PLAYERS have been told they must keep their cool in the heat of battle if they are to triumph over the current Heineken Cup champions on Friday.

While the legendary Thomond Park atmosphere dictates that vociferous Munster fans will be anything but calm, Sharks players have been warned that if they lose their heads it could cost them the game.

Sharks head coach Kingsley Jones explained: "We are not going to get drawn into any nonsense.

"Thomond Park is an intimidating place to play. Munster will be in our faces from the start, they’ll be physical and tough.

"It is important we keep our discipline for the 80 minutes. It’s something we’ve gone through with the players. Discipline is going to be everything."

Sharks talismanic captain Juan Martin Fernandez Lobbe is equally determined his team-mates will not be distracted from their primary objective in Ireland - to secure a win.

"If you keep a cool head and really concentrate they [Munster] can talk all they want but you stay focused on the rugby," said the Argentinian international. "If you get involved in talking or fighting you are not going to enjoy the game and you are going to feel you could have done a little bit more.

"We need to do everything well because Munster are a great team. If you want to play the best you need to try to be the best and work hard for 80 minutes."

Last time Sharks ran out at the famous ground in January 2006 they appeared shell-shocked by the scale of the support and overwhelmed by the occasion. The Stockport-based team lost 31-9 and had two players sin-binned.

Andrew Sheridan, Sebastien Chabal, Chris Jones, Charlie Hodgson, Mark Cueto, Dean Schofield and Richard Wigglesworth, who all played in the last tie, should be better equipped to deal with it this time; while the rest of the squad are being mentally prepared for the task ahead.

Jones explained: "I keep painting the worst picture because then it doesn’t seem as bad as the coach said when you get there. I’ve played there in the past, for Gloucester, and it’s no good trying to explain it.

"I’ve played at Cardiff Arms Park, Wembley and Kings Park in South Africa but there is nowhere quite like Thomond Park on an occasion like this. It’s a huge game for both teams.

"There’s nothing I can say to give the players the understanding that they really need to go into it.

"Luke [McAlister] has played for the All Blacks but this will be a unique experience for him.

"But we are training to be prepared and be positive and we’ll try to Sreally enjoy it this time."

Winger Cueto knows from Sharks’ previous visit just how ‘unique’ an experience playing at Thomond Park, which has since been redeveloped, can be.

"From a club point of view it doesn’t get bigger than playing at Thomond Park," explained Cueto, laughing at the thought of one memorable incident: "I got pulled into the crowd last time! There was a little wall that used to run up the side of the pitch and me and the opposition winger fell into this wall and there was a bit of handbags.

"The next minute a load of the Irish fans are pulling me into the wall backwards! I was thinking ‘what is going on?’ Hopefully the wall will have been taken down and they won’t be able to do that again on Friday!"