Munster: Our Road to Glory - Tapa dura

Munster’s victory in the 2006 Heineken Cup was the culmination of an epic journey to the pinnacle of European club rugby. This book tells the story of that journey, in the players’ own words.Based on exclusive interviews by Alan English with all of the 22-man squad whose names have already gone down in history, Munster: Our Road to Glory is the complete inside account of how they did it. The thrilling victory over Biarritz in the final at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff was only the last in a series of matches in which the Munster team – and their legion of fans – created a legend. After a series of narrow defeats in European finals and semi-finals, the 2006 Munster team would not be denied. This book tells the story of the near-misses of previous years, and re-lives every tackle and try of the 2006 campaign, from the last-gasp, bonus-point victory over Sale at a delirious Thomond Park, through the glorious defeat of Castres on a bitterly cold night in France, to the comprehensive victory over Leinster at Lansdowne Road, when Munster's passionate fans vastly outnumbered their Leinster rivals in their own back yard.With searing honesty, Munster’s players talk about the defeats of the past and their own personal reasons for needing to beat Biarritz and lift the elusive cup. Alan English also talks to the fans, who tell moving stories of how much the team means to them and how they celebrated their finest hour.Comprehensively illustrated with match photos by the Inpho team, and by Billy Stickland’s stunning and exclusive series of shots of the players in their dressing room after the match, as well as a remarkable series of pictures of Team Munster with the Cup, Munster: Our Road to Glory is the ultimate account of an achivement that will be talked about for ever.

Alan English is the sports editor of the Irish edition of the Sunday Times, and author of Stand Up and Fight: When Munster Beat the All Blacks. Billy Stickland is the founder and head of the Inpho sports photography agency.