CJ Stander: I know Axel meant the world to his family, he meant the world to me

It was an emotional day in Thomond Park today as Munster recorded a dominant 38-17 win over Glasgow Warriors the day after Anthony Foley was laid to rest.

CJ Stander: I know Axel meant the world to his family, he meant the world to me

It was an emotional day in Thomond Park today as Munster recorded a dominant 38-17 win over Glasgow Warriors the day after Anthony Foley was laid to rest.

The home side racked up five tries in easily brushing aside the challenge of their PRO12 rivals before a raucous capacity crowd of 26,500.

Munster's performance was all the more remarkable as they played with 14 men for an hour after winger Keith Earls was red-carded for a dangerous 18th-minute tackle on Glasgow hooker Fraser Brown.

Immediately after Munster's bonus-point 38-17 win, the home squad linked arms in a large circle on the pitch and sang another rendition of 'Stand Up And Fight'.

A still-packed crowd joined in the chorus and then applauded the Munster squad, who were accompanied by Foley's sons Tony and Dan, on a lap of honour.

The arrival of Anthony Foley's sons to sing 'Stand Up and Fight' was not planned by Munster, but it was the perfect thing to do and shows the support the club has given to Foley's family in this difficult time.

Foley made the number eight position his own during a long and successful Munster career highlighted by him captaining them to European Cup final glory in 2006.

Last night Munster announced, as a mark of respect to Foley, they would retire the number eight jersey for the Glasgow game.

CJ Stander, playing today in Foley's position wearing the number 24 jersey, revealed that seeing Foley's sons on the pitch today was very emotional for him.

Stander said: "My heart is with Olive, Dan and Tony. It was great to see them on the pitch, it was massive.

"I think everyone deals with emotion differently during the week and I wasn’t really emotional, crying, but I felt the loss inside me. When I saw the two boys walking onto the pitch, that’s when I broke down.

"The next few days and next few years are going to be tough for them and they’re going to miss a big man in their life, their father. I feel so sorry for their loss. I know he meant the world to them, he meant the world to me.

"It was great to see them on the pitch today."

Meanwhile, disappointed Glasgow Warriors head coach Gregor Townsend said their preparations had gone well in advance of the game in Limerick.

The Warriors were exemplary in paying their respects to Foley, with Townsend and fellow coach Dan McFarland attending Friday's funeral in Killaloe, County Clare, and the players also visiting the Thomond Park shrine to the late number eight.

"As coaches we obviously focus on the rugby, but we are also part of mentally preparing our players, getting them to believe in themselves and go out there and play," said Townsend, whose side were trailing 31-3 before final-quarter tries from replacements Pat MacArthur and Mark Bennett gave them something to play for.

"This was different and we were focusing on the rugby side of it. We talked about what we expected today, with the crowd noise, the whole atmosphere. I felt the players were focused in the meetings and training sessions. We prepared really well.

"Just from the beginning of the game we didn't defend that well. When we had the ball we looked like individuals, rather than sticking to what we know works. Munster looked like a team today.

"It's the Champions Cup. We know every game is difficult. This was really difficult today. We have missed not picking up any points today and given one of our rivals five points. It will be tough from here."

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