Connacht's war on two fronts

EUROPEAN CHALLENGE CUP: A season distilled into a fortnight set against a background of off-field machinations that will determine their very existence. Connacht rugby faces a dual investigation where the easier confrontation might take place on a pitch.

Steph Nel is philosophical, upbeat to an extent, because he knows that communicating any frustration to the players would be counter-productive.

It is within his compass and that of the players to plot Connacht's course to the Parker Pen Challenge Cup quarter-final and that's the priority.

Narbonne bar their path, the French club familiar to Connacht having twice played them in the pool stages of last season's shield.

Honours even, one home win apiece, the Irish province prevailing 18-6, Narbonne squeezing out a 34-22 victory in the return, an aggregate score of 40-40, illustrating how close this year's tussle could be.

This time, Connacht must travel to Stade des Sports et de L'Amitie first, hoping that, at worst, any defeat on Saturday is a close-run affair.

Nel ventured: "It seems obvious, but if we do lose we must make sure that it's by no more than three or four points. As things stand, our season is still alive and to reach the quarter-final would be fantastic."

The scars from the Munster game are still stinging. "We didn't do ourself any favours with the way we played in the last five minutes (of injury-time) when we conceded those tries.

"We stuck to our guns for 61 minutes and then there was that penalty-try that changed the course of the match.

"Narbonne will offer a similar challenge to Munster, a big pack with a good kicking number 10.

"They have three Argentinian internationals in the pack, hooker (Mario Ledesma), a number eight (Gonzalo Longo) and a prop (Martin Scelzo) who played against the Ireland Development XV at Donnybrook."

A preoccupation with the opposition is not Nel's modus operandi and when conversation strays to his own team and players who have excelled this season the South Africa is effusive.

"If we had a rookie of the season it would be John O'Sullivan."

"He came up to us looking for a summer job and did so well that we offered him a development contract because he is in his final year at university.

"He still has some things to work on, but the raw material is all there. For a first-year professional, he is phenomenal, the Irish answer to Olivier Magne.

"He could play all the loose forward positions, he is not an old-fashioned seven in the way that Ireland and New Zealand operate at present.

"He's a good thinker so he could make a very influential number eight. He's still young so his muscle mass will increase and there is not an ounce of body fat on his frame.

"In terms of the senior players, it would have to be Darren Yapp and Rowen Frost, while the young props Ronnie McCormack and Bracks (Peter Bracken) have done well."

And so to Saturday once again. "We have 160 minutes to turn an above-average season into a fantastic one. The team is capable of that I have no doubt.

"We will be trying our darnedest, but will have to be on top form and can not afford that type of five-minute spell that surfaced in the Munster match."

Fighting for survival, in more than one way.