Toulouse To Face Toulon Tomorrow

Munster face Leinster at the Aviva Stadium tomorrow night with next week’s Heineken Cup quarter-final opponents, Toulouse, also in action as they face Toulon, Leinster’s opposition in the last eight.

The French side are seven points off Top 14 leaders Clermont and have rested three French internationals for tomorrow’s trip to second-placed Toulon.

Winger Maxime Medard, lock Yoann Maestri and centre Gael Fickou are all left out but international winger Yoann Huget, out-half Lionel Beauxis, flanker Yannick Nyanga and centre Florian Fritz are all set to feature.

Former All Black out-half Luke McAlister misses out this weekend through injury but is hopeful of a return against Munster next week.

Toulouse forwards coach William Servat said: "The match against Toulon is delicate because it comes just before that [game] against Munster.

"Even if we'll seek a continuity in our gameplan, we will leave some players on the bench to prepare for the massive game that awaits us."

The Top 14 side from the south-west of France are four-time Heineken Cup winners and produced a superb second half performance to salvage a 27-27 draw away to Stade Francais last Saturday.

The hosts led 27-8 at the break but a Johan Montes try in stoppage time was converted by Jean-Marc Doussain to level matters at the Stade de France.

It will be the fifth time Munster and Toulouse have met in the competition, although the first at Thomond Park, with two wins apiece for each side.

Toulouse were the opponents in the 2008 final when Munster lifted the Heineken Cup for the second time with a Denis Leamy try and the boot of Ronan O'Gara helping the province to a 16-13 win in Cardiff.

Long-serving coach Guy Noves guided Toulouse to this season's quarter-finals as Pool 3 winners with their sole loss coming at the hand of Connacht in Round 3 in a surprise result at Stade Ernest-Wallon.

That defeat was one of only two home losses so far this season with 12 wins out of 14 on their home patch. They have won four games away from home so far this campaign with three of those wins coming in the Heineken Cup.

Saracens and Zebre were the other two sides in Pool 3 and both were accounted for home and away with the most impressive result coming in the 17-16 win over Saracens in front of more than 61,000 supporters at Wembley Stadium.

That win over the then-leaders of the Premiership proved that Toulouse can perform just as well away from home as they recovered from a 16-7 deficit with Louis Picamoles diving over for their second try and fellow French international Doussain kicking the winning conversion.

Toulouse beat Zebre 16-6 in Italy in their final pool game but, crucially, were unable to secure a bonus-point which meant that Munster have home advantage in the quarter-final.

Munster face Toulouse on Saturday, April 5th in Thomond Park at 1:30pm.