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What time and TV channel is Sharks v Munster on today in the URC quarter-final

What time and TV channel is Sharks v Munster on today in the URC quarter-final

Munster are hoping to make it a hat-trick to remember by seeing off the Sharks for a place in the last four of the BKT URC, having won their quarter-finals in the last two years.
The Reds' victory over Benetton in their final regular season game secured a place in the play-offs, with Ian Costello's charges finishing in sixth place in the table.
The Sharks are third seeds and are at home at altitude, so this will be a tough assignment for a Munster side that has an unchanged line-up for the third successive game.
The Sharks have made five changes for this game and have 12 Springboks in their side, so Munster will have to be at their best to triumph.
The game takes place at Hollywoodbets Kings Park, Durban
The match kicks off at 5.30pm on Saturday
It will be shown live on TG4 (from 5.25pm) and Premier Sports 1 (from 5.15pm) and will be streamed on URC.tv
Sharks are 4/11 to win, Munster are 23/10 to win, the draw is 17/1
Referee: Mike Adamson (Scotland)
The Sharks have only lost twice at home this season - against Toulouse in the Champions Cup and to Leinster in round 14.
One of their home victories came against Munster in October, a result that was followed by Graham Rowntree's departure. That has been the Sharks only win in four against the province.
Munster: Thaakir Abrahams, Calvin Nash, Tom Farrell, Alex Nankivell, Diarmuid Kilgallen, Jack Crowley, Craig Casey; Michael Milne, Niall Scannell, Stephen Archer, Jean Kleyn, Tadhg Beirne (captain), Peter O'Mahony, John Hodnett, Gavin Coombes.
Replacements: Diarmuid Barron, Josh Wycherley, John Ryan, Tom Ahern, Alex Kendellen, Conor Murray, Rory Scannell, Mike Haley.
Sharks: Aphelele Fassi, Ethan Hooker, Lukhanyo Am, Andre Esterhuizen, Makazole Mapimpi, Jordan Hendrikse, Jaden Hendrikse, Ox Nche, Bongi Mbonambi, Vincent Koch, Eben Etzebeth (captain), Jason Jenkins, James Venter, Vincent Tshituka, Siya Kolisi
Replacements: Fez Mbatha, Ntuthuko Mchunu, Hanro Jacobs, Emile van Heerden, Phepsi Buthelezi, Bradley Davids, Francois Venter, Yaw Penxe.

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'Winning ugly' may serve Leinster better than blowouts
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  • RTÉ News​

'Winning ugly' may serve Leinster better than blowouts

Hugo Keenan admits that Leinster won ugly against Scarlets but getting over the line in nervy contests may serve them better at the business end of the BKT URC. Just a couple of weeks ago, head coach Leo Cullen wondered about "some of these blowout games, I'm not sure what we necessarily have learned from a few of them". He was referring to the Champions Cup wins over Harlequins (62-0) and Glasgow Warriors (52-0) that did little in the way of preparing them for the dogfight that was coming down the line against Northampton in the semi-final. The 76-5 victory over Zebre a week later was of similar worth in the long run. So Cullen will be able to take some solace from the fact that Leinster were able to prevail in tighter affairs against the Warriors two weeks ago and the Scarlets, 33-21, on Saturday. URC half-time: Leinster 15-14 Scarlets - Scarlets go the length of the field at the end of the first half. Updates: LIVE: — RTÉ Sport (@RTEsport) May 31, 2025 Captain Jack Conan called the performance "inaccurate" and said they "just forced things a little bit of over-eagerness." Full-back Keenan, named player of the match, said: "It's all about getting the job done, getting the win. "It wasn't pretty, it wasn't perfect, we were ill-disciplined and a little bit scrappy, especially in that first half. "That's sometimes what it's about, winning ugly a little bit." Leinster led by just a point at the break but grabbed two tries in the third quarter to stay out of reach of Dwayne Peel's side, who had won their regular season tie at the end of April. "There was a heavy downpour at the start of the second half and we had to manage the game a bit better," added the Ireland full-back (below), who scored the fourth try. "Jamo [Gibson-Park] and Sam [Prendergast] and the lads put us in the right positions and kept them at arm's length, which was important," "In these knockout games, you can't really be taking high risks and playing rugby all the time." RTÉ Rugby analysts Jamie Heaslip and Donncha O'Callaghan were unimpressed by the Leinster showing, which sets them up for a semi-final meeting with defending champions Glasgow this Saturday (2.45pm, live on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player). Heaslip called it "lacklustre"; while "rudderless was O'Callaghan's verdict. Hooker Dan Sheehan was asked about how the squad was dealing with the fall-out from the Saints defeat. "It's been up and down but I think we've done a good job of sticking together, trying to block out as much outside noise as possible," said the Ireland front row, who will go on the Lions tour. "I think mentally we're in a good spot, we're looking after each other well and I think that's all we can do. "We'll rip into our prep now for Glasgow during the week and go again." The Scottish side have lost nine of their last 11 games against Leinster, including both games this season. Head coach Franco Smith believes his team, who impressed in the 36-18 win over Stormers on Friday, are better set for another swing at Leinster. "You must put the Leinster games in perspective," he said. "The first one, we were in the middle of the season, there were a lot of injuries in that period. There were so many out at that certain stage. "The expectation [on Leinster] was massive because they hadn't played their top team since the Six Nations. "Everything worked for them. Nothing went well [for us]. "If that happens with Leinster, they could put international teams away like that. That's what we took from that. "The next time, we were more ready for the challenge. Hopefully that will help us this time."

