Munster lifted European Rugby’s most prestigious silverware at the third time of asking as a Millennium Stadium packed to the rafters with Irish fans roared the champions home in a gripping final.
After losing out on the highest honour in European club rugby in 2000 and 2002, to Northampton Saints and Leicester Tigers respectively, it was Munster’s turn to deny the opposition from taking their first Heineken Cup trophy as the 2005-2006 tournament was the first in which Biarritz had reached the final.
The French finalists took an early lead, much to the shock of the fifty thousand strong Irish contingent within the Millennium Stadium.
A move created by Biarritz centre Philippe Bidabe allowed Fijian winger Sireli Bobo to cross the line in the corner, with French international Dmitri Yachvili converting the explosive score from the touchline. Munster regained their composure after the early fireworks as the metronomic boot of Ronan O’Gara steadied Irish nerves with a penalty in the seventh minute.
With confidence building O’Gara spurned two chances at the posts. The second kick to the corner payed dividends as centre Trevor Halstead was able to ground the ball to give Munster the lead, and the jubilant Irish fans something to cheer about. O’Gara turned provider as he chipped a neat ball ahead, allowing Anthony Horgan to latch onto the ball and feed the oval through to Halstead, after some powerful play from Munster forwards Paul O’Connell and Jerry Flannery. O’Gara converted the effort to stretch the advantage to 10-7.
Yachvili slotted a penalty between the Irish uprights to level the scores at ten points a piece shortly after Marcus Horan had been penalised at the scrum but Biarritz were once again under attack. O’Gara, again refusing the posts, launched a ball deep into French territory; the result of which inspired one of the game’s finest moments.
From the back of the ten metre scrum Munster scrum half Peter Stringer, noticing his rival No.9 Yachvili out of position, produced a wonderful dummy around flanker Serge Betsen to dive over for the second Irish try of the match. On form with the boot, O’Gara sent the ball sailing between the uprights to send the teams into the changing rooms at the interval separated by a clear seven points.
A penalty on the restart for Munster, taken by O’Gara, gave the Irish the best possible start to the second half of the crucial clash. Yachvili pulled six points back for Biarritz after successfully converting two penalties and narrowed the scores to a nail-biting 20-19 with ten minutes remaining, the French trailing by the single point. With the match evenly balanced and tension gradually increasing to a fever pitch, O’Gara added his third penalty of the evening on 73 minutes to draw Munster into a slender four point lead.
The atmosphere within the Millennium Stadium was becoming charged with the intensity of an electric storm. A knock-on from Halstead in the 77th minute put Irish hearts in mouths as Biarritz were awarded a resultant scrum. Munster, though, defended valiantly with man of the match Stringer clearing the ball to safety in the dying minutes of the game. A Biarritz mistake with one minute to play gifted Munster a scrum, and as the seconds slowly ticked past the eighty minute mark the reliable boot of O’Gara kicked the ball into touch to end the scintillating match and gain Munster the mantle of European Champions in front of a Stadium full to capacity.
