Castres Look For All Black Magic

Club captain Kees Meeuws has been joined by New Zealand Test team-mate Carl Hoeft at Stade Pierre Antoine to provide a formidable front row platform to take on Pool 1 opponents Munster, Sale Sharks and Newport Gwent Dragons.
The Welsh region will be first to feel the force when they travel to France for their Round 1 contest on Saturday evening, Meeuws confessing: "I don't know a lot about the Dragons but I do know that they are, like us, rebuilding and something of a new side."
Meeuws is not the first All Black to captain Castres Olympique as he follows in the stud marks of Gary Whetton who first did the job in 1992.
"Gary led the club to the French Championship title in 1993 so I have certainly got some big boots to fill and it is a huge honour to captain the side," said 42-times capped Meeuws.
"It is great that Carl has joined Castres this season and I know he will look after his side of the scrum while bringing both great experience and expertise to our front row.
"The Heineken Cup is an extremely important tournament for us and it is vital we win that first game against the Dragons. You must target winning your three home games and we want to build confidence in the squad for the other matches in the competition.
"We have got a lot of young guys - and a few old heads - in the squad but I certainly want us to reach at least the quarter-finals, to be competitive in every game and play the best rugby we can produce.
"If you make the last eight that is the benchmark of being in the top flight in Europe and if at all possible I really want us to go even further than the quarter-finals.
"The Northern Hemisphere teams place a greater emphasis on the set pieces while in New Zealand the supporters want to see more movement and a more fluid game.
"The French really pride themselves on their forward play and the Heineken Cup and Super 12 are pretty much on a par.
"We are looking forward to the Dragons game and, although the last few weeks were difficult for us without a No 10, Yann (Delaigue) is back from a shoulder injury and is a leader in his own right, giving our back line vision and direction.
"As for our other Pool 1 opponents we are well aware that Sale Sharks have a big pack and when we played them earlier in the year they looked very sharp - and that was only their B team as they had 12 or 13 internationals sitting on the sideline watching the game!
"Munster's record in the tournament, which includes two Heineken Cup finals, speaks for itself and at home they are as difficult as anyone to beat."