Leo Cullen wants his Leinster players to match the passion that their Connacht opponents will bring to tomorrow's Champions Cup first tie clash at the Sportsground.
The Blues boss knows that the westerners will throw the kitchen sink at the four-time champions from the start in Galway.
A passionate approach is a given from the hosts as they look to upset the odds and the form book and Cullen, who has experienced defeat before in Galway, is looking for similar from his charges.
“Well, I hope it’s pretty high," he said, in regard to motivation levels from the visitiors.
"It’s for the tournament, for this game against a provincial rival and for the tournament and it means a huge amount to everyone involved with the clubs, players, supporters and all the backroom team.
“A huge amount of work has gone into getting us to this point and it was pretty hairy at one point if you remember back to Christmas time so the situation we are in now is off the back of a lot of hard work and I’m sure Connacht will be saying something similar.
“It’s not quite knockout rugby but it is knockout rugby over two legs and this is the first-half this week.
"You just try and get as much as you possibly can out of the game. It is an unusual dynamic, it's one we haven’t actually faced before but it is still reasonably simple - we have to get what we can from the game and just see how it plays out.
"Try to maximise the points that are there on offer and build towards the following game.”
Of course the chances of Connacht causing a shock should be lessened by the fact that this is a two-legged affair, with the return to come at the Aviva Stadium a week later.
Asked if his approach changes because the tie won't be decided tomorrow night, Cullen replied: "Yes and no.
"We have a lot of respect for Connacht and the ability that they have.
"There are a lot of their players we know well because they spent time here and that makes them doubly dangerous again because they have a greater understanding of what we try to do.
“We won’t get too far ahead of ourselves and we’ll see where we sit at the final whistle and then make a plan on the following week based on what we’ve seen.
"We’ve had back-to-back games throughout the years which haven’t been dissimilar.
“There is a different dynamic though in the points difference and it is knockout as well.
"We just want to treat it as a normal game and the game down in the Sportsground a few weeks ago is of zero relevance to us because it is a different competition."
Leinster have beaten Connacht by more than 40 points twice this year already, and the Blues are expecting a different approach from the hosts.
“They will always have plans for the game, we saw that the last day," said Cullen, referencing the meeting at the Sportsground two weeks ago when Connacht had Tom Daly red carded in the second minute.
"We didn’t deal with the card early in the game. It is about making sure we have control for each situation.
"You could see the little things Connacht had to disrupt our flow of the game, the little things they do.
"Some of those plans had to be altered because of the red card. We are aware of what they are potentially planning to do.”
Asked if lessons by Leinster in their 2016 PRO12 final loss to Connacht were relevant for tomorrow's clash, Cullen pointed to the loss of Devin Toner on the eve of that game in Edinburgh.
"You are always preparing (for every eventuality), we do a lot of that over the course of the season to make sure we are prepared for the different scenarios we may face," he said.
“We have made a few changes off the back of last week, a number of guys coming back in. So it is just trying to get balance in selection - Johnny (Sexton) is coming back in, the front row is new to last week. Combinations are important.
“In terms of going down to Galway, we know from over the years, not just in that final, but from experiences in the Sportsground, that it is a tough place to go.
"It is about being respectful of the opposition, how hard it can be on the day.
"It is a massive thing for Connacht to play knockout rugby at this time of year so, for us, it is important to be aware of what the opposition can potentially bring, how they can disrupt our game and by extension impose their game.
"It is about making sure we are ready for all eventualities.”
Meanwhile, the shadow of Dan Leavy's retirement announcement at the age of 27 hangs over Leinster.
Cullen paid tribute to the fearless flanker who had to call time on his career due to a significant knee injury he suffered in a European battle with Ulster three years ago. Although the Ireland international did return, he told his team-mates on Monday that it was time to walk away.
"Dan has applied himself unbelievably well but he's never been unfortunately able to get back to that point where he was at that point in time," said Cullen.
"We've been keeping a very, very close eye on him, regular communication with how he's going and everyone's done everything they can so from a medical point of view here.
"The care that Dan has, how he's applied himself...that conversation has been very, very open and to the club's credit, they've tried to back him as much as possible and tried to do what's the right thing by him.
"Even still, knowing what we know and everything that he has gone through, it has been tough for Dan, trying to do everything he possibly can to get back.
"So we're all devastated for him here. He's such a great character, he really is. He only told the rest of the players here on Monday - he might have had some individual conversations with guys prior to that but in terms of telling the group here, yeah, it's a tough one when you hear the words being said out loud.
"I personally have had conversations with Dan over the last while, all through the process really, so yeah look, the guys have been good here. It's not easy, it's not easy at all, just because he's so well respected in the group.
"I've seen different comments people have made about him, how he was such a special talent coming through as a schoolboy in particular."
Cullen hailed Leavy's "amazing" self-belief, which was evident in him returning to play, and said he had "real presence" on a rugby pitch and was so effective as a defensive "stopper" for the Blues.
"Dan had the presence in that contact between attacker and defender, plus the mindset to dominate his opposite as well." said Cullen.
"When he carried he was very, very strong - that is the big point of difference he had and you could see it in that 2018 season in particular, when he was part of a very, very successful Leinster period, when you think about the away European Cup final against Racing, that is when you need your big players to step up.
"Dan as a young man at the time, 24 - you see the impact he had on those games, both in attack and defence, his carries, his close quarter stuff, he was a different level to everyone else in that period.”
