In what looks like an enviable statement of their strength in depth, and perhaps their aspirations in Thomond Park on Sunday prior to resuming the French Championship next week, Clermont Auvergne have made 14 changes from the starting team which beat Llanelli last Sunday.
Even the one player who remains from the starting line-up which accounted for the Scarlets by 48-21, Julien Malzieu, has been moved from left wing to fullback. There is a full debut for the World Cup winning captain John Smit.
Also called into the team for their seasonal debuts are a common contender for Team of the Tournament at the World Cup, the Fijian right winger with the extravagant step, Vilmoni Delasau, as well as his team-mate in the World Cup quarter-final against South Africa, outhalf Seremia Bai.
This rather offsets the absence of captain Aurelien Rougerie, the leading try scorer in French rugby last season with 13 tries in the championship, and the leading points scorer, Australian outhalf Brock James. Inexperienced home-grown 21-year-old scrumhalf Arnaud Pic is picked instead of Pierre Mignoni. Ex-Springbok Marius Joubert plays in the centre.
Up front, the props are Goderzi Shvelidze, who played hooker against Ireland in Georgia's 14-10 defeat in Bordeaux, and Davit Zirakashvili, one of the seven players rested from that pool match.
Injuries to French and Canadian locks, Loic Jacquet and Jamie Cudmore, limited the options of Kiwi coach Vern Cotter in the secondrow, where he has picked the inexperienced Pierre Vigouroux alongside Christophe Samson.
The replacements bench has yet to be finalised, but presumably some of Clermont's marquee names will provide potential cover/impact. With five points from their opening win the feeling is Clermont can afford to swing from the hip in a game which on the face of it doesn't carry too many hopes of victory.
Clermont began their domestic campaign three weeks ago with a reprise of their defeat in the final of last season's French Championship against Stade Français, losing 23-17 in Paris, before following that up with a 33-20 win at home to Montpellier. While the team to play Munster is still a strong selection, it has yet to play together.
Meanwhile, Takudzwa Ngwenya, the USA Eagles wing who famously "skinned" South African superstar Bryan Habana in the World Cup, is set to make his mark in the tournament. The 22-year-old Zimbabwe-born flier, who played for Dallas Athletic in the States, has been registered by Biarritz Olympique as their additional player, bad news for Saracens, Glasgow Warriors and Viadana.
CLERMONT AUVERGNE (v Munster):J Malzieu; V Delasau, M Joubert, R Chanal, G Esterhuizen; S Bai, A Pic; G Shvelidze, J Smit, D Zirakashvili, P Vigouroux, C Samson, E Etien, F Alexandre, S Broomhall. Replacements to be named.
Leinster live on TV
Contrary to the 5,000-strong invasion supporting Leinster on their last trek to Toulouse, admittedly in the quarter-finals two seasons ago, an estimated 6-800 are expected to be at the Stade Ernest Wallon for Sunday night's Pool 6 game. That quarter-final was also played on a sunny Saturday April afternoon, whereas Sunday night's kick-off of 9pm (8pm Irish) was sanctioned by ERC at the behest of Canal+.
As was evident during the World Cup, a 9pm kick-off is regarded as prime time viewing, and post-match entertainment is regarded as secondary. Much like Thursday night games in the European Challenge Cup it is hardly conducive to travelling supporters. Nonetheless, Toulouse only have a handful of tickets remaining and expect a 19,506 sell-out for a game that will be televised live by Sky Sports, with highlights and the Munster-Clermont Auvergne match on RTÉ 2 at 11.30pm.
