EUROPEAN CHALLENGE CUP SEMI-FINAL
Venue: Thomond Park Date: Saturday 30 April Kick-off: 1300 BST
Coverage: Updates on BBC Radio 5 Live & the BBC Sport website. Live on Sky Sports 1/HD1.
Munster coach Tony McGahan makes just one change from the team that won 42-37 at Brive in the quarter final.
Paul Warwick comes in to partner Lifeimi Mafi in the centre, with Sam Tuitupou named on a bench that includes Lions skipper Paul O’Connell.
In front of an expected sell-out 26,000 crowd at Thomond Park, Harlequins are unchanged from last weekend’s 38-3 win against Leeds at Headingley.
But that was only Quins’ second win in 11 Premiership away games this season.
With Bath needing to win just one of their two remaining games (both against struggling Newcastle) to secure sixth place, Quins arrive in Limerick knowing that this represents their best hope of Heineken Cup rugby next season.
They have lost their last three meetings with the Irish side over the last decade.
But Nick Evans kicked 22 points to send Quins through to the last four with their 32-22 quarter-final win over Wasps – and they will need their stand-off in form with the boot again.
Harlequins captain Chris Robshaw:
“We’ve had to ask ourselves why exactly haven’t we been winning away from home. Whether it’s down to our preparation or if it’s a mental thing, I’m not sure.
“It’s true that you have to be tougher mentally when you’re away from home, and maybe we just haven’t been, but we’ll have to be at Thomond Park because Munster rarely lose there. They are an incredible side.
“We’ll need to raise our game to beat them. If we’re not properly prepared, both physically and mentally, then we haven’t got much of a chance.
Quins director of rugby Conor O’Shea:
“It will be a fabulous experience. A side that contains the likes of Nick Easter, Danny Care and Nick Evans doesn’t travel anywhere just to make up the numbers.
“I know that Munster will deliver a big performance, as they always do at Thomond Park, but that’s the exciting thing for us.
“It gives this team an opportunity to see where they stand. We’re at the start of an exciting journey with a young team and this game against Munster is a chance to test ourselves against undoubtedly one of the strongest sides in Europe.”
Munster: Jones; Howlett, Mafi, Warwick, Earls; O’Gara, Murray; du Preez, Varley, Buckley; O’Callaghan, O’Driscoll; Leamy, Wallace, Coughlan.
Replacements: Sherry, Horan, Hayes, O’Connell, Ryan, Stringer, Tuitupou, Murphy.
Harlequins: Brown; Camacho, Lowe, Turner-Hall, Monye; Evans, Care; Marler, Gray, Johnston; Kohn, Robson; Fa’asavalu, Robshaw, Easter.
Replacements: Cairns, Jones, Lambert, Vallejos, Skinner, Moore, Clegg, Chisholm.
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Munster v Harlequins (Sat)