West has been the forwards coach at Saints since June 2007

Northampton Saints coach Dorian West says he is surprised by the scheduling for their next two Heineken Cup games.

Saints host French champions Perpignan on Sunday, 17 January and then travel to Munster the following Friday.

West told BBC Radio Northampton: "I can't understand how, for possibly the two biggest games of our season, we've been given a five-day turnaround.

"It devalues the match for me. But challenges are there to be overcome and it's down to us to manage our players."

Saints are currently second in pool one, behind Munster. They have beaten Treviso twice, and Munster at Franklin's Gardens, though they were defeated 29-13 at Perpignan.

"It would be tough with a seven-day turnaround," added West.

"Munster is a tough place to go when you're at your best and fully rested.

"But we'll make sure we're right to tackle [them] if we're fortunate enough to beat Perpignan."

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