Rassie Erasmus must reiterate Munster are no Racing cert

“The quarter-final is set for the first weekend in April, with the semi-final three weeks later.” It’s been a while since I came across such bullish confidence from a bunch of Munster supporters, but that was the thrust of the conversation I overheard between a few diehards last Friday morning at Shannon Airport in advance of boarding the plane for Munster’s pool- defining trip to Glasgow.

That optimism was well founded and set the tone for what proved a productive weekend for the Irish in Europe. Leinster set the standard at the RDS on Friday night with a really impressive display against a fully-locked and loaded Montpellier side, who currently sit third in the French Top 14.

Yet, despite starting with 13 internationals, they failed to fire a shot and again highlighted the shortcomings of even the top French sides in this tournament. Is it any wonder the French national team is struggling, with only three French players in Jake White’s starting side?