Munster secured a hard fought, gritty bonus point win over the Bulls with Charlie O'Shea producing a Player of the Match performance on a special night for the young out-half.
It was a positive start for Clayton McMillan's side with the match being played deep in the Bulls 22. The South African side conceded a number of penalties as Munster hammered the line with the home side kicking to the corner.
Unfortunately for Munster, the strong Bulls defence forced a knock on and the visitors had an opportunity to relieve the pressure. During this time, Michael Milne was forced off with an injury as he was replaced by Jeremy Loughman.
Munster were punished as the Bulls' first foray in the Munster 22 yielded a try as the South Africans power came to the fore as Ruan Vermaak crashed over. Curwin Bosch converted to give the Bulls a 0-7 lead.
Munster responded really well on the 20-minute mark when a strong carry from Brian Gleeson got Munster on the front foot. Munster went through the phases as the Bulls conceded a penalty which saw Charlie O'Shea produce a sublime crossfield kick during advantage for Diarmuid Kilgallen who did brilliantly to collect and dot down before going into touch. O'Shea nailed a really difficult conversion from the touchline to bring Munster level.
Munster took the lead on 32 minutes in unexpected circumstances. A Bulls scrum in their own half saw the ball go to Bosch who went to put in a clearing kick but this was blocked down by O'Shea. The young Munster out-half then won the foot race to dot down for his first competitive Munster try on his first competitive start for Munster.
The Bulls got straight back into the game, however. They got access into the Munster 22 and their pace and power caused all sorts of problems. This eventually saw Francois Klopper cross for a try which Bosch converted to level the game.
No one added to the scoreline in the remaining few minutes of the first half with the sides honours even at the break.
It was the Bulls who drew first blood in the second half when O'Shea conceded a penalty for holding on on the ground. Bosch stepped up and kicked the penalty between the sticks to give Bulls a 14-17 lead.
Munster got back on the front foot soon after when a chip over the top from O'Shea was collected by Shane Daly. The Cork man was dragged down just short of the line and the Bulls were able to turn the ball over and clear.
O'Shea got Munster back into the game when a strong maul effort saw the ball go wide to the out-half and he showed his strength to get the ball down in the corner before being tackled into touch. Unfortunately his touchline conversion drifted wide but Munster were back in the lead 19-17.
With just over 10 minutes remaining, Munster stretched their lead and got the bonus point try. A scrum in the Bulls 22 saw Gordon Wood take the ball to the line and he produced a really strong carry which brought play deep into the Bulls 22. From there, Alex Kendellen got over for a crucial try. O'Shea converted and the young out-half received a standing ovation from the Thomond Park faithful as he was replaced by JJ Hanrahan.
In the 73rd minute, Bulls got a try back in the corner through Jandre Rudolph but Munster produced some brilliant defence in the closing minutes to secure a deserved win.
Munster Rugby: Shane Daly; Diarmuid Kilgallen (Wood 23'), Seán O’Brien, Dan Kelly, Shay McCarthy; Charlie O’Shea, Craig Casey (C); Michael Milne (Loughman 8'), Marnus van der Merwe (Brookes 61'), Jack Aungier (Foxe 61'); Tom Ahern, Evan O'Connell; Seán Edogbo (Coombes 53'), John Hodnett, Brian Gleeson (Edogbo 66').
Replacements: Kieran Brookes, Jeremy Loughman, Ronan Foxe, Gavin Coombes, Alex Kendellen, Ben O’Donovan, JJ Hanrahan, Gordon Wood.