at the University of Limerick campus, thus marking an end to the days of splitting training between Cork and Limerick.
Munster opened their pre-season with a 17–0 victory over Zebre in a pre-season friendly at Waterford Regional Sports Centre on 19 August.
The new Pro12 season was launched on 23 August at the Aviva Stadium. Munster began the new season on 3 September with an away game against Scarlets.
On 26 August, Munster defeated Worcester in their final pre-season friendly at Musgrave Park, scoring seven-tries during the game.
On 16 October 2016, head coach Anthony Foley died suddenly while in Paris with Munster. The team was preparing to face Racing 92 in their opening game of the 2016–17 European Rugby Champions Cup. The match was postponed as a result of Foley's death.
On 22 October Munster paid tribute to the late Anthony Foley with a 38-17 bonus-point win over Glasgow in the European Champions Cup. A minutes silence was observed before the match during which a special tribute took place in the West Stand with the words "AXEL" spelled out with the number 8 on either side. The Munster Rugby Supporter's Club Choir performed 'There Is An Isle', and soprano Sinead O'Brien joined the Choir to perform 'Stand Up And Fight.
On 10 December, Munster defeated Leicester 38–0 at Thomond Park in their second European Rugby Champions Cup game of the season to go top of the pool with ten points after two games.
Over the Christmas period, Munster defeated Leinster at Thomond Park on 26 December 29–17 to move five points clear of them at the top of the Pro12. They followed up that victory with a 16–9 victory over Connacht on 31 December at the Galway Sportsgrounds.
On 7 January, Munster played the re-arranged game against Racing 92 in Paris and had a bonus point victory by 32–7.
On 14 January, Francis Saili scored the winning try in Munster's 12–14 away win against Glasgow Warriors, a win that secured Munster's place in the quarter-finals of the 2016–17 European Rugby Champions Cup. It was the 11th win out of the last 12 matches for Munster.
In March, it was announced that Donnacha Ryan would leave Munster at the end of the season to join Racing 92.
On 1 April, Munster reached their first European Champions Cup semi-final in three years with a 41–16 victory over Toulouse.
On 22 April, Munster played Saracens in the European Champions Cup semi-final at the Aviva Stadium. They lost the game 26–10 to go out of the competition. Munster minus the injured Conor Murray scored the first penalty of the game but Saracens took control of the game and scored two tries to win comfortably in the end. It was also confirmed that coach Rassie Erasmus would remain in charge for the next season after much speculation that he would return to South-Africa.
On 4 May, Tyler Bleyendaal was named as the Munster Player of the Year at an awards ceremony in Cork. The ceremony was attended by 250 guests with 11 awards presented on the day.
On 20 May, Munster defeated the Ospreys by 23–3 in the Pro12 playoff semi-final to advance to the 2017 Pro12 Grand Final against Scarlets at the Aviva Stadium on 27 May. The match was Donnacha Ryan's and Francis Saili's final appearance for Munster at Thomond Park.
On 27 May, Munster lost the 2017 Pro12 Grand Final to Scarlets 46–22.

## Coaching and management staff 2016–17

| Position | Name | Nationality |
| Director of Rugby | Rassie Erasmus | South Africa |
| Head coach | Anthony Foley | Ireland |
| Defence Coach | Jacques Nienaber | South Africa |
| Team manager | Niall O'Donovan | Ireland |
| Scrum Coach | Jerry Flannery | Ireland |
| Technical coach | Felix Jones | Ireland |
| Head of Fitness | Aled Walters | Wales |
| Strength & conditioning coach | Aidan O'Connell | Ireland |
| Strength & conditioning coach | Adam Sheehan | Ireland |
| Performance analyst | George Murray | Ireland |
| Operations manager | Bryan Murphy | Ireland |

