Munster might be happier than most that Ireland were able to pull off the shock of the weekend as they stunned world champions New Zealand at WXV1.
Their reverse in Parma had stood out as the upset of the round two and Graham Rowntree will have a thing or two to say to his players when they get together.
After establishing a 13-point lead at the break, Munster conceded 27 points in the second half before losing for the first time ever in Parma, 42-33.
"I could be here until it gets dark talking about things we need to do better," said Rowntree in his post-match interview.
"That wasn't good enough from us."
Munster missed a whopping 22 tackles and were turned over eight times as Zebre won in the league for the first time in 15 rounds.
"The amount of individual sloppy mistakes was just totally unacceptable," he said.
"Munster will look back on that and they should be embarrassed with that performance."
The visitors finished last season top of the standings, while Zebre were rock bottom and claimed just one win.
However, their early season form might have provided a bit more of a warning for the 2023 champions.
Ulster barely got out of Stadio Sergio Lanfranchi with a 40-36 win 11 months ago, while Zebre picked up a win, a draw and lost by just three points to Ospreys in four of the other five opening-round ties.
This is when they are hot, and Munster learned the hard way. Their response against Ospreys on Saturday will be interesting but it’s the kind of defeat that will linger even if they take care of business at Musgrave Park.
On paper, Leinster’s 35-6 win over Dragons was along expected lines but the result didn’t tell the story of the game.
"Remarkably sloppy," was how it was put in our match report.
Leading just 10-6 at the break, a more clinical visiting side could have been ahead but Leinster had enough quality in reserve to push on in the second half.
"It was a little bit of frustrating first half, even though we scored two decent tries," said Leo Cullen, whose side were turned over 10 times.
"Second half, the focus was a bit clearer, there was a bit more intent in terms of our carry and work at the breakdown, which gave us some better opportunities.
"To score six tries, overall we're pretty pleased."
Jamie Osborne’s second outing at full-back, in addition to two starts at 15 for Ireland against South Africa during the summer, is a big plus for Cullen.
The Kildare man’s left boot is an effective weapon, similar to James Lowe’s impact for Ireland.
Hugo Keenan, who missed the end of the URC season when he went to Sevens, should return soon to take his place but Osborne, who’ll face centre competition from Jordie Barrett soon, has shown he can slot in at full-back.
Jimmy O’Brien, on the left wing, also looked sharp.
Ulster, meanwhile, looked like a tired team in their midday kick-off against Lions in the heat and altitude in Johannesburg. The hosts were up for it and in the end, Richie Murphy’s side did well to grab four tries and a point.
Aidan Morgan, an unknown quantity on arrival from the Hurricanes, scored a second try in two games (above), while John Cooney marked his return from injury with a touchdown.
New signings Werner Kok and Corrie Barrett opened their try-scoring accounts for Ulster, who missed 38 tackles and conceded 11 penalties.
"A difficult afternoon, we lost control of the game early on, we kicked the ball poorly in relation to our kick chase to put them under pressure," said Murphy after the 35-22 defeat.
"We didn't kick it long enough or high enough to put them under pressure in the contest and that brought a lot of pressure back onto us.
"We have to move on and learn from these experiences."
The game of the weekend was at the three-sided Dexcom Stadium in Connacht’s first home match.
The famous Clan Stand is no more but it would have been rocking as Pete Wilkins’ side fought back from 20 points down at half-time with a four-try second-half surge.
"We were just joking there in the changing room. Whatever we said [at half-time], we should probably just say it at the start next time and get it over and done with," Wilkins joked with the assembled media in a portacabin in the building site after the game.
While the Sharks were missing 10 Springboks and had a number of players out injured, they nearly got the job done.
The switch of Cathal Forde from centre to out-half when Josh Ioane failed his HIA at half-time was the catalyst for the 36-30 win, the Galway man scoring the try of the night and kicking nine points off the tee.
They are likely to have Bundee Aki back after his international lay-off for next week’s trip to Scarlets.
Elsewhere
South Africa, as expected, wrapped up the Rugby Championship with a big win over Argentina, who had beaten the Springboks last weekend.
Rassie Erasmus’ side claimed the title for the first time since 2019, scoring seven tries in a 48-7 win.
The Pumas, visitors to the Aviva Stadium for Ireland's second Test in the autumn, had two players sent to the sin-bin, while Pablo Matera received a 20-minute red card.
New Zealand finished up their tournament with a 33-13 win over Australia in Wellington. It was their fifth straight series win in the Bledisloe Cup.
Final say
It's only fitting that Ireland’s win over New Zealand gets the final mention. Few outside the camp would have believed a victory over the world champions, ranked second, was possible.
But Ireland believed and that’s all that matters. Scott Bemand has his team playing excellent rugby with cohesion evident in attack and defence, while the skillset across the board has never been higher.
After the issues across the women’s game over the last seven years, the victory is a brilliant achievement. The team is on the right trajectory, credit where credit is due to those in charge.
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