After creating two tries and scoring another, Willis Halaholo was unsurprisingly claimed the Guinness PRO14 man-of-the-match award - now he has called on Cardiff Blues to build on their success.
Following three narrow defeats in the final five minutes of their first three games, Cardiff Blues knew nothing less than a win would suffice upon their return to the Arms Park.
They could not have asked for a tougher test than Munster but were more than up for the challenge as they blew the Irish province away.
Halaholo was at the heart of everything Wales’ Capital Region did well. In the first half he made the vital yards to lay the platform for Nick Williams’ close-range drive and set up Tomos Williams with a devastating break.
Then in the second-half he eased outside the Munster defence for a vital score of his own.
The centre was thrilled to kick-start the Blues season, and he now wants more, and he remained typically humble when questioned on his try.
He said: “It’s good for us, especially when we were up against a good team like Munster. It will really pick the boys up leading into the rest of the season.
“We’ve had a few tough losses, especially losing in the last few minutes of each game, so it was good to come out with the bonus-point win.
“We’ll take it week by week. We will rest up now, come in and review the game because there’s still things we need to work on but we’re definitely looking forward to the Cheetahs.
“The boys were up and once the momentum was there we didn’t want to change it. We kept playing, we spoke about not just defending a lead, we wanted to keep playing and score more points so we were happy to come away with the bonus-point.”
Reflecting on his personal contributions, he continued: “I don’t know… we ran the same line earlier and I stepped in and got a bit of gain from that. So the next one where we ran the same move I went for the outside. It’s just a case of trying to play some mind games and using my feet the best I can.
“For the try it was good build-up from the forwards in the 22 and like I said, again we ran the same move three times in the first half so I decided to change it and got on the outside but it was all credit to the boys up front.”
A crowd of more than 7,000 descended to the Arms Park in miserable conditions and Halaholo was thrilled with the atmosphere.
Following three near misses, he knew Cardiff Blues owed the crowd and he hopes they will be back in force for next Friday’s home clash against the Cheetahs.
He added: “We were a bit surprised that a lot of supporters came out tonight and we are really grateful for that, especially after three losses. We really owed them and we’re happy that they are sticking by us because it really helps us out on the field.”
Cardiff Blues take on Toyota Cheetahs at Cardiff Arms Park on Friday, September 28 (7.35pm). Tickets are available by clicking here or calling 029 20 302030. #PackCAP