After Treviso’s stunning win against Perpignan and Munster’s surprise loss to Northampton, the Italian side will be dreaming of back to back wins in the Heineken Cup for only the second time in their history.

Having only won once in the last three seasons of Heineken Cup rugby, Treviso’s 9-8 victory over Perpignan ranks as one of thr
biggest shocks in European Cup history.

And while the Italian Champions were sending shockwaves across the entire continent, double Heineken Cup winners Munster now have it all to do if they are to qualify for the knockout stages for the 12th year running.

But those critics suddenly doubting Munster’s chances of repeating their title winning seasons of 2006 and 2008 would do well to take note of a startling statistic. The men in red may have reached at least the quarter finals each and every year since 1998/99, but they have done so only once while remaining unbeaten in the group stages of Europe’s premier club competition.

And the fact that Tony McGahan’s men have lost only once in their last 39 European matches on home soil means that a second successive victory for Treviso would be an even greater shock than last weekend’s triumph over Perpignan.