This has been a strange buildup to the European Cup semi-finals. With the Lions travelling party announced by Warren Gatland on Wednesday morning, it is fair to say that this was the only rugby show in town for a few days. Being off the radar somewhat won’t hurt Munster and Leinster as they prepare for their biggest games in some time this weekend. It is two years since Leinster’s last appearance at this stage of the competition while it is three years since Munster came up agonisingly short against eventual winners Toulon at the same stage.

Both of those games were in Marseille and thanks to some unusual tinkering to the format, Munster get a “home” semi-final this year while Leinster must travel to Lyon. That could make all the difference.

To Dublin first, and the former Lansdowne Road will be taken over again by the Thomond faithful, in itself worth a seven-point start. They’ll need it as Saracens are the best team in Europe, defending champions and stocked with lads that came out of the Lions hat on Wednesday. No matter. Munster have always been built for such occasions. The history of the team in Europe is that they simply always turn up on the biggest of stages. This is definitely one of those.

They will stay with Saracens and they will make them work for everything. That much is guaranteed. But can they win? That perhaps depends on who Munster can call upon. Their two most pivotal players have been Conor Murray and CJ Stander for some time now. The word around Limerick last Saturday was that Stander will be fit, Murray not as likely. His so-called stinger is obviously worse than first and subsequently thought. If he is thrown into this game, then we can probably only hope he has 60 or 70 minutes in him, because ring-rust will be a concern.

Stander less so, as his all-action game will see him involved early and often. He can thunder into a game, while Murray’s subtleties rely on sharpness. This is a major concern because to win games like this you need your big guns firing from the off.

The other guns will be locked and loaded. Peter O’Mahony will be primed for the attention he will receive – Saracens will surely target him – but the community effort that is the Munster pack will take the fight to the English. The crowd can do the rest.

So the pick is still Munster because of the year they are having and the gods that are in their corner. We simply cannot have the European journey ending in an anticlimax.

There will be less confidence in Lyon where Leinster enter the (non) lion’s den. They too have injury issues, with Jamie Heaslip and Rob Kearney out having had surgery in recent weeks. Their experience will certainly be missed, even if their replacements have proven ability and promise.

Clermont are a club with European pedigree, and are now probably the best club never to win the trophy. Both Leinster and Munster know what that was like, although there is hope as ASM Clermont Auverge (to give them their full name) have lost three Top14 clashes in recent weeks.

Unusually for the French money-driven league right now, theirs is not a team stocked with superstars, but it is definitely the sum of its parts – they do, after all, lie second in their domestic league table.

The visitors can answer with quality that includes a fully fit Johnny Sexton, the rich potential of Joey Carbery, Robbie Henshaw, Garry Ringrose and Adam Byrne – all behind the scrum. In the engine room, where these things are usually won and lost, this is a day for the pack to lay down a marker, led by O’Brien, Furlong and maybe Healy and Cronin to let Gatland know he has replacements for his Lions Test 15 if he needs them.

An All-Ireland final In Murrayfield on the 13th of May? Why not.

National Hurling League Final

Galway and Tipp ready to put on a show

The last of the spring hurling takes place this Sunday when Galway and Tipp clash in the Gaelic Grounds. This will help get the bitter taste of last Sunday in the same venue out of my mouth. I watched the Tribe hardly break a sweat beating Limerick in the semi-final and the only thing we learned was that Limerick have a lot to do ahead of Clare on 4 June. They were desperate.

About a hundred miles down the road was much better fare. This was a proper match and Tipp will be delighted with the outing Wexford gave them. It was physical, it was hectic and the All-Ireland champions showed their class.

This is the type of game that Galway crave and they should get it. They could win too because Wexford may have softened Tipp up slightly. It was a championship crowd and they got the heat of a the summer in mid-April.

Galway and Tipp have played out some classic league finals in the past, their recent All-Ireland semi-finals too have been compulsive viewing. Hopefully this will be no different. The hardware that Tipp can line out in their forward line is what makes them the best team in the country right now, although not having Séamus Callanan is a blow. Serious teams go for the jugular and they are the best example in recent years of an attack that turns a half or even quarter chance into a green flag.

Galway can get into this mood too sometimes; indeed it is often Tipperary that bring this out in them. This is what could await us and if Tipp have a few understandable hangovers from Nowlan Park, I fancy Galway to step up.