FIRED-UP Finn Russell has warned Munster that Glasgow will head to Limerick full of confidence they can claim their first victory over the Irish province in the Emerald Isle since May 2008.

That famous 21-18 victory at Musgrave Park came in the final game of the season courtesy of a controversial try from Thom Evans, a week before the Munster men ran out in the Heineken Cup final.

But since then Warriors have won just two of the next 11 meetings and have already lost out 13-6 to Munster at Scotstoun earlier this term in a disappointing defeat back in October.

But buoyed by a three-game winning run on home soil, rookie back Russell says Glasgow are revved up for their rematch with the second-placed Irish side, and will head for Thomond Park with no fear despite the damming evidence of the rugby history books.

He said: "We will go to Thomond Park with every respect for Munster but certainly no fear. We know our record there has not been good in recent seasons but with the three home wins behind us over Scarlets, Ospreys and Treviso, we have to go to Ireland with our belief high we can get the win we need.

"But Munster showed by the way they beat Toulouse to make the semi-finals of the Heineken Cup on Saturday that they are bang on form and in European rugby there is probably no tougher venue to play in than Thomond.

"So we are under no illusions as to how tough it will be to get the win. But at the same time if we play to our best and make sure that we start at the same tempo we did against Treviso we can give them plenty of problems."

The increasingly impressive 21-year-old claimed the man of the match award against Treviso last time out with an assured display, first at inside centre and then at stand-off, where his unerring accuracy with the boot kept the scoreboard ticking over nicely against an obdurate Italian outfit.

Russell arrived at Glasgow in the summer of 2012 after impressing with Falkirk and Scotland under-20s and made his debut off the bench against Zebre last season before claiming his first home start in fixture with Dragons in November.

Having been rewarded with a new two-year deal that kick-starts at the beginning of next season, Russell's exceptional goal-kicking skills could become increasingly important to Gregor Townsend's men and provide the solution to a problem that has undermined the men-in-black ever since Dan Parks departure in 2010.

THE Warriors' rising star has no doubt about the importance of Glasgow's successful Italian job against Treviso.

Russell said: "Treviso showed by beating Edinburgh before they came to us just what they are capable off and they gave Munster all the trouble they could handle the game before that. Against us, despite the fact we got two early tries, they just wouldn't go away and we really had to grind out the win at times.

"These are the kind of victories that can make all the difference and with the bonus point we have gone fourth and given ourselves a great platform into the trip to Munster.

"But this really is an acid test for us and if we could get the win at Thomond it would provide a fantastic lift for the remainder of the season."