 Dai Young has been the Blues director of rugby since 2002 |
Cardiff Blues director of rugby Dai Young says he would rather win the Amlin Cup than the Magners League. They must beat Munster on Sunday to make the Magners League play-offs, but Young will not risk players with knocks to ensure they are fit for Europe. The Welsh region face French powers Toulon in the Amlin Cup final at the Stade Velodrome in Marseille on 23 May. "I'd love to win the Amlin, it's a European competition and we've worked really hard to get there," Young said. Young wants to make amends for last year's penalty shootout defeat against Leicester Tigers in the semi-finals of the Heineken Cup. The match finished 26-26 after extra time but flanker Martyn Williams' miss in the shootout meant Leicester made it through to the final. "It won't make up for the disappointment of last year but it will certainly go some way to alleviating the pain," Young added. Young, though, is still determined to make the Magners League play-offs. The Blues have to beat Munster and ensure the Irish province do not pick up a bonus point. The Blues must also hope that Edinburgh do not get a maximum-point win away at league leaders Leinster. Munster's 18-12 victory at Connacht last time out ended a five-game losing streak on the road in the Magners League, while the Blues have won their last six matches in all competitions.  | 606: DEBATE |
The last four meetings between the Blues and Munster have all been won by the home side. The Munstermen last won a Magners League game in Cardiff on 4 November 2005 at the Arms Park, when they beat the Blues 18-16. "Munster will probably want to come away with something so they can get in the top four and give the Magners title a real challenge," Young added. "Having lost to Biarritz in the Heineken Cup last weekend, I'm sure we can expect a near full strength Munster team." Young, though, admits he will not risk any players who have minor injuries against Munster with the Toulon game in the back of his mind. Gethin Jenkins (ankle), Bradley Davies (back), Sam Norton-Knight and Tom James are all unlikely to feature in the match. Taufa'ao Filise (groin) is definitely out. "From our point of view we will not be looking to rest a number of players, as we want to be in the play-offs also," Young said. "However, with the Amlin Cup final around the corner we are not going to risk some players who may be carrying bumps." Young also hopes the home crowd will once again get behind the team and create an exciting atmosphere on Sunday. "The noise they [the crowd] made last weekend up at Wasps [in the Amlin semi-final] was outstanding," he added. "Hopefully we will have a big crowd at the stadium that really picks up the noise level. "There were large sections of supporters who started the singing and chanting and really made an impression up in Newcastle and Wasps, which is something the players remarked upon and appreciated."
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