Leo Cullen: 'It's knockout rugby, what matters is getting through'
Leo Cullen: 'It's knockout rugby, what matters is getting through'

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Leo Cullen: 'It's knockout rugby, what matters is getting through'

URC: Leinster 33 Scarlets 21 Alone they stand of Ireland's four provinces, again, and yet this URC quarter-final defeat of an honest but limited Scarlets side only heightened the suspicion that something is just not clicking for Leinster this season. Leo Cullen was happy to have 'won ugly' by the end of a game that they won by four tries to three and a dozen points against a side that played 20 second-half minutes with 14 men, but this won't do again. Not nearly. Keep playing like this and either Glasgow Warriors or one of the two South African sides in the other semi-final will do for them before this playoff run is out and it will be a fourth year on the trot without a trophy to decorate their efforts. Leinster had 65% possession and 70% territory on Saturday and they still couldn't shake off their Welsh opponents at any stage – this despite a whirlwind start that had them 12-0 to the good after just ten minutes. The perception abroad is that the men in blue are gettable. Scarlets head coach Dwayne Peel inferred as much afterwards when he spoke about how they felt a screw could be turned if they just hung in there long enough. Mental concerns may well be feeding into the mechanics. The much-vaunted Jacques Nienaber blitz defence was shredded by Northampton Saints in that Champions Cup semi-final and Scarlets highlighted areas of concern again here. Leinster had to make only one-third as many tackles as Scarlets but they succeeded with only 65% of them. The evidence was apparent to the naked eye in the ease with which space and two scores were found for the first and third Scarlets tries. The theory goes that Leinster's dominance through the regular season might be working against them when push comes to shove and they are untested in terms of arm wrestles and jeopardy come the knockout stages. Cullen seems to buy into that. He picked out their last two league ties, against Zebre and Glasgow, when they had little or nothing to play for and compared it to the 'cup rugby' that Scarlets had been playing long before this quarter-final. 'Sometimes that creates a little bit of bad habits when you play games like that,' he said. Whatever about the vibes inside the dressing-room and on the field, the atmosphere at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday spoke for the sense of drift that has enveloped the province with less than 13,000 punters paying in. The loss to the Saints has clearly fed into that, so did the Bank Holiday. Cullen also posited how supporters still need to get their heads, and their calendars, around a season that now stretches so far into June. Added into this is the fact that, regardless of concerns over the team's efforts, the expectation was that they would breeze past the Scarlets, that there would be another, bigger, day to tempt people to open their wallets. Cullen is mindful of all that, too, but he understands the need to rally the troops. 'It shouldn't be a drudge,' he said in trying to generate excitement for the semi-final to come and highlighting the danger posed by Glasgow. That said, he is not using a subdued crowd as reason for any struggles. 'No, no, no no. I don't want to use that at all. We played here in front of empty stadiums in Covid and I would much rather have what we had there [on Saturday]. In no way am I giving out here, in no way… 'We'll just keep beating the drum. We are asking supporters to come out here again next Saturday. It is short. We had a two-week lead-in and this is one week so it is more challenging again.' Glasgow are, lest we forget, reigning URC champions and they did it by beating Munster in Limerick in the last four and then overcoming the Bulls in Pretoria. Leinster beat them 52-0 in the last eight of Europe but only 13-5 in the URC earlier this month. 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Hendrikse's wink failed to deter Crowley but raises the question of sportsmanship in rugby
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Hendrikse's wink failed to deter Crowley but raises the question of sportsmanship in rugby

