CJ Stander readily admits that Ireland’s Grand Slam showdown with England is the biggest game of his career.
With a NatWest 6 Nations medal already in the bag after victory over Scotland, thoughts immediately turned to Twickenham where Ireland will have a chance on Saturday to claim what would be just their third clean sweep in history.
"We’ve talked to players and ex-players who have got it," said the 27-year-old Munster back row, who made his international debut in 2016.
"This group, we haven’t had the opportunity so we can look back at how they did it and what it meant to them. We’ve still got a job to do.
"It’s a great opportunity. You set goals for yourself at the beginning of the year and on a personal level you strive to be part of that.
"Now we’ve got an opportunity and we’ve got to make sure we rest up and get ready for next week.
"For sure [it will be the biggest game of my career].
"There’s an opportunity to create something for ourselves as a group.
"Some of us, it’s their first Six Nations, some of us have been here for a few years. Preparation-wise, put the head down, make sure you train well and get into the team for Saturday."
Joe Schmidt's men claimed the championship after England lost in France and Johnny Sexton told reporters after that celebrations amongst the group were "muted".
"It's a very strange feeling to win the championship with a game to go," he said.
But that just indicates how much the players want to complete the Slam next Saturday (2.45pm).
"We said as a group we wanted to achieve something," added Stander, who made 14 ball-carries and 12 tackles during yesterday's win.
"That was probably in the back of our minds, we’ve played well in the last few games, got lucky as well in a few games.
"Some games we were physically dominant. It’s a great achievement for this group and hopefully we can push on.
"It has been a long campaign, so it’s about making sure you know what you are doing on the pitch and making sure you know what you stand for and what you are playing for.
"A lot of players make a lot of sacrifices. I’ve made a lot of sacrifices to be here but a lot of people stuck their head out for me and taught me a lot of the game.
"I lost a lot of friends and coaches along the way so it’s good to give them something back."
