Biarritz centre Damien Traille is shackled by the Munster defence during the 2006 heineken Cup Final © Getty Images

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News: O'Connell out of Biarritz showdown

News: Biarritz suffer Traille setback

Matches: Biarritz 18 - 7 Munster

Players/Officials: Paul O'Connell

Tournaments/Tours: Heineken Cup

Teams: Biarritz | France | Ireland | Munster

Munster and Biarritz will rekindle their rivalry when they go head-to-head in San Sebastian on Sunday for a place in the Heineken Cup Final.

The two European heavyweights have plenty of history to draw upon ahead of their latest showdown with Munster holding a narrow advantage. The Irish province triumphed when the two sides first met in the competition during the 2000-01 quarter-finals but Biarritz exacted revenge five years ago with victory at the same Estadio Anoeta ground that will play host to their clash this weekend. But perhaps the most significant of their previous meetings was in the 2006 tournament finale where Munster ended their long wait for the Heineken Cup crown. Many of the same faces will square up again this time but neither side are likely to dwell on the past with this year's Paris finale at the forefront of everyone's mind.

Biarritz booked their place in the last eight with victory over the Ospreys earlier this month where the crackling atmosphere was matched by a thrilling end-to-end contest. And Biarritz will be hoping to feed off another capacity crowd as they bid to shake off back-to-back defeats in the Top 14. Munster have also struggled to find their best on the domestic stage since ending Northampton's European challenge in the quarter-finals with their latest defeat at the hands of the Ospreys denting their own Magners League play-off hopes.

But the Heineken Cup has a habit of bringing out the best in teams, players and fans - in particular those from Limerick. Munster's love affair with the Heineken Cup is well documented and upwards of 7,000 fans will make the trip to northern Spain in the hope of seeing their side book their third final appearance in the last five years.

Munster kept faith with the same starting line-up that accounted for Northampton but were forced into late changes as wingers Doug Howlett and Ian Dowling failed to come through the captain's run due to hamstring and knee problems respectively. Lifeimi Mafi replaces Howlett while Denis Hurley steps in for Dowling. Centre Keith Earls returns to the fray and he will resume his partnership with Jean de Villiers in midfield.

In the absence of lock Paul O'Connell, who continues to struggle with a groin injury, fly-half Ronan O'Gara will lead the side and look to extend his mark as the tournament's all-time leading points scorer. Mick O'Driscoll deputises once again in the second-row and will partner Donncha O'Callaghan. Academy product Scott Deasy comes onto the replacements bench in the place of Billy Holland and will sit alongside fellow backs Peter Stringer and Tom Gleeson, promoted to the bench after Mafi's call-up.

Biarritz were dealt a hammer blow to their own aspirations earlier this week with powerful centre Damien Traille ruled out with an arm injury but the equally influential Imanol Harinordoquy has been passed fit following recent surgery on a broken nose. In Traille's absence, Englishman Ayoola Erinle will partner Arnaud Mignardi in midfield while AFL-bound Karmichael Hunt lines up at No.10, where he will be partnered by Dimitri Yachvili, with both charged with filling the void left by Traille's more than useful boot.

Veteran lock Jerome Thion will lead a side that also includes paceman Takudzwa Ngwenya, who claimed arguably the try of the tournament last time out, while English interest in the competition extends to the presence of fullback Iain Balshaw and flanker Magnus Lund. There is no place for international rising star Fabien Barcella with South African Eduard Coetzee selected to start at loose-head with his French colleague on the bench.

Munster have tasted success in the semi-finals of Europe's premier competition on four previous occasions and that experience will be invaluable as they gear up for their latest high-profile clash. Against Northampton, that mental strength served them well against a relatively inexperienced opponent but Biarritz boast a more formidable pedigree.

Games of this high-pressure nature demand that your key players deliver and in O'Gara, Munster have a player with an unrivalled big match temperament. His kicking game will no doubt lay the platform for Munster's challenge and his handling will be the key to unlocking the wealth of talent in his backline. In contrast, his opposite number, the 23-year-old Hunt will step into the cauldron at San Sebastian with painfully limited experience of such occasions having only joined Biarritz in November in between a highly-lucrative move from rugby league to Aussie Rules in his native Australia. But his highly-rated talents have seen him preferred to the more experienced Julien Peyrelongue with all eyes on him to see if he rises to the occasion or succumbs to the pressure.

As much as the contest will be about those present the absence of two pivotal players could well determine who progresses the Paris. Traille's outstanding all-round display against the Ospreys - regimenting the defence, sparking scoring moves and slotting drop goals - underlined his class and he leaves a significant void in their line-up. Munster came through their quarter-final without their talismanic skipper O'Connell and have therefore shown that they can thrive in his absence and the team's ability to shoulder that loss could well prove the key to victory.

Biarritz Olympique Pays Basque: I Balshaw, T Ngwenya, A Mignardi, A Erinle, J Gobelet, K Hunt, D Yachvili, E Coetzee, B August, C Johnstone, J Thion (capt), T Hall, M Lund, W Lauret, I Harinordoquy

Replacements: R Terrain, F Barcella, R Hugues, M Carizza, F Faure, V Courrent, J Peyrelongue, P Bidabe

Munster: P Warwick, L Mafi, K Earls, J de Villiers, D Hurley, R O'Gara (capt), T O'Leary, M Horan, J Flannery, J Hayes, D O'Callaghan, M O'Driscoll, A Quinlan, D Wallace, J Coughlan

Replacements: D Varley, J Brugnaut, T Buckley, N Williams, N Ronan, P Stringer, T Gleeson, S Deasy

Referee: Dave Pearson (England)

Assistant referees: Chris White, Stuart Terheege (England)
TMO: Graham Hughes (England)
TV: FR2 / Sky Sports / Sky Italia / RTE*