The Blues fought hard to go in level at half-time against the PRO12 high-flyers, but tries from captain Denis Hurley and back-rower Jack O’Donoghue saw the hosts pull clear. In-form Josh Navidi did crash over in reply, but it was too little, too late for Hammett’s league strugglers.
They are now 11 points off the European Rugby Champions Cup qualification spots on 22 points from 14 matches. But they have a crucial month ahead. The Blues travel to Benetton Treviso before home clashes against Edinburgh and Connacht.
And Hammett admitted he would have liked to see his side play a little more like their weekend opponents. He said: “I thought Munster played how we’d have like to have played. Credit to them they deserved the win. Even at half time I didn’t think we quite had the energy around the contact area and around how hard we carried the ball.”
The Blues have eight games to close the gap on the top six, and will be looking to recapture the form that saw them secure a place in the European Challenge Cup quarter-finals. Their last eight opponents are just one point behind them after a famous victory at Leinster.
Hammett’s men battled to a bonus-point victory over Treviso at the BT Sport Arms Park in November, and their victory over Zebre in Italy on the opening day of the season will stand them in good stead to steal the points.
