O’Connell remains a major injury doubt for Sunday’s Heineken Cup quarter-final against Biarritz, but all other injury concerns have abated.
And, ahead of the trip to the Estadio Anoeta, Munster flanker David Wallace has issued a rallying call.
“We have to go out and attack them and attack them,” stated Wallace.
“I think it is going to be very difficult on Sunday. Obviously, the Ospreys played them, found some weaknesses, but they still didn’t win down there. We know it will be hard.
“Perhaps, the experience of five years ago, will help a bit.”
Wallace said that Munster will have to be at their battle-hardened best to get a result against the French.
“We will need to have that great cup rugby resolve about us to help grind out a win.”
Current Irish coach and former Munster supremo Declan Kidney believes the fact that home-grown Munster players grew up playing cup, knock-out, rugby at schools and club level stands to them in the cut and thrust of the Heineken Cup. David Wallace sees merit in the view.
“It is something Declan Kidney always used for motivation and maybe it’s psychological too that we are reared on Cup games.
“We have all come through systems where you need to win an individual game to progress in a competition.
“Maybe there is a different mentality to a scenario where a competition is decided over a long league season.
“In cup games it is mental, psychological as well as attitude that makes the difference between winning and losing. Maybe it does help coming from that background,” said Wallace.
While Munster’s Magners League ambitions were dented by last Saturday’s defeat to the Ospreys, Wallace said that reclaiming the Heineken Cup was always the top priority: “There is no avoiding it. The bigger competition, the one you want to win is the Heineken Cup. The Magners League is important too, but the Heineken Cup is the pinnacle, really.
“Having said that, ideally, you want to be winning both and you don’t want to be belittling one or the other.
“You want to be greedy and win as much as you can.
“If we win the Heineken Cup it will certainly be a very positive season for us. But we still want to win the league too,” he said.
Wallace is hoping that lessons learned in 2005 will stand to Munster.
“I remember Biarritz got a few penalties and built up a bit of a lead in the first half. It was only into the second half that we really started to have a go and we began to open them up. It was too little, too late. We produced a great second half after a pretty poor first half. Maybe there are lessons we can take from that ahead of Sunday’s game. Playing in Spain that time of the year, it is going to be warm. But I don’t think it is a major factor. You can use it as an excuse if you want. But certainly for myself, I actually prefer playing in warmer climates.”
He continued: “We played Biarritz in the 2006 final as well. It was just a great day. We had been knocking on the door a few times and we hadn’t gotten anything. This was our third time in the final and thoughts of coming away without the silverware was something you just couldn’t imagine. It was definitely a case of do-or-die.
“We had great support that day. Munster supporters totally outnumbered Biarritz - that was huge.”
COLM KINSELLA
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