As Thomond awaits, lowly Stade Francais eye Champions Cup ...

In early November, after a 35-18 defeat at La Rochelle saw them slip to 13th, coach Morgan Parra said he had “no shame admitting” the Paris side had entered Top 14 survival mode.

As they prepare for their Thomond Park challenge, Stade have climbed to the heady heights of 12th — one point and one place outside the Top 14’s relegation danger zone.

So, the obvious question is whether they’re capable of combining a Champions Cup run with a domestic survival push.

Head coach Paul Gustard has sprung a number of selection surprises, as he rotates his squad for the Muster opener. Backrow Ryan Chapuis captains the French side on his 100th outing for the club, as he lines up alongside Yoan Tanga, in for the injured Romain Briatte, and Pierre Huguet.

Gustard has decided against selecting Jeremy Ward, even though the South African centre was available for selection.

Second row Paul Gabrillagues, full-back Leo Barre, All Black scrum-half Brad Weber, French back-row Sekou Macalou, and flying wingers Peniasi Dakuwaqa and Lester Etien are also notable absentees.

In the front row, Giacomo Nicotera gives way to Lucas Peyresblanques at hooker. He has Clement Castets and Francisco Gomez Kodela on each shoulder, while Pierre-Henri Azagoh and Baptiste Pesenti team up in the second row.

Young scrum-half Thibaut Motassi and the experienced Zack Henry form the starting hinge, while Pierre Boudehent and Joe Marchant line up in midfield. On the wings, Samuel Ezeala will wear number 11 while Charles Laloi, wearing 14, makes his first appearance since March, and Joe Jonas starts at full-back.

Fly-halves Louis Carbonel and Louis Foursans are the only backs on a 6-2 bench, which also features young forwards Seta Turagacoke (19), Andy Timo (20) and Juan Scelzo (21). Prop star brothers Paul and Moses Alo-Emile are also set to appear.

Centre Jeremy Ward, recovered from a brain injury that kept him out of Stade’s last match, doesn’t just think they can pick and choose when and where to compete.

Stade Francais and Portugal winger Raffaele Storti runs with the ball as he breaks through the Georgia defence before scoring his side's second try during the Rugby World Cup France 2023 match between Georgia and Portugal. Pic: Phil Walter/Getty Images

“A team of Stade Francais’ stature has to be able to compete on both fronts,” he said. “You look at all the teams that have done well in both domestic and international competitions over the last few years — we see ourselves moving in that direction.

“It requires a really good squad, because not everyone can play every game in the Top 14 as well as every game in the Champions Cup, so it requires the whole squad to be at a good level, but I feel we’ve got that.

“Last year we let ourselves down,” Ward admitted. “This year we’re looking to attack this competition well.”

Despite their league standing, the Paris side looked to be at the start of a turnaround in their domestic fortunes just as the Champions Cup rolls around.

They beat Stuart Lancaster’s Racing 40-24 at Stade Jean Bouin a fortnight ago, then put in a creditable performance in defeat last week at noted visitors’ graveyard Bayonne.

“The nice thing about the Champions Cup and where it’s arrived in the season, it gives us a chance to focus on something different.

“Compared to the last two (domestic) seasons, we’re not at the level we need to be. Munster at Thomond Park is as tough as it gets, but that allows us to approach it with a fresh mindset.”

Stade have managed 27 tries in 11 matches, with only Pau, Montpellier, and Perpignan scoring fewer points than they have so far.

“That’s the story of our season,” Ward said. “We’ve looked decent, but we’re falling short where it counts. Where some results had gone our way, maybe, in the last two years, they’ve not gone our way this time.

“But the rugby we’re playing and the performances we’re putting in, they’ve been good and we’ve been happy with them — which is why this competition is exciting for us, because we can go into it with the same approach, just on a different stage.”

The win against Racing — Ward scored one of his side’s six tries before going off with a brain injury that kept him sidelined for the match at Bayonne — was their best performance of the season to date, and the benchmark by which Stade want to be judged.

“It’s nice to be reminded every now and again what this team can do,” he said. “Nothing changed from our perspective, but it was what our rugby looks like when things go right. We know we are capable of putting in some really good performances. It’s just about doing it consistently and doing it for 80 minutes.”

Director of rugby Laurent Labit — France’s attack coach until Rugby World Cup 2023 — has taken charge of Stade’s attack this season, while Paul Gustard stepped in as head coach after Karim Ghezal was dismissed at the end of September.

“There’s more of an attack-minded approach,” Ward said. “The challenge is trying to find the balance between being really solid defensively and also being willing to target space and target opportunities.

“That’s where we as a team are learning to be better, making sure that we’re ready to transfer pressure, whether it be through a kick off nine, a kick off 10, or willing to actually get the ball moving through our hands — being ready to make one or two decisions that could drastically improve or change a game. To come up against a team who look different, who play differently, it’s really exciting.

“We arrive with a plan. We arrive solid and as a unit. And, as it is with any game away from home, is those first 20 minutes.

“We need to put a lot of emphasis on those first 20 minutes, making sure we get out of the blocks strong and assert ourselves in terms of the way we want the next 60 to look.”