The 2012–13 Munster Rugby season was Munster's twelfth season competing in the Pro12, alongside which they also competed in the Heineken Cup. It was Rob Penney's first season as head coach.
Summary
Munster were drawn in pool 1 for the 2012–13 Heineken Cup, alongside Scottish Pro12 rivals and semi-finals of the previous seasons competitionEdinburgh, English Premiership side Saracens and French Top 14 side Racing Métro 92.[1] Hew head coach Rob Penney[2] appointed Doug Howlett as the new squad captain ahead of the 2012–13 season.[3] Munster opened their Heineken Cup campaign with a 22–17 away defeat against Racing Métro 92 on 13 October 2012.[4] 8 days later, Munster won 33–0 in their round 2 home fixture against Edinburgh.[5] In the December back-to-backs against Saracens in rounds 3 and 4, Munster won 15–9 at home, before being defeated 19–13 away.[6][7] Munster won 26–17 away from home against Edinburgh on 13 January 2013.[8] One week later, Munster beat Racing Métro 92 29–6 at home to secure the second 'best runner-up' spot and advance to the tournament knockout stage.[9] In their quarter-final against English team Harlequins on 7 April 2013, Munster produced an immense performance, captained by Paul O'Connell in the absence of Doug Howlett, to win 18–12 away from home.[10] In the semi-final on 27 April 2018, Munster were beaten 16–10 by French side Clermont, despite a gallant effort in the second half in the Stade de la Mosson.[11] The match turned out to by club legend Ronan O'Gara's final appearance for Munster, as he announced his retirement from rugby a few weeks later.[12] Squad captain and another club legend, Doug Howlett, was forced to retire after a shoulder injury suffered against Glasgow Warriors in March 2013.[13] Munster finished 6th in the 2012–13 Pro12 regular season with 11 wins, 10 defeats and 1 draw, missing out on the play-offs.
If teams are level at any stage, tiebreakers are applied in the following order:[18]
number of matches won;
the difference between points for and points against;
the number of tries scored;
the most points scored;
the difference between tries for and tries against;
the fewest red cards received;
the fewest yellow cards received.
Green background (rows 1 to 4) are play-off places. Qualification for the Heineken Cup is based on each country's allocation, i.e. three highest–ranked Irish teams, three highest–ranked Welsh teams, both Italian teams and both Scottish teams. Leinster won the Amlin Challenge Cup, giving Ireland an extra Heineken Cup place that passed to Connacht.