## Senior Playing Squad 2016–17

Note: Flags indicate national union under World Rugby eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-World Rugby nationality.
| Player | Position | Union |
| Duncan Casey | Hooker | Ireland |
| Rhys Marshall | Hooker | New Zealand |
| Kevin O'Byrne | Hooker | Ireland |
| Niall Scannell | Hooker | Ireland |
| Mike Sherry | Hooker | Ireland |
| John Andress | Prop | Ireland |
| Stephen Archer | Prop | Ireland |
| James Cronin | Prop | Ireland |
| Thomas du Toit | Prop | South Africa |
| Dave Kilcoyne | Prop | Ireland |
| Peter McCabe | Prop | Ireland |
| John Ryan | Prop | Ireland |
| Mark Chisholm | Lock | Australia |
| Dave Foley | Lock | Ireland |
| Billy Holland | Lock | Ireland |
| Jean Kleyn | Lock | South Africa |
| John Madigan | Lock | Ireland |
| Seán McCarthy | Lock | Ireland |
| Darren O'Shea | Lock | Ireland |
| Donnacha Ryan | Lock | Ireland |
| Dave O'Callaghan | Flanker | Ireland |
| Tommy O'Donnell | Flanker | Ireland |
| Peter O’Mahony (c) | Flanker | Ireland |
| Robin Copeland | Number 8 | Ireland |
| Jack O'Donoghue | Number 8 | Ireland |
| CJ Stander | Number 8 | Ireland |
| Player | Position | Union |
| Angus Lloyd | Scrum-half | Ireland |
| Conor Murray | Scrum-half | Ireland |
| Tomás O'Leary | Scrum-half | Ireland |
| Cathal Sheridan | Scrum-half | Ireland |
| Te Aihe Toma | Scrum-half | New Zealand |
| Duncan Williams | Scrum-half | Ireland |
| Tyler Bleyendaal | Fly-half | New Zealand |
| Steve Crosbie | Fly-half | Ireland |
| Ian Keatley | Fly-half | Ireland |
| Sammy Arnold | Centre | Ireland |
| Cian Bohane | Centre | Ireland |
| David Johnston | Centre | Ireland |
| Collie O'Shea | Centre | Ireland |
| Francis Saili | Centre | New Zealand |
| Rory Scannell | Centre | Ireland |
| Jaco Taute | Centre | South Africa |
| Andrew Conway | Wing | Ireland |
| Keith Earls | Wing | Ireland |
| Ronan O'Mahony | Wing | Ireland |
| Alex Wootton | Wing | Ireland |
| Darren Sweetnam | Fullback | Ireland |
| Simon Zebo | Fullback | Ireland |
* Internationally capped players in bold.
* Players qualified to play for Ireland on residency or dual nationality. *
* Irish provinces are currently limited to four non-Irish eligible (NIE) players and one non-Irish qualified player (NIQ or "Project Player").

