'Special feeling' for Furbank as he helps to steer Saints to superb Thomond Park win

Furbank still has a 100 per cent record as Saints captain, having steered them to 12 wins from as many matches.

But the one at Munster may be the most impressive of the lot as Saints secured victory despite having Curtis Langdon sent off just before the break.

Furbank was already in the sin bin for a tip tackle at that point, but Saints battled bravely with 13 and then 14 men to get the job done at Thomond Park.

And Furbank said: "We spoke about how it's a special place to come and not many teams come away and win here in Europe.

"We knew it was going to be a big challenge so to come away with a victory here is massive and it's a pretty special feeling.

"No matter what the scoreboard looks like, we're in a pretty good place mentally at the moment where we always feel like we're in a game.

"They never really got two scores ahead of us and when you've got that sort of wind behind you, you feel like as long as you do the right things at the right time, you can dominate territory and put pressure on them, which is what we did.

"Fin (Smith), for half an hour, was pretty ridiculous in that second half."

Having lost Langdon to a red card, it looked like Saints would be up against it, especially as Munster scored before the break to make it 15-7.

But Saints refused to be deterred and fought to the end, with Sam Graham's try and Smith's metronomic boot securing the win.

"We spoke about not going away from what we do as a team," Furbank said.

"Curt is obviously a big loss to our team because he adds a lot, but we spoke about continuing doing what we're doing, always looking for a run and that opens up those kick opportunities and then it was about controlling territory, which we did really well.

"I didn't need to do loads (in terms of captaincy).

"We had a pretty clear game plan at half-time of what our game was going to look like and when you've got boys like Courts (Lawes) and Fin (Smith) and Mitch (Alex Mitchell) as well, it helps you control territory."

Furbank savoured the atmosphere at Thomond Park and expressed his gratitude for the travelling support Saints received.

"It (the atmosphere) was unbelievable," he said.

"I was yellow carded at half-time so I went out a bit before the team and they were playing Zombie with all the lights out and the torches on.

"The atmosphere is second to none, it's an amazing place to play.

"The travelling supporters make a massive difference and I'm sure they had some good nights.

"We appreciate that support massively - it makes a massive difference for us."