McGahan warns Munster to tread carefully

OVER the years, Munster have learned some opponents should be shown more respect than others and Treviso enter that category at Thomond Park tonight in a hugely important RaboDirect Pro12 clash.

The Limerick venue has been a near impenetrable fortress for visiting teams over the years, but Munster coach Tony McGahan does not need to be reminded their magnificent home record is under considerable threat from a most unlikely source.

The inclusion of Italian clubs in the competition last year was greeted enthusiastically by the organisers, sponsors and participants while the fans probably expected them to be the whipping boys of the tournament.

That may have been true in Aironi’s case, who are still struggling to adapt, but Treviso look like they could become genuine title competitors in a few years.

If there was the slightest temptation to treat them lightly, McGahan has resisted it with clear thinking based on the Italians’ record away from home this season with victories over Ulster, Glasgow and Connacht on their credit sheet.

Home wins over Newport Gwent Dragons (50-24), Scarlets (20-10) and Aironi (37-14) have helped push the club up the table into seventh place, just five points behind Munster.

Although the home team are three places ahead in the table, they’re still only one more win than their visitors and McGahan will remind his charges of Treviso’s ability to score tries. The Italians have scored 22 tries against Munster’s 20 and conceded 20 against Munster’s 13.

Irish hooker Damien Varley admitted they have taken considerable time to scan video evidence of Treviso’s recent games – a tribute in itself to their opponents — while McGahan highlighted the visitor’s increasingly impressive scoring ability, mainly through very clever set moves.

The coach accepted it is likely to be a tough game, even if some of his top names are back in the team sheet and paid tribute to Treviso coach Franco Smith for helping mould his team into a really useful outfit.

“Franco has really done a fantastic job given the club have only been in the competition since last year,” he said. “They’ve always had a strong record in their Top 10, but they’ve gone on from there; if you looked at their results even last year they were very consistent and hard to beat at home.

“They’ve moulded their game around being able to compete and they’ve done that in this league and now even in the Heineken Cup as well. They drew with Ospreys and beat Biarritz down there, they’ve got a very good side and I think they’re going to be well and truly pushing for the top four down the track.”

The Munster coach is aware such a development could happen sooner rather than later were the Italians to produce another shock away result tonight and conceded: “There’s not much difference between 7-5 and 6-6 [records]. For the coaches and players who have lined out against them in the last two years I don’t think anyone has underestimated what they do and a bit like Connacht, they might even be playing better than the record shows.

“The thing about them is they know what they do well, they stick to it and they roll it out each week and get to a level of physicality, they have a really strong set piece and they do it consistently well.”

Munster skipper Paul O’Connell will tread with equal caution, given the strength of the opposition in addition to his side’s own inconsistent form.

“This is not just a dress rehearsal for rounds five and six of the Heineken Cup, it’s a must-win game; danger lurks in the form of Cardiff Blues, Llanelli Scarlets, Treviso and Ulster, all of whom are seriously challenging for a place in the top four.

O’Connell is looking for an upsurge in form that will not only produce results but produce them in a more emphatic manner.

“It’s funny because in some games, we’re just not putting 80-minute performances together. We’re playing in fits and starts, a little bit like we did with Ireland at times coming up to the World Cup.

“We need to put together 80 minutes performances and I think things will change for us then.

“But I like a lot of things that we’re doing, we’re winning tight games, which is very important, and when we do put those 80 minute performances in, I think we’ll be in very good great shape.”