In the crowd, the sprinkling of family and friends who had made it over can remember a man with a foghorn attached to a foot pump, waiting . . . nah, praying . . . for Smith to get a penalty so he could set the noise in motion.

Munster went down 19-12 that day to Castres, a mighty fine achievement in a lot of ways but there can be no such valour in defeat on Friday.

Munster travel to Stade Pierre Antoine, to face the side they started their French series against over 10 years ago, knowing that they have to win to qualify for the knockout stages of the Heineken Cup for the eighth season in succession. It won't be easy. In the four seasons Castres have competed in European rugby's premier competition, they've lost just once at their cosy 10,000 capacity home ground, as tight and intimidating a venue as you're likely to find. You can probably guess who did the damage that evening back in October 2000. It was Munster's third victory on French soil but the first where they'd stormed the citadel of the home side. It was one of those nights that went down in the province's folklore, but mainly because of what had come before it. Pain, pain and another dollop of it on top, just to rub it in.

The most damaging of those early defeats was that infamous afternoon in Toulouse back in the competition's second season. Declan Kidney's side travelled to the south of France having walloped Wasps in their previous outing and, because of that, held some hope of qualifying from the group. It's laughable now. Beforehand, Munster went out to walk around the pitch at Les Sept Derniers an hour before the game and were stunned by the thousands already present simply to jeer their every step.

Five minutes beforehand was time enough for the crowds in Limerick and Cork. The game itself? Well, they were given a lesson in French rugby and were heading towards conceding a half century of points early in the second half. Mick Galwey got them in a huddle under the posts and urged them to keep the score below 50. Five minutes later they were back in the same spot with their captain pleading to keep it under 60. The final score was 60-19. They just missed out on their second target.

After that they lost to Bourgoin in a dog of a game at the Stade Pierre Rajon, folded to Perpignan 41-24 the following season and were defeated 239 to Colomiers in the quarterfinal the year the French side lost to Ulster in the final at Lansdowne Road. It was only then, five years into both the competition and professionalism, that things changed.

On 11 December 1999 Munster beat Colomiers to record their first victory on French soil. The monkey, finally, off their backs. It was a feat they'd targeted from the very start of the year, when they had sat around as a group and set their goals for the season. One small step for man and all that, the giant leap came the following May against Toulouse, the side that they'd tried manfully to keep below 60 points a couple of years beforehand. Munster were no hopers heading to Bordeaux for that Heineken Cup semi-final yet they played some fantastic ball-in-hand rugby and defended like demons to blow les Toulousians away.

Their best Munster victory ever, in any venue in any competition, we'd venture.

From there, victory came more natural than defeat on Gallic fields. Castres were beaten, as we said, for the only time in the Heineken Cup on their own turf at the start of the following season and, in 2002, both Stade Francais in the quarters and Castres in the semis were defeated on home soil by Declan Kidney's side. The set of six wins was completed against Bourgoin in 2003 . . .

Alan Gaffney's only victory as Munster coach on French soil . . . thanks to the trusty boot of Ronan O'Gara, making them the most successful Irish side on French soil.

Why the change? Basic self belief for one, although the burgeoning attitude of professionalism was undoubtedly a factor. Especially that of Declan Kidney. As noted above, five of Munster's six victories in France have come under him and that's not an accident. After a couple of haphazard trips in the competition's early years, he ensured that every last detail was taken care of, things like how long it took to travel from the team hotel to the ground.

To the second. Or the use of the same chef, Vincent from the Novotel in Bordeaux, for every one of their French assignments.

Small details, sure, but the ones that helped make the difference.

Not that it's been all plain sailing in France since Munster cracked the winning code back in '99. There's been quite a few relapses, too, heartbreaking ones at that. The single point semi-final defeat to Stade Francais in Lille still makes anyone who was there that day hate the very mention of the place, while last season Alan Gaffney's side lost to Castres and Biarritz, although the game against the latter did take place over the border in San Sebastian.

All of which leaves a total of 11 defeats and six wins from 17 games, a decent record but one that will need an extra credit on the ledger next weekend if Munster's great dream is ever to be realised.

Defeat against Castres doesn't even bare contemplating.

Not when another chapter of Munster's story sits waiting to be written.

SIX TOURS DE FORCE EN FRANCE

COLOMIERS 15-31 MUNSTER Stade Toulousien, December 1999 Munster's first victory on French soil after five straight and often embarrassing defeats. A brace from Jason Holland and another effort from Keith Wood laid the foundations for victory as Munster finally broke their Gallic hoodoo.

TOULOUSE 25-31 MUNSTER Stade Chaban Delmas, May 2000 An amazing day for Munster in the Heineken Cup semifinal. Nobody gave them a prayer beforehand but a patient performance laced with a couple of incredibly well-worked tries . . . Ronan O'Gara's sweeping end-toend effort in particular . . . left Toulouse gasping for breath in the May sunshine. Arguably Munster's most famous victory in Europe.

CASTRES 29-32 MUNSTER Stade Pierre Antoine, October 2000 Munster trailed 20-9 at halftime in this one and another rout in France genuinely looked on the cards. Secondhalf tries, however, from Dominic Crotty and Anthony Horgan, allied to the trusty boot of O'Gara, edged Munster clear for their first victory over a French side on their home patch.

STADE FRANCAIS 15-16 MUNSTER Stade Jean-Bouin, January 2002 If ever the true Munster spirit of rugby was evident, it was in this game on a freezing Paris afternoon. With a huge wind at their backs in the first-half, the visitors took a 16-3 lead into the break thanks to a Horgan try. From there they used all their famed resilience and spirit to hang on, just, for another memorable victory.

CASTRES 17-25 MUNSTER Beziers, April 2002 Not one of Munster's more memorable victories. This Heineken Cup semi-final was one dominated by nerves as both sides struggled to get to grips with their games.

O'Gara kicked six penalties to set Munster on their way, with John Kelly scoring an injurytime try to settle the nerves of the 8,000 travelling support.

BOURGOIN 17-18 MUNSTER Stade Pierre Rajon, December 2003 Another hard-fought victory at an extremely difficult venue to get a result. Six penalties from O'Gara, the last nine minutes from time, did the damage but the contribution out of touch from both Paul O'Connell and Donncha O'Callaghan gave Alan Gaffney's side the platform for this particular victory.