Munster told to expect a war at Exeter Chiefs in Champions Cup showdown

Chiefs director of rugby Rob Baxter promising a hot welcome as the Reds seek their first win in this season's tournament

Munster have been told to expect a "war" at Exeter as the Chiefs attempt to seize the initiative in the Champions Cup.

Director of Rugby Rob Baxter was delighted with last week's last-gasp comeback victory at Toulon and a home victory over Munster at Sandy Park (1pm) would set up the Premiership outfit ahead of the final two rounds of pool games in the new year.

The Reds make the trip without talisman Peter O'Mahony and have made six personnel and three positional changes from last week's disappointing home draw against Bayonne.

READ MORE: Time for Munster to front up at Exeter as Euro stakes get higher

“Time will tell what the lads took away from last weekend’s win," said Baxter, who has made two changes to the starting line-up.

"In times like this, you’re always hoping groups learn very quickly but you never really know until you get further down the line.”

“What was nice was that, probably for the first real time this season in an away game, the lads will have felt and been able to see the benefits of when you dig in there and the game gets into the final quarter and the scores get back to where that one score could win it.

“The win in Toulon has almost made this weekend’s game an even bigger of a one-off occasion. Munster are going to be frustrated and disappointed at not winning at home in round one, so that doubles things up.

“You know in the first 20 minutes there’s going to be a lot of blood and thunder out there. That gives us the realisation that we’ve got to step up in that first quarter.

"We’ve got to get ready to go to war, really. And if we do that, then we give ourselves a chance.”

Munster: Shane Daly, Calvin Nash, Antoine Frisch, Alex Nankivell, Seán O’Brien, Jack Crowley, Craig Casey; Jeremy Loughman, Diarmuid Barron, Stephen Archer, Gavin Coombes, Tadhg Beirne (C); Tom Ahern, John Hodnett, Jack O’Donoghue.

Replacements: Eoghan Clarke, Josh Wycherley, Oli Jager, Brian Gleeson, Alex Kendellen, Conor Murray, Rory Scannell, Ben O’Connor.

Get the latest sports headlines straight to your inbox by signing up for free email alerts.