The end of an era? It's certainly a legitimate question though probably premature as well. No team comes back exactly the same one year to the next and Munster will be changed subtlety between now and next season, but the vast bulk of the squad will stay together. The mission will continue for another year at any rate.
Continuity has been one of their strengths and, though they will have to package a double dose of heart-rendering one-point defeats at the final and penultimate stages of the European Cup, that will duly be the case.
Peter Clohessy and Mick Galwey, to start with, have confirmed that they have contractually committed themselves to another year.
With time running out on what Keith Wood lovingly calls these "dinosaurs", the rallying call of "let's do it for Gailimh and Claw" could be quite a spur.
Perhaps because they were conscious of having one more chance en bloc so they appeared, on Saturday night, to be able to take it on the chin for the time being at any rate. With one noted exception.
The impact of coming up short by a point for the second year running was immediate for John Langford and that is assuredly because the hugely likeable and popular ex-Wallaby will be the only one definitely not having another tilt at what is becoming Munster's holy grail.
"That's it," he said, the brevity of the hushed announcement entirely down to his acutely emotional state at the time after two unexpected end-of-career years in Munster. "Nothing about my career in Australia prepared me for the disappointment of this."
Others on the fringe of the team, such as Jeremy Staunton, Donnacha O'Callaghan or Tom Tierney, could conceivably decide to move on though the onset of the Celtic League should ensure more opportunities all round.
Otherwise, the rest of the squad should stay intact, with Mike Mullins having resisted overtures from France.
Rob Henderson (in attendance on Saturday) now looks an even better signing that he already did.
For all the injustices of one or two decisions which may have cost them five, seven or even 10 points, Ronan O'Gara agreed that not playing to their capabilities was the most disappointing thing.
"You can accept to some degree that you were beaten by a better team but I think today we all felt we left it behind us."
Anthony Foley reckoned that Munster simply weren't allowed play. "They shut us down, the scrums were a battle from the word go, in the line-outs we were fighting to win our own ball and they cluttered up their midfield so we weren't able to get into our flow."
For the players, the end-of-campaign lap of honour was the most memorable episode from the previous year's odyssey and so it may be again. A sort of mutually uplifting renewing of their unique bond.
"If we've given something to somebody that's the privilege of the job," said Kidney. "We don't pay lip service to walking around.
"In lots of ways you wouldn't feel like doing it, but there was absolutely no question whatsoever that that was definitely what we were going to do. It's the only way that we can show our thanks to our people.
"Look at the effort and expense they've given to be over here with us. If we haven't won Europe they are most definitely the best supporters in Europe."
