MUNSTER SKIPPER CJ Stander will attempt to keep his team’s focus on the task of beating Stade Francais next weekend, but opening the pool with victory also allowed the number eight to boldly mention the prospect of winning a trophy.
The Irish-qualified South African put in another excellent individual try-scoring performance to help Munster secure a vital bonus point win at home to Treviso on Saturday night.
There wasn’t much to shout about the collective display as the fourth try was only delivered five minutes from time, but it is another piece in the puzzle, a step along the road.
“We’re going game-for-game now. We want to win something this year, so it’s good to get a bonus point. Now it’s on to next week,” said Stander once he squeezed in to a suit and moved his mind towards Paris.
The number eight expressed a sorrow for the people of the French capital after the Friday the 13th attacks, but maintained a professional composure to keep team-mate’s minds on the task at hand.
It’s the sort of thing that can gel a team. On their side it must be quite emotional. From our side, we know that and we just have to concentrate on them, concentrate on our game and go play the game on Sunday.
“There was a lot of talk about last night. What happened is so tragic. It’s something we have in the back of our mind. It’s difficult, but we have a job to do. We just have to go out there and play our game.”
Stander echoed the sentiment of his head coach Anthony Foley that Saturday’s display wouldn’t need much tweaking if they were faced with identical conditions against the Top14 champs.
For those of us watching on though, hopefully there will be a drier track to allow Munster stretch their legs and the defence in a way that they only really managed when Treviso were reduced to 14 tired bodies late on.
“I won’t say we struggled in the first half,” added Stander.
“It was just, with the wind, we had to keep the ball. We made a few mistakes, knock-ons and mis-reads, but we came out to play with the wind.
“We expected it to be bad, but when you get out there it’s wet and the wind is hard to play into – conditions were tough and we didn’t know how much we were going to get the ball. The ref kept it flowing at the end and it’s good to get the bonus point.”
