Northampton trip has all the traits of a Munster ambush

Munster have their backs to the wall ahead of a big European tie with a well-fancied English high-flyer. We've seen this movie before.

Following the build-up to this afternoon’s Investec Champions Cup Round of 16 meeting between Northampton Saints and Munster at Franklin’s Gardens, it has all the traits of an old-fashioned Munster ambush.

It even has the added ingredient of a late cry-off from a marquee player - RG Snyman was ruled out yesterday.

On Wednesday morning, Saints scrum-half Tom James gave Graham Rowntree’s side the first headline to pin up on the dressing room wall.

"There’s no chance that these guys are going to be more desperate to win than we are," James said, as he looked ahead to the knock-out meeting of the pair.

In James’ defence, he’s not wrong.

While Northampton went to Thomond Park and produced a smash-and-grab of their own in the final round of the pool stage in January, it will count for nothing unless Phil Dowson’s side can back it up on home soil this afternoon.

But, anyone who has watched the first couple of episodes of the brilliant new Springboks’ docu-series 'Chasing the Sun’ will know that context is irrelevant when it comes to bulletin-board material.

Nobody does ‘nobody believes in us’ better than Munster.

It felt appropriate that the province had Denis Leamy (below) up for media duties this week.

The defence coach has history with the Saints from his playing days. The teams were best of enemies between 2009 and early 2012, playing each other five times in two-and-a-half-years.

The most famous of those meetings came back in November 2011, when Ronan O’Gara’s drop-goal after more than 40 phases saw the province snatch a dramatic win in one of the great European games.

It often slips through the cracks