## 2016–17 Pro12

* 3 September 2016 15:00
| Scarlets | 13–23 | Munster |
| Try: G. Davies 31' c Con: Patchell (1/1) Pen: Patchell (2/4) 26', 47' | Report | Try: Cronin 18' c O'Mahony 29' c Con: Bleyendaal (2/2) Pen: Bleyendaal (2/3) 37', 53' Keatley (1/1) |
* Parc y Scarlets Attendance: 6,107 Referee: Lloyd Linton (SRU)
* 9 September 2016 19:35
| (1 BP) Munster | 23–24 | Cardiff Blues |
| Try: Conway 9' c Kilcoyne 61' c Con: Keatley (2/2) Pen: Keatley (3/3) 29', 54', 71' | Report | Try: James (2) 7' c, 35' c Fish 67' c Con: Anscombe (2/2) Shingler (1/1) Pen: Anscombe (1/2) 14' |
* Irish Independent Park Attendance: 7,405 Referee: Ian Davies (WRU)
* 17 September 2016 17:15
| (1 BP) Newport Gwent Dragons | 16–20 | Munster |
| Try: Amos 32' c Con: O'Brien (1/1) 32' Pen: O'Brien (3/3) 14', 49', 54' | Report | Try: Kleyn 20' c Bohane 56' c Con: Bleyendaal (2/2) 20', 56' Pen: Bleyendaal (2/2) 11', 51' |
* Rodney Parade Attendance: 3,841 Referee: Dudley Phillips (IRFU)
* 24 September 2016 15:00
| (1 BP) Munster | 28–14 | Edinburgh |
| Try: Murray (2) 27' c, 38' c Oliver 42' c O'Callaghan 57' c Con: Bleyendaal (4/4) 27', 38', 42', 57' | Report | Try: Dean 23' c Hardie 67' c Con: Weir (1/1) 23' Kinghorn (1/1) 67' |
* Thomond Park Attendance: 12,826 Referee: Ben Whitehouse (WRU)
* 1 October 2016 17:00
| (1 BP) Munster | 49–5 | Zebre |
| Try: Sweetnam 2' c Murray 22' c Stander (2) 28' c, 78' c Zebo 31' c Penalty try 52' c Archer 63' c Con: Bleyendaal (4/4) Keatley (3/3) | Report | Try: Di Giulio 71' m |
* Thomond Park Attendance: 11,737 Referee: Dan Jones (WRU)
* 8 October 2016 14:05
| Leinster | 25–14 | Munster |
| Try: Nacewa (2) 35' m, 55' c Gibson-Park 68' c Con: Sexton (1/1) 55' Nacewa (1/1) 68' Pen: Sexton (2/2) 6', 10' | Report | Try: O'Mahony 26' c Taute 74' c Con: Bleyendaal (2/2) 26', 74' |
* Aviva Stadium Attendance: 40,527 Referee: David Wilkinson (IRFU)
* 28 October 2016 19:35
| (1 BP) Ulster | 14-15 | Munster |
| Try: Piutau 4' c Lyttle '34 c Con: Jackson (2/2) 5', 35' | Report | Try: Scannell 40' c Taute 63' c Con: Scannell (1/1) 64' Drop: Scannell 74' |
* Kingspan Stadium
* 4 November 2016 19:35
| (1 BP) Munster | 33–0 | Ospreys |
| Try: Kilcoyne (2) 8' c, 69' c Sweetnam 14' c O'Mahony 54' m Copeland 78' c Con: Bleyendaal (4/5) 8', 14', 69', 78' | Report | |
* Irish Independent Park Attendance: 8,008 Referee: Marius Mitrea (FIR)
* 26 November 2016 14:00
| (1 BP) Munster | 46-3 | Benetton Treviso |
| Try: Copeland 20' c Conway 25' m, 34' c O'Shea 42' c R. O'Mahony 64' m, 71' m Wootton 69' Con: Bleyendaal (3/5) 21', 35', 43' Keatley (1/2) 69' Pen: Bleyendaal (1/1) 14' | Report | Pen: McKinley (1/1) 8' |
* Stadio Sergio Lanfranchi
* 2 December 2016 19:35
| (1 BP) Glasgow Warriors | 15–16 | Munster |
| Try: Price 62' c Grigg 70' m Con: Clegg (1/2) 62' Pen: Horne (1/1) 16' | Report | Try: Conway 12' c Con: Keatley (1/1) 12' Pen: Keatley (2/2) 9', 37' Drop: Keatley (1/1) 77' |
* Scotstoun Stadium
* 26 December 2016 17:30
| (1 BP) Munster | 29–17 | Leinster |
| Try: Zebo 22' c R. O'Mahony 40' c O'Donnell 49' c Stander 56' m Con: Bleyendaal (3/4) 23', 40', 51' Pen: Bleyendaal (1/1) 61' | Report | Try: Kirchner 17' c Strauss 76' c Con: Nacewa (1/1) 18' Molony (1/1) 77' Pen: Nacewa (1/1) 27' |
* Thomond Park Attendance: 26,200 Referee: Nigel Owens (WRU)
* 31 December 2016 17:30
| (1 BP) Connacht | 9–16 | Munster |
| Pen: Carty (3/4) 30', 50', 76' | Report | Try: Marshall 56' c Con: Keatley (1/1) 57' Pen: Keatley (2/3) 2', 39' Drop: Keatley (1/2) 68' |
