WHEN reviewing the performances of the three Irish provinces on the opening weekend of Europe’s new Champions Cup, one word springs to mind for Donal Lenihan: character.

The more things change, the more they stay the same. Different tournament, same drama. Munster are simply incapable of doing things the easy way.

With five Heineken Cup successes over a magical seven-year period between 2006 and 2012, European rugby had become a happy hunting ground for the Irish, writes Donal Lenihan.

Anthony Foley and his new management team face a host of challenges this season, not least drawing high-flying English Premiership and French Top 14 sides Saracens and Clermont Auvergne in the pool stage of the new European Champions Cup.

Fasten the seat-belt and take a firm grip of something solid, suggests Donal Lenihan.

The domestic season may be over but rugby fans across Europe will be challenged to keep up with the volume of test matches over the next three weeks as end-of-term tours come sharply into focus.

On Saturday, Leinster not only bring the curtain down on the domestic rugby season but also on the longest goodbye the game in this country has ever seen when Brian O’Driscoll lines out as a professional rugby player for the last time.

It feels strange for the Millennium Stadium to host a Heineken Cup decider this weekend without an Irish province in sight. Of the 18 finals to date, Cardiff has staged six, including the first two in 1996 and 1997 won by Toulouse and Brive respectively.

With just 14 Tests left to play before Ireland open their World Cup campaign against Canada at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff on September 19, 2015, Joe Schmidt will take great care in selecting his squad for the forthcoming series against Argentina.

The ineptitude of the Edinburgh challenge in front of their home support on Saturday evening highlights one of the biggest challenges facing the Irish provinces in the future.