Munster 52-3 Zebre: Irish province extend lead at top of Pro14 Conference B
- Published
Munster have a 16-point lead at the top of Conference B
Pro14: Munster v Zebre |
|---|
Munster (28) 52 |
Tries: Goggin, de Allende, penalty try, Sweetnam, Hanrahan, French Cons: Hanrahan 5 |
Zebre (3) 3 |
Pen: Pescetto |
Munster extended their lead at the top of Pro14 Conference B to 16 points with an eight-try dismantling of Zebre.
Dan Goggin, Damian De Allende and Darren Sweetnam all crossed in the first half.
And Munster were also awarded a penalty try as they claimed the bonus-point inside the opening 40 minutes.
JJ Hanrahan capped a fine display with a score of his own before Sean French, Craig Casey and Thomas Ahern rounded off the scoring.
The province retain their undefeated start to the season and remain in total control of the conference, with Scarlets their closest competitors.
Zebre are rooted to the bottom of Conference A with just one win from their opening eight matches.
Goggin's opener came after eight minutes, gathering Hanrahan's chip, before South African World Cup winner De Allende barged over for his first score in red.
A penalty try following a maul infringement extended the lead, allowing Sweetnam to bag the bonus-point score before the break, collecting Goggin's pass after the centre made the initial break.
Fly-half Hanrahan enjoyed a stand-out evening in Limerick and was on hand to finish a flowing Munster move to grab his side's fifth try after the interval.
Academy player French, introduced as a first half substitute, was next to cross the whitewash for a debut score before replacements Casey and Ahern got in on the act in the final five minutes to move their side beyond the half-century of points.
Munster: Gallagher; Nash, Goggin, De Allende, Sweetnam; Hanrahan, McCarthy; J Wycherley, Marshall, Archer; F Wycherley, Holland (capt); O'Donoghue, Cloete, Coombes.
Replacements: Barron, O'Connor, Knox, Ahern, Daly, Casey, Healy, French.
Zebre: Laloifi; D'Onofrio, Bisegni (capt), Lucchin, Bruno; Pescetto, Fusco; Brugnara, Manfredi, Tarus; Venditti, Krumov; Kearney, Mordacci, Masselli
Replacements: Ceciliani, Lovotti, Nocera, Chianucci, Fabiani, Marinaro, Forcucci, Elliott