Connacht have a good record against Cardiff but Heffernan warns of threat Welsh side possess

Connacht may be on a five-match winning run against Cardiff in the league and Europe, but experienced hooker Dave Heffernan says they expect the Welsh side to be even more fired-up than usual at the Arms Park on tomorrow night (7.45pm, TG4 and Premier Sports).

The ongoing turmoil in Welsh rugby, including a suggestion to reduce the number of professional teams from four to two, has stoked passions this season, with Cardiff winning their opening home match against the Lions and then deservedly picking up two points in a 23-20 loss to Munster in Thomond Park last weekend.

“I don’t know exactly what’s the ins-and-outs of exactly what’s going on over there,” said Heffernan, “but the crowd is always very hostile. It’s enjoyable and always a great place to play in but it’s usually a hostile crowd.

“They’re a very tough side to play against. I mean, they probably should have beaten us over there last year. They have breakdown threats everywhere, and they’re a very tough team to break down.

“Obviously, we know they’ll be out to get us. They probably always feel like they can anyway, so I know it’s going to be a massive physical battle ahead,” Heffernan said in the pre-match media session this week.

The Ballina native, who has made 220 appearances for Connacht since his debut 13 years ago, said the arrival of Stuart Lancaster has revitalised the squad.

“I feel like I’m just learning stuff every day, which is great. He’s pushing us, he’s challenging everyone in the squad, but it’s very clear. We’re training really hard and intensely, but the game plan when you break down is quite simple, and the way he gets it across is very simple. So it’s just exciting and it’s been really enjoyable so far.

“It just comes back to the way we’re training, that we’re training at such a high intensity that you have a lot of belief going into games, but as well, we’re one game into the season, so we’re not getting too ahead of ourselves either. A lot of hard work to do, and I’d love to back up that performance against Treviso once again.”

That opening round 26-15 win over Benetton was the ideal start to the season, but having their second home match against Scarlets called off late on Friday night, because the Welsh couldn’t travel in the storm, has been disruptive.

“Look, there's initial frustration, but you can't control the weather, so you just get on with it and move on. Most of us came in here and did a bit of a light session in the gym, and we’re just on to the next task,” said the 34-years-old, who has six Irish caps.

He knows there will be many twists and turns in the season but the overriding belief in the camp is that they let themselves down last year when they failed to reach the knockout stages of the URC and lost a home Challenge Cup quarter-final to 14-man Racing 92.

“There’s definitely an expectation that last year was unacceptable to finish 13th. It’s not where we need to be, so there’s going to be a massive improvement this season,” he added.

Pictured: Dave Heffernan in action against Racing 92 in last season's Challenge Cup quarter-final. Photo: Joe O'Shaughnessy.