Munster centre Chris Farrell said the province's deep-rooted culture of team spirit is in stark contrast to what he experienced in his time playing in France.
The 23-year-old Belfast man returned home in the summer after three years in the Top 14 with Grenoble.
He helped Rassie Erasmus's outfit to a gritty 21-16 Pro14 victory at the Ospreys on Saturday, and, although frustrated at the scrappy nature of the performance, he afterwards hailed the close bond within the group.
"There's such a proud history," Farrell told RTÉ Sport. "This team is so tight from last year. You can see that.
"Coming from France, coming from a team where there was a bit of separation... this team is completely different. There's such a good feel about this team."
Munster held off a second-half comeback from their hosts to earn their third straight league victory in heavy rain at the Liberty Stadium.
The Irish province dominated most of the match but both Farrell and Erasmus admitted they have kinks to iron out.
"The second half was very difficult," Farrell added. "The weather was perfect when we got here, then it poured down for the whole of the second half!
"It's the kind of game where you go home and you get a bit frustrated when you think back to what happened in the second half. You just can't wait to get started again next week and forget about it.
"The Ospreys are a good team and I think they really get up for games against Munster. We've got to be satisfied with three from three."
Erasmus echoed those sentiments but is confident Munster will gel as the campaign progresses.
"It was a scrappy game," he said. "They'll feel the same from their coaching side. There were stages where they controlled the game well and there were stages we controlled the game well.
"Listen, it's an away game and we got our four points so we're happy with that but certainly it was really messy.
"We could have been much more clinical and sharp and played the conditions better. The players know that.
"The boys dug it out and at the end there was one or two good mauls to close the game down. Then they started running from their own 22. There is a lot to work on. Ospreys are a bloody good team.
"It's a tricky one. I just feel we haven't really hit our stride but we'll have a good think and see if we can do it better next week."
