RUGBY/Saracens v Munster:SO, MUNSTER and the Red Army to march on? Appearing in their seventh semi-final, they've been here, bought the tee-shirt and know what's required. They're in remarkably rude health and playing against a mid-table English side, and the popular perception is that Ospreys did Munster a favour with their complacent attitude in the quarter-finals.
Remarkably, the 32,000 Ricoh Arena is not even sold out, with about 2,000 tickets for sale tomorrow morning outside the ground. This is almost unnervingly and even alarmingly too promising.
Saracens, if not quite to the same extent as London Irish in today's first semi-final, almost look primed to provide a mugging. They have a wise old, ex-Munster sage directing operations. They have nothing else to play for and can revel in being underdogs again. And as they showed in their high-intensity quarter-final win over the Ospreys, they are capable of rising to the occasion.
In wonderful toilers such as Hugh Vyvyan and Richard Hill, they boast a fantastic work ethic. In Cobus Visagie, they have a wrecking ball at scrum time. In Neil de Kock they boast one of the best scrumhalf conductors and string-pullers in European rugby.
As you'd expect from a side coached by Alan Gaffney, they like to play flat to the gain line off quick ball, and their offloading and interlinking between forwards and backs makes them a potent side, as they showed in registering five tries against Wasps last week.
In what is liable to be as physical a game as Munster will encounter all season, Visagie and co will surely attempt to attack the Munster scrum, commit hugely to the breakdown (where they blitzed an overconfident Ospreys) and seek to pummel the fringes before going for their high-octane running game. And the sight of Munster's pack being outmauled in the RDS remains a concern.
Munster will need to bring their best game to this, and it assuredly helps that they have long since been weaned on cup rugby.
"When you're young you think nothing of experience; you think it's just a word," commented Paul O'Connell. "But I think those things are very important in terms of playing cup rugby and just trying to win the game; not trying to win the game early on, but taking your time in trying to win the game, and making sure you do your basics right.
"I think that's the important thing about cup rugby. A lot of us would have grown up playing cup rugby between schools and clubs. Anthony Foley, who would have had a great influence over a lot of us, grew up playing cup rugby. Deccie played it and coached in it. These things are very important to have around the team at this stage of the competition."
That said, it was stunning to learn Munster had left Foley out of their 22, Donncha Ryan's good form edging out the old warrior.
In opting for their original selection against Gloucester, they have reinstated Marcus Horan at loosehead, with Freddy Pucciariello and Barry Murphy earning promotion to the bench ahead of Tony Buckley and Kieran Lewis.
Their unprecedented strength in depth has been reflected in changing line-ups, and they've certainly left no room for blind loyalty, instead rewarding Magners League form. Even so, it must have been one of the most difficult decisions Kidney has ever had to relate to one of his players; Foley having made a record 86 appearances in this competition.
But even with Peter Stringer again confined to the bench and Shaun Payne now out of the equation, six of their starting 15 have made over 50 Cup appearances and three are playing in a seventh semi-final. It's worth noting Munster have lost three of them, and in the last 10 years 13 of the 20 semi-finals have been settled by less than a score, only four being won by more than eight points.
Semi-finals can be tight, nervy affairs, and if Saracens build early momentum this could well be so. The Ricoh Arena is where Munster's campaign started, if not hopefully where it ends. The sight of Nigel Owens as referee again will unnerve Irish supporters, but the "home" factor which can influence penalty count will be diluted by the estimated 15,000-plus Munster fans at the Ricoh. This is where their support is invaluable.
Munster will have to absorb pressure and the events of the RDS will be a timely reminder of the need for focus and discipline. If their scrum holds up and they match Saracens at the breakdown, then given their lineout and a good track, the Tipoki-Mafi-Howlett axis can spring into gamebreaking life. And then there's Ronan O'Gara. All in all, they look too sound of body and mind to slip up.
SARACENS: R Haughton; F Leonelli, K Sorrell, A Powell, K Ratuvou; G Jackson, N de Kock (capt); N Lloyd, M Cairns, C Visagie; H Vyvyan, K Chesney; P Gustard, R Hill, B Skirving. Replacements: F Ongaro, C Johnston, T Ryder, D Barrell, M Rauluni, G Ross, D Scarbrough.
MUNSTER: D Hurley; D Howlett, L Mafi, R Tipoki, I Dowling; R O'Gara, T O'Leary; M Horan, J Flannery, J Hayes; D O'Callaghan, P O'Connell (capt); A Quinlan, D Wallace, D Leamy. Replacements: F Sheahan, F Pucciariello, M O'Driscoll, D Ryan, P Stringer, P Warwick, B Murphy.
Referee: Nigel Owens (Wales)
PREVIOUS MEETINGS: (99-00) Saracens 34 Munster 35; Munster 31 Saracens 30.
RESULTS SO FAR: Saracens - 33-31 v Glasgow (h); 21-22 v Biarritz (a); 71-7 v Viadana (h); 34-26 v Viadana (a); 45-16 v Biarritz (h); 21-17 v Glasgow (a); q/f 19-10 v Ospreys (h). Munster - 23-24 v Wasps (a); 36-13 v Clermont (h); 29-16 v Llanelli (a); 22-13 v Llanelli (h); 19-26 v Clermont (a); 19-3 v Wasps (h); q/f 16-3 v Gloucester (a).
LEADING POINTS SCORERS: Saracens - Glen Jackson 112. Munster - Ronan O'Gara 89.
LEADING TRY SCORERS: Saracens - Richard Haughton 5, Kameli Ratuvou 4, Rodd Penney 3. Munster - Shaun Payne, Rua Tipoki, Marcus Horan 2 each.
BETTING (Paddy Power): 5/2 Saracens, 25/1 Draw, 3/10 Munster. Handicap odds (Saracens +8pts) 10/11 Saracens, 22/1 Draw, 10/11 Munster.
FORECAST: Munster to win.
