Time to renew love affair with the French

Rugby:From three Anglo-Irish meetings last weekend to a trio of Irish forays into Europe with a decidedly Gallic flair.

Irish rugby has possibly had enough of all things to do with French rugby for the time being, and this weekend's second round of Heineken European Cup matches carries uncanny and uncomfortable echoes of the Coupe du Monde.

Ulster, in the wake of Mark McCall's honourable and very un-Irish resignation, went into the Bourgoin bearpit last night, while television being the pipers who call the tune, today offers a breather before Munster host Clermont Auvergne and Leinster visit Toulouse tomorrow night.

Such is the premium on winning one's home matches, all the more so in the dastardly, shark-infested Pools Five and Six, Munster and Leinster are in a role reversal of last week's opening round.

Leinster, buoyed by victory at home to Leicester, have a tad more elbow room. Not so Munster. Despite their highly creditable performance in losing by a point away to the defending champions last week, they must win. No team have ever lost their opening two matches and qualified for the potential crock of gold that is the knock-out stages.

But Munster know this, and have been here before. Five years ago, they lost away on opening day to Gloucester and, with the help of a certain miracle match, went on to reach the semi-finals. As recently as two years ago, they lost away to Sale, and responded by winning eight matches in a row and fulfilling their Magnificent Obsession. For the time being though, one win will do.

Munster are too grizzled in the arts of European rugby to be be lulled into a false sense of security by Clermont's decision, confirmed yesterday, to make 14 changes from the side that cut Llanelli to shreds last Sunday. There are still five of their World Cup entourage in the starting line-up, including the Fijian winger with the extravagant step, Vilmoni Delasau, and a certain John Smit. Clermont, given any early encouragement, can afford to swing from the hip.

In their hour of need, the Munster fans know how to rally to the cause as well. Thomond Park, sans floodlights, in the throes of being rebuilt and hosting at the normally atmosphere-free time of 1pm on a Sunday, also has to apply balm to the wounds inflicted by Leicester in January. Clermont can expect a cacophony of friendless sound.

For Smit, it promises to be a case of welcome to European rugby, and without the red carpet.

The 9pm kick off, local time, on a Sunday night has understandably grated with Leinster supporters, many of whom will understandably settle for live coverage on Sky Sports or highlights on RTÉ 2. It's in sharp contrast to the 5,000 who made the trek on a sunny Sunday in April for that memorable quarter-final win two season ago. Tomorrow only about 1,000 Leinster supporters, boosted by expats, will be part of the Ernest Wallon capacity of 19,500, despite forecast temperatures of as low as minus 12 degrees.

But as the World Cup also showed, 9pm is prime time in France, even if there's nothing to do afterwards.

Walking in the parks, hanging out on lazy Sunday afternoons and drinking coffee come first.

World Cup hangovers aren't an exclusively Irish preserve. The sorest heads are still French. As much as any French club, Toulouse backboned the emotionally exhausting and ultimately unfulfilling Coupe du Monde, when also obliged to abandon much of their innate playing ways in deference to Bernard Laporte's tactical straitjacket. A quartet of Leinster backs and Malcolm O'Kelly have been burdened with a similar hangover but have fairly seamlessly returned for an unbeaten three-game run, while meantime the rest of the squad were long since up and running.

The last piece in the jigsaw was the return of Felipe Contepomi, even more ebullient than normal after his and Los Pumas' outstanding World Cup, and the quartet of Irish backs are only too glad to be playing alongside him.

By contrast, Guy Noves has had only three games to pick up the pieces from the World Cup. Although there's every chance Toulouse's World Cup contingent (10 of whom are in their starting line-up, with another four on the bench) will be similarly buoyed by a return to home roots and their natural, freer way of playing, Noves is still searching for the right blend.

In Valentin Courrent, nominally an unheralded scrumhalf, he is obliged to gamble at outhalf, although admittedly Courrent starred there in a 28-9 win over Stade Français two weeks ago.

There's plenty else to keep an eye on over another weekend feast of European Cup rugby, for example Llanelli v Wasps at 5.30 today and Ireland's World Cup final referee Alain Rolland.

But to hell with the World Cup.