Conor Murray reflects on Six Nations defeat to England - 'There’s no hiding from the abuse you get'

ByOli Gent

Published 06/04/2024 at 22:51 GMT+1

Conor Murray has dismissed criticism thrown his way since his kick for touch in the final 90 seconds resulted in Marcus Smith's last-minute drop goal as England snuck a 23-22 win over Ireland in the Six Nations at Twickenham. The scrum-half, speaking ahead of Munster's trip to Northampton live on TNT Sports and discovery+, said that he was trying to ignore it now that he was back on club duty.

Highlights: Saints fight back with 14 men to beat Munster

Conor Murray has shrugged off the criticism thrown at him since his mistake led to Ireland losing to England at Twickenham in the Six Nations.

It was Murray’s decision to kick for touch with 90 seconds to go that resulted in Marcus Smith’s last-gasp drop goal, with England winning narrowly 23-22 as the clock turned red.

Now, back on club duty for Munster, the scrum-half is keen to silence the critics and put the disappointment behind him.

Rugby

TNT Sports and discovery+ to exclusively show 2024 Autumn Nations Series - fixtures announced

22/04/2024 at 13:26

"You just ignore it,” Murray said. "The longer you’re around, the more s*** you hear from the outside. There’s no hiding from the abuse you get. You can’t get away from it but that clip didn’t even come up in the review, that’s how irrelevant it was.

“Genuinely, we’ve been around long enough to know how long you can hold on to the ball in your own 22, that was the right call; we’d do it again, it was what happened after."

Murray, whose Munster side face Northampton Saints in the Investec Champions Cup live on TNT Sports and discovery+ on Sunday, could not believe the level of abuse he received after the match.

“Chatting to Andy [Farrell], we had a giggle about it, it was wild,” the 34-year-old said.

“Unfortunately, that’s just the way the world is. But I was taken aback by it, the level of messages coming into my phone. Just abuse, really, just: ‘What the f*** are you doing, kicking the ball away?’.

“People who, in fairness, ‘support’ Ireland and are frustrated that we lost and they’re just looking for some way to vent and they see they can message you on Instagram.

“It was mad, but if I’d made a mistake or missed a tackle you’d think, no, fair enough, but you could see the reason for it."

‘What character’ - Graham goes over for late try as Northampton win at Munster

Looking ahead to Munster’s encounter at the cinch Stadium at Franklin's Gardens, Murray emphasised his desire to right the wrongs of his side’s previous match-up with their opponents.

“It’s a huge game,” he said. “We’re frustrated with the defeat [to Saints] at home, obviously. We felt we didn’t play to our potential, or near it really.

“We slogged through that game at home in Thomond. So, going over there now it’s a huge challenge but I think we can take confidence from what we’ve done in the last year, and in glimpses of what we’ve done this year.

“If we manage to put it all together, or close to it, we’ll have a good shot.”

- - -

TNT Sports presents the premium live sports rights previously carried by BT Sport including the Premier League, UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, UEFA Conference League, Gallagher Premiership Rugby, Investec Champions Cup, EPCR Challenge Cup, MotoGP, Cricket, UFC, Boxing and WWE. The streaming home for TNT Sports in the UK is discovery+, where fans can enjoy a subscription that includes TNT Sports, Eurosport and entertainment in one destination.

Guinness Women's Six Nations

England 'take handbrake off' to thrash Ireland as Grand Slam looms, Scotland beat Italy

20/04/2024 at 20:24

Guinness Women's Six Nations

England storm to whitewash victory against Scotland in front of record crowd

13/04/2024 at 22:34

Investec Champions Cup

Northampton edge Munster in thriller to reach quarter-finals, Toulouse thrash Racing 92

07/04/2024 at 18:08