Toulouse star Jerome Kaino keen to sign off with one more cup

Jerome Kaino insisted the squad’s focus was now entirely on Saturday’s Munster challenge and playing the Toulouse brand of rugby

New Zealand's Jerome Kaino pats New Zealand's Stephen Donald on the head as they wait for the trophy presentation after the 2011 World Cup final. The former All Black is after more silverware before he hangs up the boots

Toulouse star Jerome Kaino is wary of facing a wounded Munster side in Thomond Park on Saturday afternoon.

The home outfit slumped to a Guinness PRO14 final defeat to Leinster last Saturday but Kaino, a two-time world champion, is predicting a nasty backlash.

“I’ve been around long enough to know that teams coming off big losses definitely have some sort of steel about them.

“We’re like that and I’m sure Munster will be like that, a classy outfit like that won’t have been training lightly this week.

“But they have played well, really well [this season]. I think both sides will be trying to fix up certain areas where they didn’t go so well at the weekend.”

Like their hosts in this afternoon’s Champions Cup round of 16 match at Thomond Park, four-time European champions Toulouse will be able to channel the pain of defeat, after Montpellier became just the second visiting team this season to win at Ernest Wallon last time out.

“We know that if we can play our game, we get into a positive mindset and we’re able to play some positive rugby,” Kaino, who starts at eight this afternoon, said. “But we were 50-50 in certain areas and mistakes started creeping in - then we were struggling on the back foot and started giving away penalties.”

He insisted the squad’s focus was now entirely on Saturday’s Munster challenge and playing the Toulouse brand of rugby. “I am focused on my area, the forwards,” he said.

“Munster are a well-drilled side in the pack - they’re very sound and dominant in their lineout, and lineout drives but also around the ruck.

They’ve got a lot of gamebreakers there - players like CJ Stander and Tadhg Beirne. Their scrum’s really solid as well.

“For us, we’ve got to make sure we’re sound up front, we’re competitive and to not give them that front-foot ball that their backs - who have a lot of x-factor - want.”

Toulouse’s own backs aren’t lacking in star power. The 2019 Top 14 champions have scored 75 tries in 20 domestic league outings this season, and ran in another four in their sole Champions Cup outing, the 29-22 win at Ulster back in December. They were then awarded a 28-0 walkover win because of an outbreak of Covid-19 in Exeter Chiefs’ ranks.

Although last season’s losing European semi-finalists have welcomed back their French international contingent, they come into this round-of-16 game trying to conceal a lack of options in midfield. Sofiane Guitoune was the latest to join the sizable pack on the sidelines - out for up to nine months after picking up a serious knee injury during Saturday’s defeat.

He has joined Thomas Ramos, Arthur Bonneval, Lucas Tauzin, Pierre Fouyssac, Juan Cruz Mallía, and Yoann Huget among the fliers on the sidelines. But Pita Ahki starts at inside centre, despite concern over an achilles issue earlier in the week.

Kaino, however, is confident the club has the backup talent to plug the midfield gap. “The last campaign it was hookers for us, and this time it’s midfield,” he said. “We’ve got a couple of younger guys ready to step in and fill those roles, and those injured experienced players are still around in training to show them the ropes and help them. I’m sure we’ll be fine. We’ve a lot of players keen to keep the ball in hand and just play.”

Even so, he was understandably happy to welcome the likes of Antoine Dupont, Romain Ntamack, Julien Marchand and Cyril Baille back to club ranks. “The morale that [our French internationals] have brought this week, especially after a defeat that we’ve had with our young group, the experience they bring has been incredible.”

He admitted, though, the schedule was punishing for those select players on both sides of the Munster-Toulon encounter.

“It’s not just the French boys - CJ Stander and the Irish players were just off the Six Nations and straight into the Pro14 final. It must be tough - but a lot of these guys are young and keen and just want to play footy. I don’t think they think about getting tired - they just want to play for their club and their country.

Even without their internationals, Toulouse have maintained their charge to the end-of-season play-offs. They are still challenging on two fronts - in the Top 14 as well as the Champions Cup, and Kaino - who can nearly count the number of times he pulls on the shirt again on the fingers of his hands - is keen to sign off his career with at least one more trophy.

“They’re both as important,” he said when asked which trophy he wanted to win most, a first European title, or a second Bouclier de Brennus. “But being crowned European champions has a ring to it when you say it.”