"Connacht are going to be full of confidence and they always very well against us. I'm not surprised at the Munster result because it's a difficult place to go to and we're feeling a fair bit of pressure from the last defeat. The challenge for us will be to practice the plan this week to try and nullify their threat. They're very physical and from my own personal experience these are always tough, tight games.
"Though we weren't as fluent attacking wise against Ulster, I was very pleased with the result. It was Isa (Nacewa's) first game in the hot-seat at 10 while it was also good to have Gordon (D'Arcy) back for the first time this year. We weren't expecting him to play the whole game, but his work-rate, energy and physicality was there. He was very confident going into the game and it was good to see him come straight into it.
"The first game back after Castres was always going to be key, in terms of us doing well and as for the criticism, you just have to keep an even keel and a balanced approach. I was critical of our performance too, but it's about balancing and understanding what the reasons for the performance were.
"You have to see what the form of each of the various combinations are.
"On the injury front, we'll have to wait and see on the guys who are coming back. Hopefully they'll all be available and that's why we've included them in the panel. Girvan (Dempsey) is a lot better than expected and his ankle knock means that he will miss this week's match but could be back next week. Stan (Wright)'s injury looked quite nasty initially but he had a scan on his ankle and it's also not as bad as first feared. Hopefully Bernard Jackman will be back for the first Heineken Cup game.
"The RDS is a brilliant place to play. The crowd are committed to us no matter what and that support gives all the players a lift. The numbers coming this year are unbelievable and it has made a massive difference for the team."
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