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Tommy O'Donnell praises Conor Murray for changing the momentum of the game against Racing 92

Munster's Tommy O'Donnell has hailed Conor Murray's try as the pivotal moment in their win over R...



Tommy O'Donnell praises Co...
Rugby

Tommy O'Donnell praises Conor Murray for changing the momentum of the game against Racing 92

Munster's Tommy O'Donnell has hailed Conor Murray's try as the pivotal moment in their win over Racing 92 at Thomond Park on Saturday. 

It finished 14-7 to the Irish side and speaking to Off the Ball's Oisin Langan after the match, he said: "We knew it was going to be (a battle). We knew it was going to be heading into it at the start of the week and then we got the news that storm Brian was going to be rolling in for the weekend so we knew it was going to make our job extra tough but on windy, stormy nights like this.

"Like the Maori All Blacks last year, we kind of knew that the elements are in our favour and we can latch onto a couple of loose balls and dive on the scraps then we had a great chance of winning that game and thankfully that's what we did there with a great breakthrough from Murray. 

"You know, a bit of instinct, he said he was going to defend the blindside and got in the way of the kick and did unbelievably well to charge down the ball so that just completely swung the momentum of the game."

Speaking about the conditions, the Munster flanker said: "Because it wasn't raining, you'd think the ball would be dry but it was incredibly greasy in the first 20/30 minutes and into the second half. 

"So, holding onto the ball as you saw from all the knock-ons and turnovers - it was incredibly hard in contact if you were hit or a shoulder got in on the ball that the ball did have a tendency to squirt so it was nearly easier to have the wind at your back and be defending in that kind of weather. Thankfully, we had it in the second half and it was all about applying pressure," he added.

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