URC quarter-final: Shark 24 Munster 24 (Sharks win on place kicking competition 6-4) Munster coach Ian Costello did not address 'the wink' with local media following his side's 6-4 penalty shootout defeat in the United Rugby Championship (URC) quarter-final at Kings Park on Saturday. It might not even have been a topic of discussion in the Munster dressing room because for all the subsequent online furore, it was a fairly commonplace act in the modern game. The wink though, certainly caused a social media hullaballoo that seemed disproportionate to the alleged offence. The incident in question was when Sharks scrumhalf Jaden Hendrikse went down with 'cramp' after landing his second kick of a penalty shootout after the URC quarter-final against the Sharks had ended 24-24. Sharks phyios came on the pitch to treat the canny Bok halfback, all within a few feet of Munster flyhalf Jack Crowley, who was waiting to attempt his second kick at goal. Crowley let his feelings be known, telling the Sharks medical staff to 'f*&k off.' Hendrikse, on his back, winked at Crowley in response. Cue indignation from keyboards around the world. The image of the wink spread through social media like only social media outrage can spread. For the record, Crowley nailed his kick anyway, and no harm was done. It's also possible that Hendrikse was genuinely cramping. And it's also possible that he was able to wink at Crowley and cramp at the same time – the two actions are not mutually exclusive. The real damage in the shootout was done without any noticeable gamesmanship when Rory Scannell missed his first attempt, from 15 metres in from touch on the 22-metre line. That happened minutes before the Hendrikse wink. It wasn't the wink that shaped the course of the shootout. Despite social media's predictable outrage there, Hendrikse genuinely appeared to cramp up as soon as he struck his second kick in the shootout. Players swear, nudge, blow kisses, occasionally wink at each other and more worryingly, fall about feigning injury over 80 minutes as a matter of course these days. There is seldom, if ever outrage. Suddenly, in a shootout, it's deemed unacceptable by many people on social media who are happy to hurl insults at those disagreeing with them. No one, including Crowley, knew Hendrikse's precise physical state. His painful reaction following his second kick, looked authentic. Whether it was or wasn't, is conjecture. His wink was clearly intended to rile Crowley up. It had the opposite effect, and apparently added to Crowley's determination as he slotted his kick. So, it's safe to deduce that Hendrikse's wink, as an act of disrupting the opponent, failed. Which only leaves one to navel gaze about whether it was in the spirit of the game, yet another dangerous road to go down. Players literally cheat, or attempt to cheat throughout a rugby match. A jersey tug here, hands in the ruck there, holding a player down for a few seconds longer, berating the ref, or the particularly English act of screaming in the faces of opposition for winning a scrum/penalty/breakdown. Hendrike's wink was a bit of shithousery that is commonplace in rugby, as it is in most sports. Crowley used it as fuel and channelled it successfully. There really was nothing to see, which is probably why neither coach bothered to address the wink, if they had even seen it. For Munster the lasting take away was how close they came to an upset and how well they defended in the second half when the momentum shifted to the home team. 'I'm devastated and gutted for the team, for what they invested into that,' Costello said. 'The Sharks had an exceptional set piece, but we didn't take a step back all day and when they went ahead, we came back. 'It's all a blur, but I'm unbelievably proud of them and it's heartbreaking to lose a game like that. 'In terms of processing it I'm devastated for the boys for how much they put into it and for how much they've invested into this in the build-up and on the field. 'It was exceptional and I'm proud of the fight, the character and the quality that they showed tonight. Games like that at this level, playing away from home, come down to moments. And we just came out slightly on the wrong end of moments. Simple as that.' SHARKS: A Fassi; E Hooker, L Am, A Esterhuizen, M Mapimpi; Jordan Hendrikse, Jaden Hendrikse; O Nche, B Mbonambi, V Koch; E Etzebeth (c), J Jenkins; J Venter, V Tshituka, S Kolisi. Replacements: F Mbatha, N Mchunu, H Jacobs, E van Heerden, P Buthelezi, B Davids, F Venter, Y Penxe. MUNSTER: T Abrahams; C Nash, T Farrell, A Nankivell, D Kilgallen; J Crowley, C Casey; M Milne, N Scannell, S Archer; J Kleyn, T Beirne (c); P O'Mahony, J Hodnett, G Coombes. Replacements: D Barron, J Wycherley, J Ryan, T Ahern, A Kendellen, C Murray, R Scannell, M Haley. Referee: Mike Adamson

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