Our big guns of Leinster, Munster and Ulster are all in decent shape in the Heineken Cup and two are at home this weekend with a chance to do damage in their group. The most difficult tie appears to be Leinster’s away clash with Northampton, one that has been scheduled for Saturday’s 6pm prime-time slot. This is where Leinster belong and they should relish the opportunity to put their group to bed with a win here.

Leinster have opened the competition with two decent wins, but they have only scored two tries in doing so. Last weekend they looked potent behind the scrum and they need to translate that league form onto the European stage if they are to be serious contenders come April and May.

Winning away in the Heineken Cup has always been the difference between the serious and not so ambitious teams. While the Saints are formidable in Franklin Gardens and have European pedigree, they do not possess Leinster’s talent, even with the loss of Jonathan Sexton.

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Brian O’Driscoll is expected to be back beside Gordon D’Arcy, who rolled back the years against the All Blacks. Gopperth and Reddan are beginning to look the part, the Kearneys are another attacking option, while the pack has class in abundance. They will even welcome Leo Cullen back on Saturday night. This is where the former European kingpins can win on Saturday: up front, with Cian Healy, Sean Cronin, Mike Ross, Devon Toner, Cullen, Jamie Heaslip and Sean O’Brien. If all are fit then this is some forward line to call on. They can and will take command of the group with a win, knocking Northampton out of the competition into the bargain.

Munster are the only one of the three Irish heavy hitters not yet top of their group. Pool Six is a bit muddied right now, all teams having won at home and lost away. Munster’s loss in Edinburgh looked calamitous at the very start of affairs, but on Sunday they can go top of the group by beating Perpignan. Do that and the pool will really open up for them. French teams are renowned for their ability to roll over away from home and if Munster could inflict Perpignan’s second defeat on them and make it a heavy one, the French may look to prioritise domestic matters.

This is the key to this Sunday lunchtime kick-off because these two meet again six days later. The only way to go into the second of the back-to-back ties is having won the first match, comprehensively and not given your opponents anything to fight about in the second game. Munster should win on Sunday; they can win on Saturday week. Therein lies the difference.

The rejuvenation of Paul O’Connell is a key part of Munster’s hopes for renaissance. Apart from Conor Murray and the Lions second-row, there is a distinct lack of star quality in the Munster team. Peter O’Mahony and Keith Earls make strong cases for that moniker, but injury is costing these two the sustained run of matches needed.

We are very used to Munster punching above their weight but that sometimes took from the obvious talent at their disposal. For a number of years they provided the bulk of the Irish team, had an All Black legend in their make-up, as well as some brilliant non-Irish imports. They were a serious side and virtually unbeatable at home. However, that couldn’t last forever. The aura, and, it must be said, the atmosphere, is gone from Thomond Park. We’re asking a lot of Rob Penney to expect him to return Munster to the top table but their incredible win over Harlequins in the quarter-final last year showed they have not forgotten how to produce inspirational performances. They can do the double over Perpignan but I’d wait to see Sunday before putting any money on the return leg.

The first Irish team into the knockout stages this year will be Ulster. Unbeaten on eight points and top of Pool Five, they now have two games against Treviso to bolster their bonus-point tally. Two routine wins will see them on 18 points come Sunday week and with one foot in the quarters, with the prospect of Ravenhill in the last eight as well.

A few, myself included, expected Ulster to come close to winning last year’s Heineken Cup. Leinster couldn’t realistically be expected to win their third in a row with all the early injuries they encountered and Ulster, finalists the year before, had a lot in their favour. Chief among these was their large quota of Springboks and assorted imports, many of whom were serious international stars who were not inconvenienced by the Six Nations. But last year passed them by. I’ll eat my hat if they do not have a home quarter-final this season and they have quite a few prominent players to come back into their squad. The hugely unfortunate Stephen Ferris aside, captain Johann Muller, Rory Best, Nick Williams, Paddy Wallace and Craig Gilroy haven’t played too much rugby this year but all are expected back.

Squads win the Heineken Cup and Ulster have the makings of a serious one and still have the world-class of Ruan Pinaar and Tommy Bowe behind the scrum. Don’t worry about them over the next fortnight; they are contenders come May, however.

We can’t forget Connacht, who have performed well in the Heineken Cup over the past few seasons. In the revamped 20-team competition, there will be no place for them if the English are kept, so they will be one of the few hoping that rapprochement doesn’t happen.

This Sunday they are in Toulouse and realistically they have no chance. Pat Lam will be under pressure at the end of this season if Connacht’s poor form continues. All season long the men from the West have only beaten one team: Italian underlings Zebre – once in the RaboDirect Pro12 and once in the Heineken Cup.

Considering the promise and momentum that had been gathering in Galway over the past 18 months, this season gives plenty of ammunition to all those who have patronised and belittled their efforts. You’d have to fear for them. CL