MUNSTER HEAD COACH Anthony Foley freely admits it wasn’t part of the plan to make CJ Stander his captain, but with each passing performance the skipper cements himself further in to the hearts of Munster supporters.

Stander was on song again on Saturday as the southern province tore Stade Francais apart in Thomond Park. It may have been a performance too late to give Munster a realistic chance of continuing their interest in Europe, but just in time to restore some faith in Foley’s side.

“It’s in our DNA in and around here to make sure that the jersey is the most important thing and we represent it. I thought the boys today played with a lot of ferocity out there, and they had to.”

Asked to measure the quality of his talismanic number eight, Foley first and foremost speaks of Stander the man rather than his quality as a player.

“Ah, he’s a great man,” exhales Foley, he’s a great man, and the player comes out of that.

“I’ve been banging on for weeks, if we get more people like that, people follow that. I think the supporters are starting to connect with him and they’re starting to see what he’s about.

It’s the grit and the hard work. It’s not just the big carries, he’s good out on the pitch.

“Him being captain this year obviously wasn’t something that we foresaw. It wasn’t a plan until Peter (O’Mahony)’s knee went, so we needed to figure out who was the man to lead this because this group would be used to big leaders. Big physical, demanding men that lead but also make sense in what they’re trying to get out of it. I think CJ is getting there, and he’s going to be a great leader going forward.”

Foley gives a short shrift response when asked if he might have any hesitations in giving him a starting berth for Ireland in the Six Nations. Two words:

“None whatsoever.”

As Stander grows in strength however, his compatriot BJ Botha has succumbed to a knee injury. And with the prop’s contract up in the summer, he has likely played his last game for Munster.

Ryan Byrne / INPHO Ryan Byrne / INPHO / INPHO

“He’s been a great servant for us and he’s in and around the group at the moment,” says Foley of the 36-year-old tighthead.

“He’s a very good character, he demands a lot around the scrum and the maul particularly; he loves that part of the game.

Now, while he’s waiting for his operation he’ll be a voice in and around it and just another fella to have a look at the same thing and give another voice and opinion on it.”