* Galway Sportsgrounds Attendance: 8,090 Referee: David Wilkinson (IRFU)
* 3 February 2017 15:00
| (1 BP) Edinburgh | 9–10 | Munster |
| Pen: Tovey (3) 7', 24', 34' | Report | Try: O’Mahony 15' c Con: Bleyendaal (1/1) 16' Pen: Bleyendaal 66' |
* New Myreside Attendance: 5,235 Referee: Ben Whitehouse (WRU)
* 10 February 2017 19:35
| (1 BP) Munster | 45–17 | Newport Gwent Dragons |
| Try: Taute (2) 14' c, 28' c Conway 20' c Penalty try 40' c Kilcoyne 64' c R. O'Mahony 80' c Con: Bleyendaal (6/6) 14', 20', 28', 40', 64', 80' Pen: Bleyendaal (1/1) 7' | Report | Try: Buckley 36' c Dee 60' c Con: D. Jones (2/2) 36', 60' Pen: D. Jones (1/1) 12' |
* Irish Independent Park Attendance: 8,008 Referee: Mike Adamson (SRU)
* 18 February 2017 17:15
| (1 BP) Ospreys | 23–25 | Munster |
| Try: Dirksen 5' c Fonotia 13' c Con: S. Davies (2/2) 5', 13' Pen: S. Davies (3/3) 24', 40', 59' | Report | Try: O'Donoghue 36' m Saili 40' c Kilcoyne 78' c Con: Bleyendaal (2/3) 40', 78' Pen: Bleyendaal (2/2) 4', 29' |
* Liberty Stadium Attendance: 8,782 Referee: Marius Mitrea
* 24 February 2017 19:35
| Munster | 21–30 | Scarlets |
| Try: Taute 13' c Sweetnam 23' c Oliver 30' c Con: Bleyendaal (3/3) 13', 23', 30' | Report | Try: Parkes 56' c McNicholl 59' c van der Merwe 62' c Con: D. Jones (3/3) 56', 59', 62' Pen: D. Jones (3/3) 3', 16', 53' |
* Thomond Park Attendance: 16,742 Referee: Daniel Jones
* 4 March 2017 17:15
| Cardiff Blues | 13–23 | Munster |
| Try: Summerhill 47' c Con: Shingler (1/1) 48' Pen: Shingler (2/2) 21', 33' | Report | Try: Saili 51' c Oliver 76' c Con: R. Scannell (2/2) 52', 77' Pen: R. Scannell (2/3) 25', 66' Drop: R. Scannell (1/1) 75' |
* BT Cardiff Arms Park Attendance: 6,546 Referee: Mike Adamson (SRU)
* 25 March 2017 15:00
| Zebre | 14–50 | Munster (1 BP) |
| Try: Minnie 30' c Greeff 56' c Con: Violi (1/1) 30' Bordoli (1/1) 56' | Report | Try: N. Scannell 3' c O'Donnell 19' c R. O'Mahony (2) 26' c, 51' m R. Scannell 47' c Cronin (2) 62' c, 71' c Con: Bleyendaal (4/5) 3', 19', 26', 47' R. Scannell (2/2) 62', 71' Pen: Bleyendaal (1/1) 40' |
* Stadio Sergio Lanfranchi Attendance: 1,240 Referee: Sean Gallagher (IRFU)
* 8 April 2017 19:35
| Munster | 10–7 | Glasgow Warriors (1 BP) |
| Try: Cronin 4' c Con: Bleyendaal (1/1) 5' Pen: R. Scannell (1/1) 60' | Report | Try: Hogg 68' c Con: Russell (1/1) 69' |
* Irish Independent Park Attendance: 8,008 Referee: Nigel Owens (WRU)
* 15 April 2017 15:00
| Munster | 22–20 | Ulster (1 BP) |
| Try: Lloyd 6' c Earls 61' m O'Callaghan 69' c Con: Keatley (1/1) 7' Bleyendaal (1/2) 71' Pen: Keatley (1/1) 36' | Report | Try: Best 3' c L. Marshall 64' c Con: Jackson (2/2) 4', 65' Pen: Jackson (2/3) 13', 52' |
* Thomond Park Attendance: 20,047 Referee: Marius Mitrea (FIR)
* 29 April 2017 19:05
| Benetton Treviso | 14–34 | Munster (1 BP) |
| Try: Odiete 49' c Montauriol 80'+1 Con: McKinley (1/1) 50' Tebaldi (1/1) 80'+1 | Report | Try: Sweetnam (2) 25' m, 70' c Zebo 32' c Wootton 64' m O'Donoghue 67' c Con: Bleyendaal (3/5) 33', 68', 71 Pen: Bleyendaal (1/1) 41' |
* Stadio Comunale di Monigo Referee: Ian Davies (WRU)
* 6 May 2017 17:15
| (1 BP) Munster | 50–14 | Connacht |
| Try: Earls 8' c O'Donoghue 27' c Conway (2) 33' c, 54' c Cronin 43' c Saili 70' c Oliver 80' m Con: Keatley (6/7) 8', 28', 34', 44', 54', 70' Pen: Keatley (1/1) 25' | Report | Try: Kelleher 51' c Dawai 64' c Con: Ronaldson (2/2) 52', 65' |
* Thomond Park Referee: David Wilkinson (IRFU)

