RUGBY EUROPEAN CUP NEWS:THERE IS every reason to believe it'll be a wounded Munster who'll walk into a sell-out Thomond Park on Saturday knowing the second of their back-to-back fixtures with ASM Clermont Auvergne represents a must-win Pool One match.
The importance of winning was reiterated by head coach Tony McGahan yesterday when he announced his extended 26-man squad for mission ASM, with Jerry Flannery now very much a live option for selection having "trained well" yesterday, according to McGahan.
Barry Murphy sat out the afternoon session (sore back) but the outside centre's position may be under pressure when the starting XV is announced at midday tomorrow.
Paul Warwick, whose cut hand curtailed his involvement in Clermont-Ferrand, is likely to come into the equation, perhaps as a number 13, though McGahan has the option of moving Keith Earls from fullback into the centre.
Time was when Munster would have been happy leaving France with a losing bonus point but their status as the number team in Europe and as standard-bearers in the competition means they carry high expectations where ever they go.
And the arrival of Clermont offers Munster - apart from the All Blacks — their most difficult test so far this season.
Naturally much of the focus before kick-off will be on the composition of Vern Cotter's team and whether he will suffer the wrath of ERC organisers by sending a second-string side to Limerick, a policy he adopted on his last visit to Munster 13 months ago.
McGahan quipped when asked whether Cotter would bring his "seconds" to Limerick: "If I was a betting man, I wouldn't be thinking so," he said.
He also knows the importance of a win here and, as previous Thomond epics have shown down through the years, Munster are at their most inspired when backed into a tight corner and victory is a must.
"History would suggest that when we have our backs to the wall we certainly come out fighting and put everything into it," admitted McGahan. "We always do that, but this weekend represents for us a must-win Cup final. I know this might be a cliché, but we are absolutely looking no further than this weekend. We don't care about anything else: our whole energy is on this weekend. That's all we're focused on."
McGahan also realizes the power of the 16th man cannot be underestimated. A raucous 26,000 sell-out crowd and the afternoon 3:30pm kick-off time, will surely provide a perfect arena for Munster. However, McGahan wants his team to provide the crowd with reason to roar.
"It's a well-worn statement that the Thomond Park crowd is only worth a couple of points on the board if you've played accordingly and if you've played well enough to get them behind you and be in a position.
The consistency of refereeing in the Heineken Cup was also discussed at yesterday's press conference.
Arguably, Munster were pinged harshly by Wayne Barnes at the ruck area, and six times within goal-kicking range for the ASM outhalf, Brock James.
The concession of 10 penalties doesn't mark a discipline crisis in the Reds camp even if McGahan admitted all were legitimate calls by the English official.
Fellow countryman Chris White is in charge on Saturday and McGahan intends to have his homework done on the former teacher, who, incidentally, officiated the 2006 Heineken Cup final between Munster and Biarritz.
"I think if you're looking over any particular competition, whether it's Magners, Guinness Premiership or Super 14, Top 14, all referees are different in their interpretation of the rules.
"What you have to do as a side is make sure you do your homework and come up with whatever plan for the way the referee refs the game .... see what are his hot issues."
MUNSTER (squad):M Horan, J Hayes, T Buckley, D Fogarty, F Sheahan, J Flannery, M O'Driscoll, P O'Connell, D O'Callaghan, D Ryan, A Quinlan, D Wallace, J Coughlan, N Ronan, T O'Leary, P Stringer, R O'Gara, P Warwick, L Mafi, K Earls, B Murphy, K Lewis, I Dowling, D Howlett, A Horgan, D Hurley.
How they stand
Pool One
P W D L F A B Pts
Sale 3 2 0 1 84 45 2 10
Munster 3 2 0 1 62 58 1 9
Clermont 3 2 0 1 64 70 0 8
Montauban 3 0 0 3 42 79 2 2
