History keeping O’Connell on his toes

THERE are those of us who remember the very first Munster clash with Castres in the inaugural Heineken Cup way back in 1995 under lights in the nearby town of Mazamet because the host club didn’t have the required facilities at Stade Pierre Antoine.

It’s fair to say it was an intimidating atmosphere that eventually played a part in a wide-eyed, inexperienced Munster team led by Pat Murray being defeated in the dying seconds of a robust and hard-fought contest, Castres scoring a converted try to deny Munster the draw that would have seen them through to the semi-finals.

Little did either club know they would meet on many more occasions; the rivalry has developed into one of the most regular battles in the history of the Heineken Cup, with today’s game at Thomond Park being the 12th meeting between the teams in 17 years of European rugby.