## Play-offs
### Semi-finals

* 20 May 2017 18:15
| Munster | 23–3 | Ospreys |
| Try: Saili 26' m Zebo 61' c Conway 75' m Con: Bleyendaal (1/3) 62' Pen: Bleyendaal (2/2) 67', 41'+3 | Report | Pen: Biggar (1/2) 8' |
* Thomond Park Attendance: 18,332 Referee: Luke Pearce (RFU)

### Final

* 27 May 2017 18:15
| Munster | 22–46 | Scarlets |
| Try: Bleyendaal 40' c Conway 75' m Earls 78' c Con: Bleyendaal (1/1) 41' Keatley (1/2) 78' Pen: Bleyendaal (1/1) 7' | Report | Try: L. Williams 9' m S. Evans 20' c G. Davies 27' c Beirne 31' c van der Merwe 70' c Ja. Davies 80' Con: Patchell (3/4) 21', 28', 32' L. Williams (2/2) 72', 80'+1 Pen: Patchell (2/2) 19', 45' |
* Aviva Stadium Attendance: 44,558 Referee: Nigel Owens (WRU)

## 2016–17 European Rugby Champions Cup

Munster faced Racing 92, Glasgow Warriors and Leicester Tigers in Pool 1 of the 2016-17 Champions Cup. They were seeded in the bottom tier following their sixth-placed position in the 2015–16 Pro12.
| Teamvte | P | W | D | L | PF | PA | Diff | TF | TA | TB | LB | Pts |
| Munster (2) | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 160 | 64 | +96 | 18 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 24 |
| Glasgow Warriors (6) | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 160 | 86 | +74 | 18 | 10 | 2 | 1 | 19 |
| Leicester Tigers | 6 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 61 | 190 | –129 | 3 | 23 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
| Racing 92 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 89 | 130 | –41 | 12 | 14 | 1 | 0 | 5 |
* 22 October 2016 13:00
| (1 BP) Munster | 38–17 | Glasgow Warriors |
| Try: Bleyendaal 4' c Taute 14' c Zebo 30' c Penalty try 47' c Scannell 75' c Con: Bleyendaal (4/4) 4', 14', 30', 47' Keatley (1/1) 75' Pen: Bleyendaal (1/1) 7' | Report | Try: MacArthur 66' c Bennett 70' c Con: S. Hogg (2/2) 66', 70' Pen: Russell (1/2) 10' |
* Thomond Park Attendance: 25,600 Referee: Jérôme Garcès (FFR)
* 10 December 2016 15:15
| (1 BP) Munster | 38–0 | Leicester Tigers |
| Try: Zebo 35' c Taute 49' c, 56' m Penalty try 71' c Con: Bleyendaal (3/4) 36', 50', 71' Pen: Bleyendaal (4/5) 10', 15', 23', 27' | Report | |
* Thomond Park Attendance: 25,600 Referee: Romain Poite (FFR)
* 17 December 2016 15:15
| Leicester Tigers | 18–16 | Munster (1 BP) |
| Pen: O. Williams (6/6) 33', 39', 49', 54', 66', 79' | Report | Try: Scannell 74' c Con: Bleyendaal (1/1) 74' Pen: Bleyendaal (3/5) 9', 18', 44' |
* Welford Road Attendance: 24,213 Referee: Pascal Gaüzère (FFR)
* 7 January 2017 15:45
| Racing 92 | 7–32 | Munster (1 BP) |
| Try: Voisin 63' c Con: Carter (1/1) 64' | Report | Try: Zebo 22' m Stander 35' c Conway 39' c N. Scannell 54' c Con: Bleyendaal (3/4) 36', 40', 55' Pen: Bleyendaal (2/2) 14, 33' |
* Stade Yves-du-Manoir Attendance: 9,233 Referee: Matthew Carley (RFU)
* 14 January 2017 17:30
| (1 BP) Glasgow Warriors | 12–14 | Munster |
| Pen: Russell (3/3) 13', 47', 59' Hogg (1/2) 32' | Report | Try: Saili 71' m Pen: Bleyendaal (3/4) 20', 34', 50' |
* Scotstoun Stadium Attendance: 7,351 Referee: Luke Pearce (RFU)
* 21 January 2017 17:30
| Munster | 22–10 | Racing 92 |
| Try: Zebo 36' c R. O'Mahony 48' c Keatley 69' m Con: Bleyendaal (2/3) 37', 49' Pen: Bleyendaal (1/1) 42' | Report | Try: Chavancy 59' c Con: Machenaud (1/1) 60' Pen: Machenaud (1/2) 40' |
* Thomond Park Attendance: 26,200 Referee: Marius Mitrea (FIR)

### Quarter-final

* 1 April 2017 17:45
| Munster (2) | 41–16 | (7) Toulouse |
| Try: J. Ryan 4' c Stander 47' m Sweetnam 75' c Conway 79' c Con: Bleyendaal (3/4) 4', 77', 80' Pen: Bleyendaal (5/5) 9', 26', 42', 52', 74' | Report | Try: Perez 54' c Con: Doussain (1/1) 55' Pen: Doussain (3/3) 19', 31', 40' |
* Thomond Park Attendance: 26,200 Referee: JP Doyle (RFU)

### Semi-final

* 22 April 2017 15:15
| Munster | 10–26 | Saracens |
| Try: Stander 80' c Con: Keatley (1/1) 80' Pen: Bleyendaal (1/2) 7' | Report | Try: M. Vunipola 54' c Wyles 70' c Con: Farrell (2/2) 55', 72' Pen: Farrell (4/4) 17', 35', 64', 75' |
* Aviva Stadium Attendance: 51,300 Referee: Romain Poite (FFR)