RUGBY: Anyone who drifted past Thomond Park in the middle of a sunny Tuesday this week must have been puzzled by the noise from within. Anticipating the din they expect at the Stade Aime Giral on Saturday, the Munster brains trust were having the sound effects from a video relayed through the ground's PA system during lineout practice.
Multiply it by 10 times and they might even have replicated it. "Jerry Holland and I went over there at the beginning of the season and I've got to say it was pretty intimidating," said the Munster coach, Alan Gaffney, who also admitted that Tuesday's unusual ploy merely gave his players a taste of what to expect.
"That noise factor was probably only a slight percentage of what it is over there. The brass band plays for 80 minutes and it's just roaring, and for a crowd of 8-10,000 they create a lot of noise.
"We were just trying to recreate a situation out there whereby it's going to be difficult for the calls. When it's still and there's no noise, it's easy to make calls, but in this situation it becomes a bit more difficult."
None of Gaffney's previous visits to France with Leinster, Toulouse or Biarritz compared to this Catalan hotbed, and the Munster coach was possibly only half joking when he revealed that he and Holland contemplated making a video of Perpignan's game when they visited the Stade Aime Giral.
"I'm glad we didn't because I don't think we would have got out of the stadium alive. They're very volatile and very passionate about what they do, so we extracted the noise from some videos."
The lineout could be king on Saturday given so much of Perpignan's offensive game is based on their lineout maul, while they place huge emphasis on competing against the opposition throw.
So, although Mick Galwey was picked ahead of Mick O'Driscoll on the bench against Ulster last time out, there was never much likelihood of O'Driscoll not being promoted to the team in place of the injured Paul O'Connell.
"This week we believe we'll need a lineout that's going to be very effective, so Micko steps up ahead of Gaillimh in that regard because he's more athletic in the air. In other parts of the game Gaillimh is very, very strong and this week we thought Micko is a better option," said Gaffney.
Still, given that Galwey was ever-present in Munster's 47 European Cup games until he was omitted for the back-to-back meetings with Viadana, it will be comforting to have the old warrior in the dressing-room and to call upon from the bench.
The other enforced change to the Munster team which started in the 42-10 win over Ulster last Friday sees Mossie Lawlor replacing the injured Anthony Horgan.
While the latter's hamstring strain is a short-term injury, O'Connell's fractured thumb updates a cruel list of of enforced absences and interrupts the latest comeback after just four, high-profile performances.
"There's no doubt that Paul is an absolutely class player. I didn't realise how good he was until he came down here," admitted Gaffney. "I'd seen him play a number of times, but until I'd witnessed what he's done in the last three weeks after coming back from a long-term injury, he's been quite outstanding.
"It's a big loss, but then again when you've got Gaillimh and Mick O'Driscoll on the bench things ain't all too bad. So it's a blow, but Micko's been given another chance. He suffered being left out of the 22 last week, but I'm sure Micko will stand up this week and show us what Micko's made of."
The Munster captain, Jim Williams, expects a fearsome examination of the Munster pack. "The team that goes best in the setpieces is the one who's going to have the upper hand," he said. "They're maybe the best setpiece side in France at the moment so it's going to be a very difficult task and whoever can get on top in the setpieces is going to have a lot of territory and a lot of the ball."
One significant change from the Perpignan side which lost 30-21 in Thomond Park is likely to see the Australian Manny Edmonds reverting to his more customary position of outhalf, where he's been playing lately, rather than full back.
Edmonds scored 29 of Perpignan's points in their most recent outing, a 39-0 win over Narbonne, and Gaffney coached him for two years at the New South Wales Waratahs.
"He will bring a lot more at 10 than he would have at 15. He's got some great attributes, he's a high-quality player. But there are certain parts of Manny's game we can hopefully get at."
MUNSTER: J Staunton; J Kelly, M Mullins, J Holland, M Lawlor; R O'Gara, P Stringer; M Horan, F Sheahan, J Hayes, D O'Callaghan, M O'Driscoll, J Williams (capt), A Quinlan, A Foley. Replacements: J Blaney, M Cahill, M Galwey, E Halvey/D Leamy, M Prendergast, K Keane, C McMahon.
