Munster suffered their first loss of the season after five consecutive wins with a 21-27 defeat to Stormers on Saturday evening in Thomond Park.
The men in red had a dream start to the game with Stormers second-row Connor Evans receiving a yellow card for obstruction in the opening three minutes. Munster capitalised on the advantage with a Tadhg Beirne try to take the lead. Munster added another two tries in the opening half from John Hodnett and Jack Crowley to take a 15-point lead in with them at the break in Thomond.
The game was a tale of two halves as a storm from the South African side came in the second half with tries from Adre Smith, Dylan Maart and Ruhan Nel to take a 21-27 lead. Munster looked a completely different side in the second 40 compared to the first half. They were completely overpowered in the scrum, as well as being a man down for a period. Gavin Coombes received a yellow midway through the second half. Munster however, thought they had snatched a late victory. Yet, a Tom Farrell try was ruled out by the TMO after Jack Crowley appeared to knock-on the ball in the build-up.
Thomond Park is silenced 😬
Jack Crowley’s pass is intercepted and Ruhan Nel gives the visitors the lead ⛈️ pic.twitter.com/NR50sTS1Pi
— Premier Sports Ireland (@PremSportsIRL) November 29, 2025
The loss for Munster leaves them in third, behind Cardiff and Stormers, who keep their undefeated status after the win in Limerick gave them their sixth in a row. Munster will look to bounce back next weekend when they play their opening fixture in the Investec Champions Cup away to Bath on Saturday night.