Jack Odonoghue - players.bio

O'Donoghue: 'My mum wasn't too happy with me!'

Time and again over the last few months, Munster's players and coaches have spoken about the changes they're making to the way they play.

Gradually, that change is becoming evident on the pitch, as more passes go to hand, and more wins lift them up the URC table.

But as well as changing the way they're playing in games, the coaching staff have also been keen to stress the changes they've made to the way they train, with a faster pace and fewer breaks designed to challenge the players mentally and physically.

On Tuesday, the province invited the media down to Thomond Park to see it first hand, and it was fascinating to see both the speed and simplicity of the operation.

There's a huge emphasis placed on skills work, and the execution was impressive, particularly in the face of a miserably wet afternoon in Limerick.

Bringing it all together has been a process though.

"I was tough to get used to," admits Jack O'Donoghue (below) after Tuesday's session.

"We were kind of used to...not that we were training slow or anything, but we used to have little mini-chats or mini-huddles in each block, where now we're trying to adapt and to problem solve on the move, on the run, being able to have little conversations with 9 or 10 before you get set for the next play, and it's very much what you feel like out on the pitch, where you can't just all of a sudden pull our whole group in.

"I know when there's an injury you do have those times [to talk], but you have to be able to adapt to how the game is unfolding live as opposed to waiting for a break in play, and I think it's incredibly beneficial to us and we're starting to see the rewards of that now.

"It took a bit of time to get used to but certainly for me personally, I feel fitter, I feel

Munster Rugby Sport Rugby

Jack Odonoghue

rte.ie

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