Munster Team Talk/Gossip/Rumours Thread.

The disgraceful taunts from Munster fans that was born out of the semi-final in 2006 and the treatment of certain Leinster players, not least Contepomi, was where the healthy Irish rugby rivalry became bitter.

Leinster endured years of abuse from Munster and the media, and as soon as the tables turned, Leinster were branded bully boys and soccer hooligans in the media.

We've come a long way since the articles of hair straightners and lady boys, and I like it.

I started a thread on Leinsterfans about the greatest ever Leinster game, and listed about 10 of Leinsters finest moments in professional rugby, and about half picked the semi win over Munster - not even the final win over Leicester - because that was the day we took back our pride, hammered the sh*t out of the ones who taunted us most, and took the crown of king pins.

You can sense around Leinster rugby that we're growing into the best team in Europe, I think our glory days are all ahead of us over the next decade, and I know many Leinster fans wont be shy about arrogance and taunting, and rightfully so .... for all of Munsters glory and never losing a game, just bravely battling to keep close in an unwinnable match, and never winning a game, but defying the laws of physics and reality, as a Irish parish could not produce these men, they must be godly in their perfection, and for all the rhetoric of brave and faitfull and standing up and fighting and wearing the jersey with pride and honour and having all the rich history - Munster really don't have much more to show for their efforts of 10 years of domination in professional rugby than Leinster. One Heineken Cup, and that's all. And they certainly never achieved a 5 in a row or 30 - 0 thumping.

I can see Leinster settling the score in the near future and then surpassing Munster as the most sucsessfull province in Irish history, and silence the ligends for a while.

It always amazes me how rivalry is embraced in every sport in every country, but for some reason it's shameful in Irish rugby to speak openly about a Leinster / Munster rivalry - I've been to Thomond Park and I've seen Munster supporters first hand, and anyone who's been to a Leinster v Munster game down there and doesn't think the Munster supporters are disgraceful to Leinster supporters is lying or in denial. It's blatantly obvious and it's from the ground to the pubs. I've seen border line violence on those trips and I've seen violence on O'Connell street in Dublin after the semi in 09 also...a hostility that far exceeds any treatment of fans in RDS, Lansdowne or Croke Park..

It exists, it's real and there is a rivalry there. I don't think it should be taboo to acknowledge it, talk about it or accept it. Hell, I don't think it should even be taboo to buy into it. Rivalry is what makes sport great. If we were all indifferent to each other it'd be like playing the Dragons every week...

European rivalries, local derbys, they're the greatest events in rugby and Leinster & Munster is arguably the biggest and certainly oldest rivalry in world rugby. 83,000 or so going to a head to head in a crunch European encounter, and you could have sold 150,000 tickets for that match. It's huge, let's not hide from it any more. Neither side is right or wrong, it's just sport and it's a bitter rivalry, let it exist, let's not all be overly PC and deny it, as long as we're not taking it too far, abusing each other and spamming the board, I say embrace it.

Deep down, most hardcore Munster fans love nothing more than beating Leinster, and vice versa. And deep down, if you're being honest, no Munster fan would like to see Leinster lifting 2 or 3 Heineken Cups over the next few years, and vice versa...it's natural, don't fight it. It's all banter at the end of the day, and as long as we can share a pint and not be out of hand, then we're all the better for it I say.