Kidney: Set for Euro swansong

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Head coach Declan Kidney has called for his players to rise to the occasion as Munster prepare to face Toulouse in the Heineken Cup final on Saturday.

In what will be Kidney's final game in charge of the Irish giants, he leads his side into their second European final in three years against formidable French opponents.

A win for Toulouse would see the south France outfit get their hands on the silverware for the fourth time since the competition began in 1996.

Kidney has urged his players to raise the roof - albeit a closed one, as they descend on the Millennium Stadium for the greatest club spectacle of all.

Great atmosphere

"The thing about a final is that you have to expect the unexpected because you never know the little things that are going to be thrown at you, so you have to prepare the best you can," Kidney told Sky Sports News.

"The roof is going to be closed so there will be a great atmosphere, huge noise volumes and just a great occasion.

"I think the thing to do is to try and look forward to it because opportunities like this come around very seldom."

Kiwi centre Rua Tipoki is preparing for his first Heineken Cup final appearance, and he believes he and his team-mates must concentrate on their own game before focusing on the French flair lining up in front of them.

Underdogs

"You have to have a balance, you can't worry about the other guys too much otherwise you will forget your own job," he said.

"As long as we do our preparation and each man does some homework on the man he is marking and probably the one or two around him we should be alright. As long as we do our own job."

Lock Donncha O'Callaghan added: "We like to be called underdogs and have our backs to the wall.

"When everyone saw the pool that we got, everyone was just saying we would just be glad to get out of it.

"We are better when we take every game at a time and don't look down the road. I'll be honest with you, Munster are suited to knock-out rugby."