Casey: Munster will go 'hell for leather' against Leinster

Munster's Craig Casey says last season’s BKT United Rugby Championship victory doesn’t relieve any of the pressure on the province to keep winning.

Graham Rowntree’s side defeated Stormers in a thrilling finale last May, ending a 12-year wait for a trophy.

On the way to claiming the title, they beat Leinster in the Aviva Stadium in the semi-final and next up for Munster is a rematch against Leo Cullen’s side [Saturday, 6.30pm].

The scrum-half, who has made 69 appearances for Munster since making his debut in 2019, told RTÉ Sport: "As a Munster fan first, before being a Munster player, 12 years without a trophy isn’t good enough for Munster.

"We want to keep building on and keep winning trophies. That’s the goal every year.

"I wouldn’t say the pressure has been released either.

"The pressure of playing for Munster means you gotta win trophies. That’s always going to be there and you’ve got to relish it."

Leinster top the table after four wins from five, while Munster are in sixth after three wins, a draw and a loss.

While the Dublin-based side have had the upper hand in recent seasons – Munster’s 16-15 win was their first knockout victory over Leinster in four attempts since 2011 – Casey says it’s now time for the Reds to create their own legacy.

"I don’t think that rivalry can ever be diluted," said the 24-year-old.

"Leinster were the best team, pretty much in the world, for a few years, consistently, so it was hard to keep up with them.

"I don’t think the rivalry ever got diluted but we are going to try and etch our own name in history as well over the next few years, hopefully. There’s great confidence in our squad going up.

"We have massive respect for Leinster, massive respect for the players they have but, on that day, kind of,