Munster's galacticos can swing an intriguing battle

Celtic League/Munster v Ulster: A few years ago, who would have thought it? European champions against Celtic champions, and an all-Irish affair at that.

Add in the return of half a dozen of Munster's Heineken European Cup heroes for their first appearance of the season. Ditto two of Ulster's test frontliners. Live television coverage and what will surely be a packed Musgrave Park. The season is about to lift off.

As Declan Kidney says, "You'd hope the whole sense of occasion isn't lost on people. To be hosting such a game by the end of September shows the healthy state of rugby in this country."

And six days subsequently, Munster renew rivalry with Leinster at Lansdowne Road.

Shorn effectively of their pack and their halves heretofore, Munster find themselves 11 points adrift of tonight's opponents, and so their frontliners are obliged to hit the ground running.

Necessity being the mother of invention, and denied the injured John Hayes and Denis Leamy, Munster have had little leeway to ease Donncha O'Callaghan, Paul O'Connell, Marcus Horan, David Wallace, Peter Stringer and Ronan O'Gara back, even if recent history is littered with examples of how tricky it can be to welcome back their main men weeks into a campaign against more cohesive opponents.

With Irish under-21 centre Conan Doyle joining Trevor Halstead on the injured list, though the latter might make the bench, Kidney is obliged to try Shaun Payne in an unfamiliar inside centre role, even if he'll endeavour to do so with his customary sang froid: "When I suggested it to Shaun, he hardly raised an eyebrow."

"It's very important to get fellas back into the season with only five games before the international season starts," Kidney adds, not to mention the small matter of their European Cup defence before that. "But going back against a side that is going so well is a huge ask for a lot of players."

Ulster have been quick to carry on last season's momentum, bouncing back impressively from defeat in Edinburgh (the only one in their last dozen Celtic League matches) with arguably the performance of the season in ruthlessly dismantling the Ospreys last week.

Ulster were one of only two sides to complete the double over Munster last season, and their opportunism in the first-half at this venue last December and resilience in the second period were among the stand-out performances of the season.

"They don't have a huge turnover in their team. They're very consistent," says Kidney, perhaps a tad enviously. That said, his counterpart has made six changes. Andrew Trimble and Tommy Bowe return to the backline, with Bryn Cunningham making way for Mark Bartholomeusz at fullback. Neil Best replaces Stephen Ferris in his first start of the season while Matt McCullough and Neil McMillan return for Tim Barker and Kieron Dawson.

"They do lots of things well," admits Kidney. "They've lots of experience whereas two years ago, when Mark (McCall) started out, he had to blood a lot of new players. That's come to fruition now."

There is a doubt over Frank Sheahan's participation this evening, the hooker troubled by a hamstring injury. If he can't start, his Munster place will go to Andy Kyriacou.

For Ulster this game is a continuation, whereas for Munster it's something of a starting point. You'd imagine the home side will concentrate on the basics, with a premium on accuracy, especially at set-piece time. Otherwise, Ulster could climb all over them.

Munster's chances may well rest on converting close-range pack pressure into points. Their need is also the greater and significantly, their returning stars have the comforts of home, although Ulster bring more confidence and cohesion to the table. It has the makings of a fascinating battle.

MUNSTER: C Cullen; A Horgan, J Kelly, S Payne, I Dowling; R O'Gara, P Stringer; M Horan, F Sheahan, F Pucciariello; D O'Callaghan, P O'Connell (capt); A Quinlan, D Wallace, A Foley. Replacements: F Roche, A Kyricou/T Ryan, M O'Driscoll, T McGann, B O'Meara, E Hickey, T Halstead.

ULSTER: M Bartholomeusz; T Bowe, P Steinmetz, P Wallace, A Trimble; D Humphreys, I Boss; J Fitzpatrick, R Best, B Young; J Harrison (capt), M McCullough; N Best, N McMillan, R Wilson. Replacements: P Shields, D Fitzpatrick, T Barker, S Ferris, K Dawson, K Campbell, K Maggs.

Referee: Donal Courtney (IRFU).

Previous league meetings: (2001-02) Munster 15 Ulster 9 (SF Lansdowne Road); (02-03) Ulster 26 Munster 17; Munster 42 Ulster 10 (SF); (03-04) Munster 15 Ulster 16; Ulster 36 Munster 13; (04-05) Ulster 3 Munster 24; Munster 21 Ulster 15; (05-06) Munster 17 Ulster 20; Ulster 27 Munster 3.

Formguide: Munster LWL. Ulster WWLW.

Leading try scorers: Munster - Timmy Ryan, Tomás O'Leary 1 each. Ulster - Bryn Cunningham, Paul Steinmetz 2 each.

Leading points scorers: Munster - Jeremy Manning 23. Ulster - David Humphreys 71.

Forecast: Munster to win.